How to Dry Lemon Peel in Oven

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How to Dry Lemon Peel in Oven. Don’t waste those citrus peels. Instead, use it as a lemon zest replacement, add flavor to recipes or use it as a seasoning for meats, vegetables, and pasta.

Drying lemon peels are especially useful when lemons are in season and in abundance. It’s also great if you are making a recipe that calls for lemon juice such as fresh lemonade (like my Easy Cherry Lemonade). This will ensure you use the whole lemon without waste.

Lemon Peel Benefits

Is lemon peel good for you? Lemon peels contain calcium, vitamin C, potassium, fiber so there are definitely benefits of eating the lemon peel. They promote healthy skin, teeth, and hair and also boost immunity and digestion.

How to Dry Lemon Peel in the Oven

Making dried lemon peel is super simple, just zest lemons and dry the zest.

How to Peel a Lemon

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There are several tools you can use to grate or zest a lemon.

• citrus zester
• microplane
• vegetable grater
• vegetable peeler

If you want a thicker peel, use the vegetable peeler, citrus zester, or the larger side of a vegetable grater. For a more fine peel, use the Microplane or the smaller side of the vegetable grater. It’s up to you if you want a thick or more fine lemon peel.

How to Dry Lemon

1. Wash and dry the lemons.
2. Zest lemons using a zester, microplane, grater, or peeler. Zest only the yellow rind and avoid zesting the white pith.
3. Spread out zest on a baking sheet. Bake 20-25 minutes or until zest is dried. Alternatively, you can leave zest to dry out at room temperature until dried.

Common Questions

How much Dried Lemon Peel Equals the Zest of one Lemon?

The zest of one lemon is approximately 1 teaspoon of dried lemon peel.

Is lemon zest the same as lemon peel?

The zest is the outermost part of the lemon (yellow rind) and the peel is the skin layer (yellow rind and inner white part).

Can you eat a lemon peel?

Yes, you can eat lemon peels, however, the white part of the peel can be bitter. So I usually just consume the zest.

Storing Dried Lemon Zest

Once zest is completely dried, store in an airtight container.

How long will it last?

It will last for up to a year in an airtight container.

What to do with Dried Lemon Peel?

• Sprinkle on yogurt, smoothie bowls, and salads.
• Use as a seasoning for chicken, fish, vegetables, and pasta.
• Add to drinks, teas, cocktails, and baked goods.
• Elevate the flavor in soups and salad dressing.
• Replace fresh lemon zest in a recipe.
• Add to Easy Homemade Sugar Scrub.
• Add to natural cleaning products.
• Or use as a natural potpourri.

You can use this same method for drying other citrus fruits. I used dried lime in my Homemade Taco Seasoning.