Grated Orange Zest

[Suzanne F]

I now have about 1 cup of grated orange zest in my freezer (from a bag of terrific Valencia oranges).

Please, give me some ideas for using it, besides flavoring cakes (which I rarely make).

I promise to post in eGRA whatever I develop.

[Mayhaw Man]

It's awesome on melon sorbets. Looks cool too (actually, I suppose since it's frozen and on top of ice, it really is, in actuality, cool )

[fou de Bassan]

I'm new to all of this, forgive me if I go out of bounds. Put some in sugar and you have a nifty flavoring, add some to black tea with cardamom and peppercorns for wonderful tea-hot or cold. Throw some in your next batch of biscotti, make a weak simple syrup and add zest- then roll a pork loin in this goo and roast... I think there are possibilities as yet undreamed.

[Mayhaw Man]

I'm new to all of this, forgive me if I go out of bounds.

Welcome to eGullet and don't worry about the out of bounds part. Figuring out where the boundries are is half of the fun (I still haven't found them )

Great suggestions, by the way.

Brooks

[purplewiz]

When I have a lot of orange zest lying about, I often throw some in stir fries. It's just one more aromatic.

Or add some to a classic vinaigrette. Again, it adds citrus notes without being quite as overwhelming as a salad dressing made with orange juice.

I've done pork in a basil orange sauce. I believe I browned off the chops, then simmered in chicken broth, orange zest, and basil. (It's been awhile.)

I know you don't make cakes, but I just had to mention that I love orange zest added to a real good homemade pound cake :-).

Marcia.

[ExtraMSG]

I like flavoring oils or sugar or even salt with it.

[ninadora]

you can use as a garnish like parsly on a hot savoury dish to add a nice touch....it will release its flavours...

i don't cook much in the summer so probably in dressings and the like but otherwise fantastic in stews, or you can add alot to a marinade with wine, bay, onion, and aromatics of your choosing for meat and then grill...(i use this for stew, marinate a few hours, dry the meat, brown, strain marinade add liquid to meat deglaze etc...)

ooh, there's a fantastic pasta sauce made with mint, orange zest, butter...(cream?)..i've never made it, but it is, beyond beyond....shouldn't be too hard to find a recipe i know my friend has it if you want it...

[Gifted Gourmet]

The one and only Bobby Flay does a whole grilled sea bass with fennel and orange zest which is delightful.

And I always use orange zest in any of my cranberry recipes .. it is a natural combination of these two which works quite beautifully! ....

[andiesenji]

Make a simple syrup add the zest to the syrup and simmer it gently for 20 minutes. Store in a jar in the fridge, it will keep for about 2 months. For a cup of zest I would use a cup of sugar to 3/4 cup water.

Use it in dressings for fruit salads, over ice cream, whipped into a meringue, and use it to "paint" onto chicken or duck during roasting, or on chicken pieces during oven roasting. As a base for marinades.

Mix into scones or biscuits. Or if you use the ready-made, in a can biscuits or rolls, drizzle over the tops before baking. Whip into heavy cream for a dessert topping. Stir into plain yogurt.

Slice winter squash or pumpkin and brush with the syrup then bake in the oven. Slice sweet potatoes and layer then in a baking dish dotted with butter and drizzle some of the syrup over them before baking.

I keep a jar of the orange zest syrup and lemon zest syrup in my fridge all the time. You will think of other things in which to use it if you have it on hand.

[chow guy]

Add it to a fresh tomato sauce with saffron (which goes well with artichokes and mushrooms).

[Suzanne F]

Oh, man, I'm going to have to buy more oranges just to do everything suggested so far. I want to make them all! Thanks, and keep 'em coming!

[Gifted Gourmet]

Add it to a fresh tomato sauce with saffron (which goes well with artichokes and mushrooms).

Isn't there some affinity between tomatoes and oranges? I have made a tomato-orange soup over the years that always receives warm approval ... now, if I could dig up that recipe once more ...

[foodie52]

I drizzle asparagus with olive oil and sea salt, then pop them in the oven to roast on high heat.

After I take them out, I let them cool, then scatter some citrus zest over them. I usually use lemon, but orange would work great as well. So would tangerine, come to think of it...

[andiesenji]

]

Isn't there some affinity between tomatoes and oranges? I have made a tomato-orange soup over the years that always receives warm approval ... now, if I could dig up that recipe once more ...

That sounds wonderful. I make a carrot/sorrel/orange soup but hadn't thought of tomato/orange soup.

Is it a cream soup or ????

[Gifted Gourmet]

]

Isn't there some affinity between tomatoes and oranges? I have made a tomato-orange soup over the years that always receives warm approval ...   now, if I could dig up that recipe once more ...

That sounds wonderful. I make a carrot/sorrel/orange soup but hadn't thought of tomato/orange soup.

Is it a cream soup or ????

Actually, it is more of a broth .. and now I will most definitely go and track that recipe down for you!!

[andiesenji]

Another use is as a base for making fresh pickles similar to a gurkensalat.

Equal amounts of thinly sliced cucumbers and sweet onions, say a cup of each.

start with 1/4 cup of the orange zest syrup, add 1/2 cup seasoned rice wine vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon celery seed, 1 clove garlic, lightly bruised.

heat in the microwave about a minute, remove the garlic clove, allow to cool till just warm, then pour over the cukes and onions press down so they are covered with the liquid.

Refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Before serving stir 1/2 cup of sourcream into the pickles.

This is a nice counterpoint to a rich meat terrine, paté, chopped liver, etc.

The orange zest syrup is also good drizzled over roasted onions.

[fifi]

ooh, there's a fantastic pasta sauce made with mint, orange zest, butter...(cream?)..i've never made it, but it is, beyond beyond....shouldn't be too hard to find a recipe i know my friend has it if you want it...

Please do give us the recipe if it is not copyrighted. And consider putting it into RecipeGullet. There was a recipe linked some time ago that was a simple pasta recipe with mint and parmesan that was billed as one of those things that is much better than it sounds. This one sounds similar. There were many raves about that one. I haven't tried it yet. For some reason, we are having trouble getting mint established in my sister's garden.

(Having googled eGullet, it looks like it was in the NY Times Digest. That thing is just too long for me to scroll through and find the hit. If anyone knows where it is, please chime in. It appears to be in the same "family" as this one.)

[ninadora]

I'm still new at this, but I'm on the project Mz. FiFi. I'll post the recipe today or tomorrow.

I find it amazing you had trouble establishing mint tho', it grows like a weed, incredibly invasive, I hope you were confining it to a pot sunk in the ground as a matter of fact...it needs a lot of water, but other than that its a pretty easy thing, try it in a pot, don't over water it, but mint gets very thirsty because it grows so fast, and fertalize it gently I use organic seaweed/fish fertalizer--the wee plant you started with will fill a very large pot in no time at all!

so much better to grow your own because when you buy it in a store they don't tell you if its peppermint or spearmint (and in those groups there are an astonishing number of varieties--pineapple mint, chocolate mint, etc. etc.) but I believe spearmint is what you want for savoury dishes, but i might be confused...I'm very late to setting up my herb garden this year *its rather pathetic actually I get very little sun, and I garden illegally on my fire escape in nyc*

[fifi]

Leave us not forget Toast Dope.

Funny story. My sister made pretty little jars of this stuff to give away at Christmas. Her son, the lawyer, changed the name. He didn't think it was the thing to do to have a lawyer handing out something with "Dope" on the label.

[lala]

Aren't some chefs using powdered, dried zest as flavorings now? On fish and such? Could be a fun experiment

[ruthcooks]

If you don't bake cake, how about muffins? I took a favorite recipe for Chocolate Chunk Sour Cream Muffins, omitted the cinnamon, substituted white chocolate and added dried cherries, orange zest and almond extract. Divine.

Second the motion on wanting the recipe for the orange-mint pasta.

[ludja]

Use it to make a lovely batch of carnitas (great thread!)

Use with toasted, roasted nuts like pecans or almonds. Barbara Tropp has a great recipe in China Moon for spicy chile orange pecans.

Use with other spices like rosemary or red pepper to make marinated olives.

Use to infuse a custard sauce to have with fresh strawberries or pineapple.

Spicy fermented black bean and orange chicken stirfry.

A little out of season for right now, but it's a good ingredient in a french style beef stew with cognac, red wine and black olives... (Patricia Wells; Bistro Cooking).

Flavored compound butter to put over fresh biscuits or asparagus...

[suzilightning]

Leave us not forget Toast Dope.

Funny story. My sister made pretty little jars of this stuff to give away at Christmas. Her son, the lawyer, changed the name. He didn't think it was the thing to do to have a lawyer handing out something with "Dope" on the label.

fifi beat me to it. johnnybird's famous outrageous toast dope will take care of your orange zest blues.

p.s. to fifi. loved the story about your sister. tell your nephew not to sweat it - john's dad is a lawyer, too, and he appreciates the name in all it's many nuances.

after all g. gordon liddy once asked him to defend timothy leary pro bono after they busted him up in millbrook.

[merstar]

I drizzle asparagus with olive oil and sea salt, then pop them in the oven to roast on high heat.

After I take them out, I let them cool, then scatter some citrus zest over them. I usually use lemon, but orange would work great as well. So would tangerine, come to think of it...

I do this too, with orange zest and crispy sliced shallots. It's great!

Edited May 23, 2004 by merstar (log)

[merstar]

More ideas: Orange curd, chicken or salmon with orange/ginger sauce, orange syrup for crepes or French toast, orange French toast, orange bread....

Edited May 23, 2004 by merstar (log)