How to Make Candied Lemon Peel
Let me show you how easy and simple it is to make candied lemon peel. They are perfect for snacking and holiday baking, but lemon peel candy also makes a fantastic holiday food gift!
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They say when life gives you lemons … you make candied lemon peel.
Well, maybe not, but you might as well!
Rather than tossing citrus peels out after you juice them, use them to make delicious lemon peel candy! It’s delicious, and the method has been around for well over one hundred years.
Candied Lemon Peel
Our grandmothers knew how to be frugal – They could not afford to throw anything away that was good and edible. Open up an old cookbook and you are bound to find recipes for candied citrus peels. This recipe comes from a German cookbook, where it is called Zitronat or Sukkade.
Actually, you can make citrus peel candy using any type of citrus fruit; lemons, oranges, limes, and even grapefruit!
Video Tutorial
Ingredients
You just need 3 ingredients to make this recipe!
- citrus peel: Choose large lemons with bright peels. Look past any that show signs of bruising and those with white or black spots (signs of mildew/mold).
- organic sugar: Of course, any type of granulated white sugar will work here, even granulated sugar substitutes such as monk fruit or coconut sugar.
- water
That’s all!
How to make candied lemon peel
Note: This is just a summary of the steps involved. For the full instructions, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Wash the lemons under cool tap water.
- Trim the ends. Use a sharp knife to remove a small portion from the top and bottom of each lemon.
- Score and peel the fruit. Make a knife cut, from the top to the bottom. Then use your hands to gently pull the peel away.
- Slice the lemon peels into thin strips. If your strips have a lot of the bitter white pith, you can use the edge of your knife blade to scrape some of it away.
- Place the citrus strips into a heavy- bottomed sauce pot.
- Cover with cold water and boil the mixture for about 10 minutes.
- Drain the water and repeat the boiling process two more times.
- Cover with cold water and boil the mixture for about 10 minutes.
- Add sugar to the drained lemon peels.
- Cover with water, stir, then simmer the mixture for about an hour.
- Drain and dry the candied lemon peel. The candy will need to dry for about 24 hours.
- Optional: Save the sugar water. This liquid, known as simple syrup, can be used to make cocktails or lemonade.
How to use candied lemon peels
You might be surprised at how delicious these candied lemon peels are. Place them in a pretty jar and put them out for snacking.
These candied lemon peels are also perfect for your holiday baking. Namely in your Christmas Stollen recipe for which it is an essential ingredient.
Or you use curled candied lemon peels to decorate the glasses of your drinks or cocktails.
I am sure you’ll find a lot more uses once you make them!
Other recipes to make with lemons
I’d love to hear your feedback and questions, so please leave a comment below!
Candied Lemon Peel
Ingredients
- 3-5 big lemons
- 2 cups organic sugar
- 2+ cups water
Instructions
- Wash lemons thoroughly.
- With a sharp knife score the lemons from the top to the bottom.
- Gently pull the peel away from the lemons with your hands.
- Cut the peels in thin strips and place them in a medium sauce pot.
- Cover with water and bring to a boil. Boil for about 10 minutes.
- Drain the water and repeat this process 2 more times.
- To the drained lemon peels add 2 cups of sugar and 2 cups of water.
- Over medium heat, bring to a boil. Simmer the lemon peels for about 1 hour.
- With a slotted spoon, transfer the lemon peels to a drying rack. Let them drain and dry for about 24 hours.
Notes
- use the candied lemon peels for snacking, in your favorite recipe, or to decorate cocktail glasses
- you can use the same method for orange peels
Video
Nutrition
Pin For Later:
Just like the stollen, I’m sure this would make a perfect addition to my holiday panettone baking. Thanks again Anya!
Yes, candied lemon peel would be great in Panettone! Happy baking ~ Anja
I love this so much! What a great way to use the peel of the lemon. Sometimes it feels so wasteful to juice and then throw away. Pinning for later.
I am so glad you like this and thank you! It’s definitely the way to go with lemons 💛🍋
I love how unique and beautiful these are! Definitely a good idea as a gift and we certainly can’t buy these in Zimbabwe!
Yes, they make very good gifts. Thank you so much!!
Wow these are gorgeous!! These would make such a great homemade gift too!
This sounds so delicious, and it’s so pretty, too!
thank you! They are yummy indeed. It was hard to keep my family from just snacking away (I wanted to use them in a recipe).
Yum, I could totally see myself eating these just on their own! I made candied ginger yesterday and that was really good as well!
aww … thank you and yes, candied ginger is great, too!