Here’s something I haven’t seen before.
S: 陈皮;T: 陳皮 (chén pí), dried orange or tangerine peel is a common ingredient in Chinese cuisine. Every supermarket has it, although most people dry their own, including me. It keeps for decades in a sealed container in a cool dark cupboard.. In fact, for most people, the older it is; the better. It is possible to buy peel up to 80 years old. That is expensive, though. More than $5 USD a gram.
These three jars in my local supermarket hold (left to right) 15-year-old peel ($77.39 USD / 500g), 10-year-old ($46.99), 3-year-old ($24.88).
The Woks of Life site goes to its ludicrous lengths as usual, explaining how to dry it. One sentence would do. “Remove peel and dry it in the sun.”
It is used medicinally, but also in both sweet and savoury dishes. It is used in hot pot bases, in soups, stocks, and especially, braised dishes.
So, I’m well used to the ingredient. What I found yesterday was powdered peel in sachets. I totally fail to see the point. The stuff comes free with every tangerine you buy!
Dried tangerine peel powder
