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Uses for orange peel


What to do with Orange Peels? GREAT LIST OF IDEAS!

What To Do With Orange Peels will give you some ideas on orange rinds and how not to let them go to unnecessary waste. Citrus peels not only smell amazing, but you can use them for cleaning, beauty products, in gardening, and as an ingredient for recipes.

If you’re looking for more articles on not creating waste, How to Use Leftover Ingredients and How to Dry Orange Slices will help you on your journey.

What to do with Orange Peels

I use at least one to two oranges a day to make an orangeade or to add to my morning juice or smoothie. Throwing away the orange rind seemed like such a waste. I knew there had to be multiple ideas on what to do with orange peels.

Who knew there were so many unexpected ways to use the skin of this popular fruit?

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Here’s What to do with Leftover Orange Peels?

Using Orange Peels for Cleaning

What to do with Orange Peels – Homemade Orange Cleaner

Yumiko Sekine, in her book Simplicity at Home, gives her favorite recipe for her own natural cleaner using fresh orange peels.

Orange peels have the perfect concentration of limonene oil that is great for cutting through grease and conditions wood surfaces. Simply peel one orange for every 1/2 cup of water and let simmer for 15 minutes. Let cool and pour into a spray bottle for a natural way to clean surfaces.

Leftover Orange Peels for Freshening the Garbage Disposal

Cut your orange peels into thin strips and add to your garbage disposal to eliminate bad odors. Turn it on and let the oils from the peels deodorize the garbage disposal. You can also use other citrus fruits like limes and lemons in addition to the orange rinds.

If you’re not ready to clean your garbage disposal, place the citrus peels in an ice cube tray and add water. Freeze the cubes and place them in a freezer bag. Use In the citrus peel cubes at a later date.

Remove Coffee Stains in Mugs

Coffee stains will disappear if you rub the pithy side of an orange peel on the inside of your mug.

Orange Rind Candle

A friend of mine loves to make candles out of orange rinds. She starts with a half an orange shell base and pours the wax in the rind with a wick. They look beautiful on her dinner table and she will often gift me with an orange peel candle.

Stove Potpourri

Make stove potpourri with a handful of orange peels, lemon peels, and a cinnamon stick to give you home a fresh scent with a citrus.

Using Orange Peels for Beauty

Invigorate Bath Time

Store your orange peels in a mason jar in the refrigerator. When it’s time for a bath, throw a handful of peels into your tub. The heat of the water will release the citrus scent, making bath time even more special.

As an extra bonus the citric acid in the peels will help slough off dead skin.

Orange Peel Powder

You can dry orange peels and grind them up in a food processor to grind into a fine powder. Store in a glass jar until you use the powder in recipes. It’s a popular ingredient in making beauty products at home for your hair, skin, or teeth. You can find different ways of using orange peel in beauty recipes here.

What to do with Orange Peels in the Kitchen

Make Candied Orange Peel

Homemade Candied Orange Peel

This is my favorite idea on What to do with orange peels. You can easily make your own Candied Orange Peel recipe at home. Make sure you take off the white pith, it makes the it bitter tasting. Here’s a recipe for how to make it on Epicurious.

Orange Peel Uses – Candied Orange Peels

Use Orange Peels for Zest in Recipes

What to do with Orange Peels – Orange Zest

There are a lot of recipes that call for orange zest. If you’re not going to use it right away, freeze the zest in a freezer bag for future use. Orange peels are loaded with Vitamin C and add an abundance of flavor.

Fresh Bouquet Garni

What is a bouquet garni you ask? It’s a French term for a bundle of herbs like parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. It’s usually tied together with fresh celery or leek. Adding a twist of orange peel will give even more flavor to your dish.

The French use these bundles to give flavor to soups, stews, roasts, and sauces.

Orange Peels for Tea Blends

Homemade Herbal Tea Mix

If you enjoy herbal teas, you can make your own blends using dried orange peels. Mix it with herbs, florals, and even black teas for a wonderful combination.

Dried citrus peel has anti-inflammatory properties, which makes it a good thing for you body and taste buds.

Lump-Free Brown Sugar

Prevent your brown sugar from getting hard by keeping a 3-inch piece of orange peel in the container.

Orange Rind Bowls

Use Orange Rinds for Bowls

If you want to add a little beauty to your table, use orange rinds as a bowl for ice cream, sherbet, or fruit ice is a simple way to impress your guests. It’s a great way to give visual interest to your dining table.

Orange Peel Cocktail Garnish

Orange Peel Cocktail Garnish

Your cocktails will be elevated to a new level with fresh orange peel garnishes.

What to do with Orange Peels – Orange Zest Garnish

Adding orange zest as a garnish to food makes an inviting presentation. Chocolate desserts look especially festive, topped with orange zest. The holidays are a perfect time to use the orange rind creatively.

Infused Water

Add orange peels mixed with other ingredients to create infused water is one of the easiest ideas for what to do with orange peels.

Orange Peel Olive Oil

If you like infused olive oils, you’ll love making your own orange olive oil. They are great to use in salad dressings. It’s easy to make with just two ingredients – oil and orange peel. You can find the recipe here on Epicurious.

Citrus Butter

One of my favorite ways to turn my meals from good to great is to make compound butters. Using fresh orange peel to make a citrus butter is a fun way to elevate pancakes, waffles, toast, English muffins, and even fish.

Homemade Orange Marmalade

Homemade Orange Marmalade

Orange Marmalade uses fresh orange peel in thin strips as an ingredient. It’s the perfect idea when you are searching for what to do with orange peels.

What to do with Orange Peels in the Garden

Orange Peel Starter Pots

Use the hallowed-out orange peel halves as starter pots for seedlings. Fill half orange rinds with potting soil, seeds, and then water.

Plant the “pots” directly into the garden once the seedlings are mature enough.

Orange Peel Bird Feeder

What to do with Orange Peels – Orange Rind Bird Feeder

Turning your orange rinds into homemade bird feeders is a fun activity for both kids and adults. They look so beautiful and vibrant against a winter backdrop.

Uses for Orange Peels – How to Make an Orange Peel Bird Feeder

Using Orange Peels for a Compost Pile

Adding your orange rinds to your compost pile to help make healthy soil is a perfect solution for what to do with orange peels. It’s good for the environment and will help you create the garden of your dreams.

Repel Insects and Cats

Use small pieces of orange peel as a natural insect repellant in your garden is a great use for your leftover peels. Cats don’t like the scent of oranges as well. If you have a problem with stray cats digging in your garden beds, simply scatter orange peel in the areas they frequent.

Decorate Snow Art

Using Orange Peels for Decorative Snow Art

Saving your orange peels for snow art is a fun project to celebrate the holiday season. Look how cute these orange peel lips are!

We’ve reached the end of the What Can You Do With Citrus Peels?  I hope you enjoyed it.

Let me know in the comments below how you liked What Can You Do With Orange Peels and your favorite ways to use them.

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What to do with Orange Peels

Orange Peel Uses | Reader's Digest

The fresh scent and essential oils in oranges make orange peels an excellent natural cleaner and air freshener.

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How to use orange peels for just about anything

If you’ve just finished eating a juicy orange, do not throw out that orange peel! What you might think is a common food scrap actually has quite a few nifty uses around the house. Read on to find out what they are.

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Refresh your fridge

Does your refrigerator smell sour? A few orange peels thrown into the mix can sweeten up the scent in no time. Meg Roberts, president of cleaning service Molly Maid, suggests filling an orange rind with salt and leaving it in the fridge. “The salt will absorb odor and moisture in the refrigerator’s air, while the fruit will leave behind its citrus scent,” she says. Once the salt becomes damp, take the peel out and replace it with a new one as needed. Here are 27 other annoying smells you can neutralize with items in your kitchen.

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Clean wood surfaces

Not only will repurposing your orange peels to wipe down your wood surfaces leave your tables and cabinets clean and shiny, but they’ll smell great, too. Combine your leftover citrus peels with vinegar to create an all-natural, non-toxic cleaner with this recipe from the Kitchn: Fill a mason jar halfway with orange peels, pour vinegar over the top until the jar is filled, and then let the mixture sit for at least two weeks. After letting it soak, strain the concoction to remove the peels, pour it into a spray bottle, and you’re good to go!

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Polish stainless steel

Similar to their effects on wood, orange peels remove water stains by cutting through them with their tough, natural oils. A few rubs and your stainless steel surfaces should be good as new.

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Keep your closet smelling clean

If your closet begins racking up that old, musty smell, Roberts suggests placing orange peels in old pantyhose and sticking them with your clothes. “Like potpourri, these can be placed anywhere in the closet, whether it’s on a shelf or in drawers,” Roberts says. To keep your closet smelling fresh, replace the orange peels as they dry out.  Here’s what to throw away the next time you clean out your closet, to help keep musty smells at bay.

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Condition your locks

We all know that the loads of vitamin C found in oranges helps build up your immune system, but who knew it could work wonders for your hair, too? To make a homemade orange peel conditioner, just throw an orange—with its peel still attached—into a blender, apply the serum to the full length of your hair, and enjoy your soft, smooth new ‘do, suggests beauty blog beautytipslife.

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Soften brown sugar

Any baker knows that leaving a bag of brown sugar in your pantry can lead to rock-hard clumps, but fortunately, orange peels can help prevent this. Citrus peels are hardwired to maintain moisture, so keeping a few pieces in with your brown sugar will allow the peel’s moisture to spread throughout the container. Simply toss a few slices of peel into your box, and watch the sugar return to its state of softness in just a few hours.

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Remove stinky sink odors

Need a quick fix for a stinky sink? Toss a few orange peels down your garbage disposal to eliminate any odor in a pinch. According to Roberts, orange peels naturally contain oils and juices that cut through the grease and grime that can build up in garbage disposals, leaving your drain spotless and smelling great. Make sure you never put these things down a garbage disposal.

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Repel bugs

According to sfgate.com, orange peels contain a 90 to 95 percent concentration of limonene, a chemical that is toxic to mosquitoes, flies, and other bugs. Placing snippets of orange peels around your yard or near your doors and windows is a simple and inexpensive way to keep pesky bugs and mosquitoes out. For individual use, simply rub the peel on areas of your skin to steer clear of bug bites.

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Build a better bonfire

Putting your old orange peels to use can help you have the tallest flames on the block. The natural oils found in orange peels are flammable and offer a slower burn than a typical fire starter, like twigs or newspaper. And they smell a lot better, too! Next, find out more extraordinary uses for household staples you already own.

Originally Published: October 31, 2019

Originally Published in Reader's Digest

Orange peels - benefits for the garden and garden, features of use in the country

Cooking and cosmetology are not the only areas where orange peel is successfully used. In horticulture and horticulture, this food waste is becoming more and more famous due to its invaluable properties.

Some summer residents doubt whether it is worth using orange peels in the garden, whether it is too troublesome, whether it will give the expected effect. Meanwhile, such a folk remedy may well be on a par with onions and garlic in terms of versatility and useful qualities. And in terms of nutritional value, it is not inferior to mineral supplements.

Orange peels - benefits and harms

Orange peel contains more vitamins A, C, E than its pulp, rich in essential oils, flavonoids (vegetable pigments) and pectin substances. It contains a lot of potassium and phosphorus, which are vital for plants, as well as sodium, which is involved in cellular metabolism and increases the winter hardiness of plants. A real storehouse of usefulness, which should not be thrown into the trash!

The peels can be used fresh or dried, in the form of infusions and crushed substances.

We have figured out what orange peels are good for. As for harm: for soil and plants, the use of zest in reasonable quantities is absolutely safe. But remember, any citrus fruits acidify the soil, which can adversely affect the soil microflora. Although there has been one amazing experiment in history. On the territory of Guanacaste , one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 12 tons of orange peels were unloaded, which were left over from the production of juice. In total, they covered 3 hectares of low-fertility soil.

After a while the soil "came to life", grass appeared on it. And after 15 years, the entire territory was densely overgrown with greenery, which became a real sensation! Therefore, the use of orange peels to restore and nourish the soil is fully justified. But this is not their only ability.

Now let's take a closer look at how you can use orange peels in the country.

Orange peels as fertilizer

Most often, orange peel is used to feed plants and improve soil fertility. To do this, it is buried in the ground, like banana skins, to a depth of 5 cm. The crust saturates the soil with nitrogenous compounds and improves plant germination.

If you throw away citrus peels, then only in compost! Here it will bring a double benefit: it will become a breeding ground for microflora and scare away from a bunch of insects. To make the peel decompose faster, wash it and finely chop it.

Store-bought oranges are coated with special antimicrobial agents, so that even in compost, mold will not appear on the peels. Before entering the soil, these substances will completely decompose and will not cause any harm.

Orange peel infusion for pest control

Orange peel is a deadly poison for some pests. And all thanks to the content of a special substance in it - limonene , which violates the protective coating of insects and leads to their death.

If plants are infested with spider mites, thrips, aphids, spray plants with orange peel infusion. To do this, peel 2-3 oranges, chop the peel and pour 1 liter of warm water. Insist in a dark place for a week. Then strain, add 2 liters of water and 1 tbsp. liquid soap. Handle the leaves on both sides.

Thrips and aphids require 2-3, spider mites 5-6 treatments with a weekly interval between sprays. Houseplants can be wiped with a cloth soaked in the infusion.

And here are some more useful pest control recipes:

Orange peel in the garden to repel ants and cats

Orange peel is an excellent natural repellant that will help repel harmful insects. It is especially effective in the fight against ants. To do this, completely chop three medium fruits in a blender, add one glass of water and pour the ant paths with the resulting slurry. You can water the anthill with such a composition. After a while, the insects will be forced to leave for a more suitable place. The only disadvantage of this method: fragility. Therefore, it is worth thinking about additional protection against ants.

Cats do not like strong smells, so orange peels can also be used to scare away the local furry fauna. Lay wet peel on the beds or dig in places where you most often see cats. Such a remedy is also effective: brew the crusts in boiling water and pour all the beds along the perimeter with the resulting water.

Orange peel can also be replaced with essential citrus oil in this case.

It turns out that orange peel can not only repel harmful insects and cats, but also attract butterflies. Put fresh peels on a plate and take them out into the garden. An amazing spectacle of dozens of fluttering butterflies awaits you soon!

Fresh oranges can also be cut to attract butterflies.

How to use orange peels in your summer house

Before the summer season begins, orange peels can be used to light a fire in the stove or fireplace. They burn easily and for a long time, filling the room with a pleasant aroma. To make your home cozier, spread peels in all rooms. This will remove the musty smell that always appears after a long absence of tenants.

Do you want to sit on the veranda in the evening, but mosquitoes and midges do not give you rest? Rub exposed body parts with fresh orange peels and insects won't bother you!

Do not rub orange peel on your skin if you are allergic to citrus fruits.

To make your cottage or bathroom smell pleasant, prepare an inexpensive and safe air freshener. To do this, you will need peels from two oranges, 1 tbsp each. vanilla and ground cloves, 2 tbsp. vinegar, 2-3 cinnamon sticks. Pour all the ingredients in 1.5 liters of water and bring to a boil. Then simmer until fragrant. Cool the resulting mixture and pour into small bowls.

How to prepare an orange peel

Oranges are sold in stores all year round, but traditionally the peak of their consumption is autumn-winter. Therefore, you can start collecting the peel already at this time. It is important to dry the crusts properly. An oven or a dryer for vegetables and fruits is suitable for this. The easiest, but also the longest way is to put the peels on a sheet of paper and place them near the battery.

Store dried peels in a glass jar, paper bag or carton. Already in the spring you can apply part of the zest. Grind the crusts in a blender and sprinkle over the soil to feed it after winter.

Orange peels for the garden will be indispensable helpers. Start collecting them right now. But do not forget about other citrus fruits: tangerines, lemons, grapefruits, which also have properties that are beneficial for plants and soil.

13 ways to use orange peels

February 14, 2014Life DIY

Oranges, tangerines, limes and lemons - from their fragrant peels you can make many useful things, from a cleanser to a body scrub.

Iya Zorina

Author Lifehacker, athlete, CCM

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We clean with citrus peels

Citrus peels have antibacterial properties, which makes them indispensable for home cleaning products. The high citric acid content kills bacteria and mold and removes soap scum and mineral deposits.

1. No stains

Add lemon peels to the dishwasher and no more soap stains on your glasses and glass dishes.

2. Citrus Vinegar

Put citrus peels in a jar, fill them with vinegar, seal and leave for a week. After that, pour the resulting citrus vinegar into a spray bottle and use it as an all-purpose cleaner.

3. Cleaning the coffee pot

To quickly remove coffee stains, add orange peels, a cup or two of ice water and a few tablespoons of salt to the coffee pot. After that, close and shake in a circular motion.

4. Mineral deposits

To remove mineral deposits in the bathroom, sprinkle a little salt on an orange or lemon peel and use as a scrub on the walls and doors in the shower.

5. Cleaning the cutting board

To sanitize the cutting board, put some salt on it and rub it with citrus peel. After that, wash the board and wipe dry.

Cooking with citrus peels

6. Save the peels

Many recipes call for zest, so why not save it for later steaming? You can peel the zest from a few lemons and freeze it in an ice cube container. Each cube will have a serving of about two tablespoons of zest, so it will be convenient to use it.

7. Dried zest

You can dry the rinds in the oven and then store in a jar or grind into powder and add to smoothies and homemade vitamin mixes.

8. Citrus seasoning

Lemon peels can be dried, ground into a powder, mixed with salt and black pepper, and used as a savory seasoning.

9. Fragrant tea

Dried orange peels are added to the tea to give the tea a pleasant citrus aroma.

Other Uses for Citrus Peel

10. Home Freshener

Take two orange peels, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract, a spoonful of ground cloves, and 3 cinnamon sticks. Fill a saucepan with water with two tablespoons of vinegar, add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil and simmer until the mixture begins to release aroma. The advantages of such a natural freshener are obvious: it is cheap, natural and helps not only to spread a pleasant aroma, but also to humidify the air. Here are more options for natural fresheners.

11. Orange Candle

For this you will need an orange, olive oil and a knife. You remove the skin from the orange, the main thing is not to damage its “tail”, because it will be the wick. Then pour oil inside the crust, soak the wick well with oil and set it on fire.

12. Body Scrub

You will need ¾ cup of granulated sugar, 4 tablespoons of almond oil, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and the peel of one orange. Grate the orange peels on a very fine grater, mix them with sugar, and then add the oils. The resulting mixture can be used as a natural body scrub.

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