How to Dry Citrus & How to Use It

There's a lot you can do with dried citrus. From cocktail garnishes to holiday garlands, dehydrating slices of citrus is a lovely way to preserve fruit. It takes a bit of time, but otherwise there's not a lot to it and it's a great family activity. As long as an adult manages the slicing and the waiting, kids love to make things with these transformed fruits. Our instructions use an oven rather than a dehydrator and dry times depend on how hot your oven runs. You want low and slow to prevent burning and to maintain colour.

The citrus fruit of your choice.

1. Choose vibrant citrus fruit. The brighter the colour the fruit, the more colour it will retain after drying. Different citrus will have different drying times. Lemons and limes take around three hours, while oranges take closer to four. You'll want to allow at least five hours for grapefruit. For this reason, you don't want to mix fruits on a tray when drying. Of course, dry time really depends on your oven and your fruit. Sometimes citrus dries sooner or can take significantly longer.
   
2. Set your oven to the lowest setting. Some ovens go as low as 170F, but 200F is totally fine. Anything over that and you risk burning the sugars in the fruit. If you have a convection setting, this is great for drying out citrus as it circulates the heat and helps to dry the fruit faster.
   
3. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
   
4. Use a mandoline to thinly slice the citrus into rounds and spread them out in a single layer on the baking sheet—at least a centimeter apart. And bake as long as your particular citrus requires. Half-way through, rotate the pan and flip the citrus rounds for more even results.
   
5. Remove from the oven when the citrus is completely dry. Even the slightest bit of stickiness means they aren't done.
   
6. Store completely dried citrus rounds in an airtight container in a cool dark place to maintain colour.