P.J. - here is my tutorial on citrus dust. It is so much fun to play with. (this is probably more than you will ever want to know about it, but...)
Denise, couldn't you just blow someone's socks off garnishing a mystery bag entree with a little citrus dust you had hidden in your tool box??? (I did - my Chef/Instructor had never seen it before)
* Exported from MasterCook *
CITRUS DUST - TUTORIAL
Paulie - carefully peel (not zest) oranges, limes, lemons, grapefruits, etc...whatever you want (if you want to blend them, do them separate, then combine later....but start with oranges, they are easier to work with). Remove the white, bitter pith with a small, sharp knife. Now, you can go two ways with this:
1) place the peelings on a paper-towel lined plate and put in microwave. Put the micro on a low setting (defrost or lower) and start with 2 minutes. Nuke. Repeat until the peelings have shrunken, have not coloured (if they have, you have, reduce the power) and are starting to dry out. When they are about 85-95% dried out, remove and let cool at room temp for 10 minutes. They will "crisp up".
2) place on a baking sheet lines with parchment paper and put in an oven at 200F or even lower. Look for the same things you would as above - drying up, but not colouring. This may take as long as an hour or so...depending on your oven temp.
In both cases, you should smell a "fresh" kind of aroma - not cooked.
When dry and cooled, grind in a VERY CLEAN spice/coffee grinder until finely powdered.
You will be amazed at the overwhelming aroma and colour of your "dust". Place in an airtight container and keep in a dry, cool place. It will last for at least a week, but will get less aromatic as it sits.
Use it with salt as a citrus dust for fish, or use it to coat game meats (and sear them), add to frostings, cake mixes, ice creams, etc...wherever you want a "shot" of citrus...
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Scotty - Reporting back from playtime Captain Ramjet.
Nuking for 2 mins on power 1/10 for 4 turns (8 mins) - looked like it was almost there. Nuked it another two mins - toast. Second attempt was fine at about 8 1/2. There's a fairly fine line between success and disaster with this in a microwave from my wee experience here.
Have you ever tried limes in the mwave? You were right, they're fun. Second batch wasn't bad. Looked like another 15-20 secs would toast it, but ground up it wasn't as crisp as the orange and still a little bit chewy. Rolling it around the frying pan over ultra-low sorted that.
Its going in the ice cream for tomorrow. Thanks Chef.
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Paulie - I guess it's time to play again!
(Thanks for the kitchen report, Scotty - amazing how just a few seconds can make a difference huh? Better to take them out a touch early and let them sit and crisp up. And if they need more time, just zap em again.)
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Paulie - well, with Jean beside me, it took about 10-12 minutes at 20% on a "regular" microwave...
the paper towel is important to keep the steam off of the citrus...
----
Clive - More field study reports:
I did orange peel this morning, 10 minutes in the microwave, minute by minute. After 10 mins outside - they were still a little too moist so I took them outside and left them in the sun for 1/2 hr. Magic. Sprinkled dust on a Caesar Salad. Very nice!!
Grapefruit peel: I didnt even bother with the microwave - straight into the sunshine. Still waiting ( it's only been an hour or so) but initial results look good!
----
Clive again - Student No. 2 reporting back:
I left the grapefruit peel in the hot sun all afternoon.
Perfectly crispy, and still very fragrant. Beautifully yellow, and ground up into the finest powder you could imagine.
Tomorrow: lime peel!
----
Someone - A quick question though. Paul, you say to peel the orange first, then remove the pith, but when I "zest" my citrus I use a veggie peeler and get long wide stripes of just the zest, no white at all. Is it okay to do it that way? Or are you suggesting that it's best to do it your way and get something a little thicker?
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Paulie - thickness isn't an issue - the peel can be paper thin, or it can much thicker - as long as the white pith is removed, then you are fine!
I use a veg peeler too - sometimes I get the peel clean, other times not. It depends on the fruit and the peeler used.
----
Denise, couldn't you just blow someone's socks off garnishing a mystery bag entree with a little citrus dust you had hidden in your tool box??? (I did - my Chef/Instructor had never seen it before)
* Exported from MasterCook *
CITRUS DUST - TUTORIAL
Paulie - carefully peel (not zest) oranges, limes, lemons, grapefruits, etc...whatever you want (if you want to blend them, do them separate, then combine later....but start with oranges, they are easier to work with). Remove the white, bitter pith with a small, sharp knife. Now, you can go two ways with this:
1) place the peelings on a paper-towel lined plate and put in microwave. Put the micro on a low setting (defrost or lower) and start with 2 minutes. Nuke. Repeat until the peelings have shrunken, have not coloured (if they have, you have, reduce the power) and are starting to dry out. When they are about 85-95% dried out, remove and let cool at room temp for 10 minutes. They will "crisp up".
2) place on a baking sheet lines with parchment paper and put in an oven at 200F or even lower. Look for the same things you would as above - drying up, but not colouring. This may take as long as an hour or so...depending on your oven temp.
In both cases, you should smell a "fresh" kind of aroma - not cooked.
When dry and cooled, grind in a VERY CLEAN spice/coffee grinder until finely powdered.
You will be amazed at the overwhelming aroma and colour of your "dust". Place in an airtight container and keep in a dry, cool place. It will last for at least a week, but will get less aromatic as it sits.
Use it with salt as a citrus dust for fish, or use it to coat game meats (and sear them), add to frostings, cake mixes, ice creams, etc...wherever you want a "shot" of citrus...
------
Scotty - Reporting back from playtime Captain Ramjet.
Nuking for 2 mins on power 1/10 for 4 turns (8 mins) - looked like it was almost there. Nuked it another two mins - toast. Second attempt was fine at about 8 1/2. There's a fairly fine line between success and disaster with this in a microwave from my wee experience here.
Have you ever tried limes in the mwave? You were right, they're fun. Second batch wasn't bad. Looked like another 15-20 secs would toast it, but ground up it wasn't as crisp as the orange and still a little bit chewy. Rolling it around the frying pan over ultra-low sorted that.
Its going in the ice cream for tomorrow. Thanks Chef.
---
Paulie - I guess it's time to play again!
(Thanks for the kitchen report, Scotty - amazing how just a few seconds can make a difference huh? Better to take them out a touch early and let them sit and crisp up. And if they need more time, just zap em again.)
----
Paulie - well, with Jean beside me, it took about 10-12 minutes at 20% on a "regular" microwave...
the paper towel is important to keep the steam off of the citrus...
----
Clive - More field study reports:
I did orange peel this morning, 10 minutes in the microwave, minute by minute. After 10 mins outside - they were still a little too moist so I took them outside and left them in the sun for 1/2 hr. Magic. Sprinkled dust on a Caesar Salad. Very nice!!
Grapefruit peel: I didnt even bother with the microwave - straight into the sunshine. Still waiting ( it's only been an hour or so) but initial results look good!
----
Clive again - Student No. 2 reporting back:
I left the grapefruit peel in the hot sun all afternoon.
Perfectly crispy, and still very fragrant. Beautifully yellow, and ground up into the finest powder you could imagine.
Tomorrow: lime peel!
----
Someone - A quick question though. Paul, you say to peel the orange first, then remove the pith, but when I "zest" my citrus I use a veggie peeler and get long wide stripes of just the zest, no white at all. Is it okay to do it that way? Or are you suggesting that it's best to do it your way and get something a little thicker?
----
Paulie - thickness isn't an issue - the peel can be paper thin, or it can much thicker - as long as the white pith is removed, then you are fine!
I use a veg peeler too - sometimes I get the peel clean, other times not. It depends on the fruit and the peeler used.
----
Retired and having fun writing cookbooks, tasting wine and sharing recipes with all my friends.
www.achefsjourney.com
www.achefsjourney.com