Sweet, tart, and easy-to-make candied orange slices. These elegant citrus garnishes are perfect for decorating cakes, cocktails, and desserts — and they make beautiful homemade gifts.
Coat them in sugar, dip them in chocolate, or enjoy these c uniquely elegant and chewy candied oranges as they are.
The process is simple, and they’ll keep for a few months.
Candying oranges transforms them into glistening juicy jewels that make for a refreshingly sweet treat.
Why this Candied Citrus Recipe Works
- 3 ingredients only & easy-to-make. Citrus, sugar, water combine to make something greater than the sum of its parts.
- Boiling before simmer in simple syrup. Helps eliminate the bitter flavor from the orange pith.
- Drying for 24 hours. Creates perfectly chewy candied orange slices.
- Versatile. Use to garnish all sorts of desserts and drinks, as holiday gifts and more! Make these candied citrus’ once and use in a variety of ways.
Food Taste Best Grown in its own Season
The arrival of winter brings a bounty of orange varieties. They’re in peak season in California in the winter through spring.
the most popular eating orange in Cali is the Washington Naval Orange is but there’s over 400 different kinds that go way beyond this common one!
California Orange Varieties Include:
- Navel Oranges
- Valencia Oranges
- Cara Car Oranges
- Blood Oranges
Any type of orange or other citrus variety works for this recipe. Lemons, limes, mandarins, tangerines, clementines, tangelos, grapefruits, and more work.
Keep in mind: the rind can be bitter. I prefer using varieties with a thinner rind.
How to Make Candied Orange Slices
Ingredients: orange, water & sugar. (works with any citrus variety).
Process: wash, slice, boil, simmer and dry for 24 hours.
The process:
- Wash orange thoroughly to remove any residue or pesticides.
- Slice oranges about 1/3” thick. If they’re too thin, they’re less likely to hold their shape while simmering. The thicker they are, the longer they’ll take to dry. Best to use a mandolin for uniform slices but a chef’s knife works as well.
- Boil in water
- Simmer in simple syrup
- Carefully transfer slices to a cooling rack to dry for 24 hours, until they’re completely dry.
They’ll keep for a few months stored in an airtight container in a cool place. Avoid the refrigerator, where they’ll get wet & gooey.
Candied Citrus Uses
Coat them in sugar, dip them in chocolate, or enjoy them as they are.
Use them as garnishes in mulled wine, cocktails, baked treats, desserts, on cheeseboards and to decorate a holiday meal. They’ll add fresh brightness to any dish.
Have you used candied citrus in a unique and rad way? Please tell me about it in the comments below!
Cooks Tips
- When possible, buy local citrus grown sustainably.
- For easy cleaning, place parchment paper under the drying rack to catch all the citrus drippings.
- Plan ahead. Remember the candied oranges need 24 hours to completely dry.
- Candied oranges keep for a few months stored in an airtight container in a cool place.
- The simple syrup can be and re-used in cocktails and more.
Celebrate the best of seasons fresh orange bounty with this uniquely elegant and refreshing sweet treat!
Want more seasonal citrus recipes?
For savory check out: Blood Orange & Fennel Salad, Roasted Beet & Citrus Salad and Citrus Roasted Salmon.
For sweet, check out: Upside-Down Winter Citrus Cake and these Candied Blood Oranges Dipped in Chocolate!
Have ya tried this recipe? I’d love to hear about it and see it too! Please leave a comment below and take a pic and tag it on Instagram with @DanielaGerson. You can also follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest to see more colorfully delicious food and awesome adventures!
Let's make waves in the kitchen!
Have ya tried this recipe? I’d love to hear about it and see it too! Please leave a comment below and take a pic and tag it on Instagram with #wavesinthekitchen. You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more colorfully delicious food and all sorts of awesome adventures!
Let’s make waves in the kitchen!
Candied Oranges
Ingredients
- 4 oranges naval or blood oranges
- 8 cups water divided
- 4 cups granulated sugar
Instructions
- Add 4 cups of the water to a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the orange slices and boil for 2 minutes. With a slotted spoon, take all of them out and momentarily set aside.
- In the same saucepan, add the remaining 4 cups water and the sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar has completely dissolved.
- Turn the heat to medium-low and add all the boiled citrus back in. Simmer for 45-60 minutes or until rinds are slightly translucent. Gently swirl the slices every 15 minutes so they cook evenly in the syrup.
- Transfer the orange slices to a cooling rack set over a baking sheet. Let them sit for up to 24 hours or until dry.
- Use immediately or store the candied orange slices in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 month.
Notes
- When possible, buy local citrus grown sustainably.
- For easy cleaning, place parchment paper under the drying rack to catch all the citrus drippings.
- Plan ahead. Remember the candied oranges need 24 hours to completely dry.
- Candied oranges keep for a few months stored in an airtight container in a cool place.
- The simple syrup can be and re-used in cocktails and more.
I’m making these now, with rangpur limes, plus a couple regular limes, a few slices each of orange, and Meyer lemon, and one slice of pink grapefruit. They are on the “simmer”stage and the house smells wonderful. So far recipe is easy to follow. I picked out all the seeds I could before boiling, and found a few more before simmering, I then also ran a strainer through my syrup before adding the slices back to boil and skimmed off more floating seed pips.
Thanks so much sharing M and love the range of citrus you're using! Take a pic please if you can as I'd absolutely love to see your colorful candied citrus bounty :).
I'm also using limes like 1st post. Got a bag full so I'm freezing zest and juice of the good ones and the bruisey ones are getting candied!! Thanks for this recipe. I'll also use the leftover syrup to make hard candies.
Love it Geanie, great use for the bruisey ones and thanks so much for sharing! Absolute pleasure on sharing the recipes and love to hear how they came out :).