Chocolate Covered Orange Peels

Chocolate covered orange peels and strawberries are a treat for the holidays. However, you don't really need a reason to wait until the holidays to enjoy it. If you love oranges and don't know what to do with the peels then you can give a try at making chocolate covered orange peels.

It may sound tedious but the process is really easy. And as per healthline, the orange peels have more nutrients than the sweet pulp which we eat or drink.

Jump to:

• Chocolate dipped orange peels ingredients
• How to make chocolate covered orange peels
• Coating orange peels with chocolate
• Melting chocolate chips instant pot
• How to store chocolate covered orange peels
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

Chocolate dipped orange peels ingredients

Ofcourse you need oranges, and it is best to use the organic ones since you are using the peel to make the treat and you want it to be free from any chemicals or pesticides.

You will need sugar, you can use raw, cane or regular sugar and melting chocolate. You can use dark chocolate or milk chocolate depending on your taste and health objectives.

How to make chocolate covered orange peels

Making chocolate covered orange peels is a multi step process that involves juicing the oranges first, cleaning the peels and then boiling the peels to remove the bitterness.

Later the peels are boiled in sugar syrup to make candied orange peels. They are then dried and finally dipped in melted chocolate.

Slicing orange peels

First, wash the oranges thoroughly and cut it into halves. Using a citrus juicer, squeeze out all the juice from the oranges which, can be enjoyed later after a job well done :).

With the help of a spoon, scrape out the white pith as much as possible. Slice the orange peels into about 1 cm wide peel strips and about 2 inches in length.

Boiling orange peels

Since orange peels are bitter, it needs to be boiled, in fact twice in water for 10-12 minutes. I have tried both ways i.e., boiling the orange peels only once and boiling it twice.

When orange peels are boiled only once, the chocolate comes out slightly bitter as expected. If you like or have a tolerance for slightly bitter taste then boiling once is good enough and it can save some time 🙂 But I have to get the approval from my kids and they gave a thumbs down to this version.

To boil the peels again, discard and replace the water and boil the orange peels for a second time for 10-12 minutes.

Making candied orange peels in sugar syrup

Once the orange peels have been boiled, it needs to be cooked in sugar syrup of 1:1 sugar to water ratio. Cook the peels in the sugar syrup on medium flame for 45 minutes.

There may be some syrup left at the end. Let the candied peels cool for about 10-15 minutes and then lay them on a cooling rack overnight or roughly 8-10 hours.

Coating orange peels with chocolate

Once the sugar syrup coated orange peels are dried, dip and cover it in melted chocolate. I have used Ghirardelli's dark melting chocolate wafers.

Chocolate chips can be melted in the microwave or in double boiler. I like to use instant pot as double boiler to melt chocolate chips.

Melting chocolate chips in microwave

The best way to melt chocolate chips in a microwave is to use the defrost setting. 1 cup of melting chocolate wafers takes about a minute and a half to melt in the microwave on the defrost setting.

To have smooth melting chocolate mix the chocolate wafers every 15-20 seconds until melted.

Dip the dried orange peels in the melted chocolate and take it out immediately with the help of a fork. Place chocolate-covered orange peels on wax paper. The chocolates will dry in 10 - 15 minutes.

Melting chocolate chips instant pot

Melting chocolate chips in an instant pot is equally easy and convenient as it can be used as a double boiler. Instant pot comes handy especially when you need to melt a larger batch of chocolate.

You can also check out chocolate covered strawberries made with instant pot as double boiler.

To use instant pot as a double boiler, pour about 2 cups of water in the instant pot liner and turn the saute mode on normal setting for 10 minutes.

Place a glass bowl or a stainless steel bowl on top of the liner. You want to ensure the bowl sits on the liner and does not go inside it, else it can get stuck and will be difficult to remove.

Put the melting chocolate wafers in the bowl. In a few minutes, the chips will start melting. Mix them intermittently with a spatula until the chocolate is completely melted and becomes smooth.

Dip the dried candied orange peels in the melted chocolate and coat it well. Once well coated, remove it immediately with the help of a fork. Place chocolate-covered orange peels on wax paper to dry completely. The chocolates will dry in about 10 - 15 minutes.

How to store chocolate covered orange peels

Depending on where you live, you may be able to store the chocolate covered orange peels at room temperature in an air tight container.

It can also be refrigerated. Believe me it will be gone even before you realize 🙂

Don’t forget to check out these recipes using chocolate

• Almond flour chocolate chip cookies (no-egg)
• No egg, no cook chocolate ice cream
• Graham cracker chocolate ice cream
• Cake pops
• Vegan chocolate cake
• Chocolate covered strawberries

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