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Candied fruit peel highlights citrus flavor through careful blanching and gentle syruping. The method takes about 30 minutes hands-on and creates beautiful peel for baking and garnish!
A Quick Look At The Recipe
This is a brief summary of the recipe. Jump to the recipe to get the full details.
Jump to RecipePrep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes
Total Time
1 hour
Servings
24 servings
Difficulty
Easy—patience matters more than precision
Calories *
44 kcal per serving
Technique
Blanch citrus peel, simmer in sugar syrup, cool and store
Flavor Profile
Bright, sweet citrus with a tender chew
* Based on nutrition panel
I loved the blanching step—your explanation made it click as to why it matters. I used lemon peel for a birthday cake, and it stayed beautifully translucent without bitterness. Having the time ranges spelled out helped a lot. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Lauren
Why This Recipe Works
- Blanching removes bitterness. A quick triple blanch tames harsh pith flavors without dulling the citrus.
- Invert sugar prevents crystallization. Corn syrup keeps the syrup smooth so the peel candies evenly.
- Low, gentle heat preserves color. Slow simmering turns peel translucent while keeping it vibrant.
- Flexible finish. Store in syrup or crystallize in sugar depending on how you’ll use it.
Table of Contents
Candied citrus peel is one of those “panic-saving” pantry recipes—especially when you’re baking on a deadline and need something bright and beautiful from simple ingredients. I’ve used this exact method for lemon, orange, and even grapefruit peel, adjusting only cut size and simmer time. It’s equally at home folded into cookie dough, dipped in chocolate, or perched atop cakes like my bright lemon olive oil cake.
If you enjoy classic candy-making, you may also like my rich and nutty pecan praline recipe, the thin, crunchy layers in how to make homemade toffee, or the salty-sweet crunch of pumpkin seed brittle—all great companions to candied peel in desserts and on board!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Citrus Peel: Orange peel, lime peel, lemon, or grapefruit all work. Thicker peels take longer to candy but have a nicer chew. I find that this is a great way to use peels left over from juicing especially for candied orange peel!
- Granulated Sugar: Forms the base of the syrup and the final crystallized coating.
- Water: Dissolves the sugar and controls syrup concentration.
- Light Corn Syrup: This is an invert sugar that prevents crystallization. You can omit the corn syrup entirely if unavailable. The syrup step will still work, just watch closely.
See the recipe card below for full ingredients and quantities.
What is candied fruit peel?
Candied fruit peel is citrus peel that has been blanched to remove bitterness, then gently simmered in sugar syrup until translucent and sweet. It can be stored in syrup or drained and crystallized in sugar for baking, candy-making, and decorating desserts.
Variations on Candied Citrus Peel
- Change the cut. Wide strips of candied lemon peel take longer but look dramatic on cakes like my lemon cake recipe; finely julienned peel candies faster and works well in cookies or folded into carrot cake scones.
- Homemade ginger candy. Skip blanching, slice ginger thinly, and expect a longer simmer (about 3–4 hours); ); candied peel or ginger is lovely alongside buttery cakes and frostings like caramel swiss meringue buttercream recipe or bright lemon meringue cheesecake.
- Chocolate-dip it. Once fully cooled, dip crystallized peel in tempered dark chocolate for an elegant finish.
Professional Tips
- Cut size controls time. Julienned peel candies faster than wide strips, just adjust your expectations accordingly.
- Don’t rush the simmer. Boiling will dull color and toughen the peel.
- Taste as you go. The best doneness test is texture: soft, translucent, and pleasantly chewy.
How do you make candied fruit peel at home?
Use these instructions to make perfect candied citrus peel every time. Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
Step 1: Peel the citrus. Use a sharp vegetable peeler to remove just the zest, avoiding excess white pith (photo 1).
Step 2: Trim and cut. Shave off remaining pith if needed, then cut zest into strips about 2 mm wide (photo 2).
Step 3: Blanch the peel. Place peel in a medium saucepan, cover with cold water (about 2 cups water), bring to a boil, strain, and repeat two more times (photos 3 & 4).
Always blanch with fresh water to keep flavors clean.
Step 4: Make the syrup. In the same saucepan, combine sugar and water. Stir until dissolved to form a clear simple syrup mixture, then add corn syrup (photo 5).
Step 5: Candy the peel. Return peel to the syrup and simmer gently for 1–2 hours, until translucent and tender (photo 6).
Step 6: Finish and store. Store peel in syrup refrigerated, or drain and cool on a wire rack until tacky. Toss in a bowl of sugar to crystallize (photos 7 & 8).
Professional Chef Tip
If the syrup ever drops below the level of the peel, add a splash of water—exposed peel won’t candy evenly.
Recipe FAQs
Stored in syrup and refrigerated, it keeps for several months. Crystallized peel lasts weeks in a dry airtight container at room temperature.
Yes. Candied fruit peel freezes best when stored in its syrup. Crystallized candied peel can weep sugar as it thaws and is not ideal for freezing.
Cakes, cookies, chocolate confections, panettone, stollen, and cheese boards. Serve with cookies like pistachio cherry cookies for a festive platter.
Recommended Desserts for Candied Peel
Homemade Bread Recipes
Panettone
Yeasted Bread Recipes
The Best Stollen Recipe
Cookie Recipes
Ice Box Cookies (Refrigerator Cookies)
Summer Dessert Recipes
Lemon Meringue Cheesecake
If you tried this recipe and loved it please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the comments below. I love hearing from you; your comments make my day!
Candied Fruit Peel
Ingredients
- 4-6 citrus fruits peeled
- 1 cups water
- 1 cups sugar
- ¼ cup light corn syrup
Instructions
- Peel citrus, removing as little pith as possible. Trim remaining pith if needed and cut into thin strips.
- Place peel in a pot, cover with cold water, bring to a boil, strain, and repeat twice more.
- Combine sugar and water in the saucepan; stir until dissolved. Add corn syrup.
- Return peel to syrup and simmer gently for 1–2 hours, until translucent and tender.
- Store peel in syrup refrigerated, or drain, cool until tacky, and toss with sugar to crystallize.
Notes
- Yield: About 2 cups, depending on citrus used.
- Technique: Always dissolve sugar before adding corn syrup.
- Variations: Lemon, orange, grapefruit, or ginger.
- Storage: Refrigerate in syrup, put in the freezer in syrup, or store crystallized peel in airtight container at room temperature.
Nutrition
Before You Go
I hope you enjoyed this classic confectionery staple. Be sure to explore my other homemade candy recipes for more pastry-chef techniques you can use year-round.
I loved the blanching step—your explanation made it click as to why it matters. I used lemon peel for a birthday cake, and it stayed beautifully translucent without bitterness. Having the time ranges spelled out helped a lot.
I love this recipe! I used this for a lemon cake I made for my friend’s birthday and decorated with candied lemon peel, so elegant. I have a lot of extras, so I will be trying your cardamom rum cookie.
how long can they be stored in the refrigerator?
Hi Erika! To be honest, once candied, you can store citrus peel in the fridge for months!
Hi Lindsey! I want to use these to decorate the top of 6″ margarita Bundt cakes that I will be selling at a Christmas market in a few weeks. Can I put them on the cakes and then freeze them? Or should I wait until the cakes are thawed before adding the peels to the top? The cakes do have a confectioners sugar glaze on them, as well. Not sure if that would make any difference.
Hi Karen! What a cute idea! My answer depends on whether you coated the candied fruit with granulated sugar or not? If you didn’t, then I would recommend cooling the cakes, glazing and topping with the candied citrus before it sets. Then freeze them well wrapped. There is nothing wrong with topping the glazed cakes with the candied peels after thawing, but they will remain separate and might fall off. If you tossed the citrus in sugar after draining, I would not freeze them, as they will weep sugar as they thaw. They will run the glaze and just ruin the finished appearance. Does that help? ~Lindsey
I just came across this on Pinterest and was wondering if I can substitute the corn syrup for something else since it isn’t readily available in my country. Would maple syrup or honey work, or just more sugar and water (like simple syrup)? Thanks in advance for replying to such an oldie 🙂
Hi Iris, The main purpose of the corn syrup is to keep the sugar from crystallizing. If you don’t have it, just omit it! Happy candying!
Can I save peels for a week or so? I use 1 lemon each day and am looking for something wonderful to do with the peels at the end of the week. Maybe stored in the fridge?
Hmmm. That is an excellent question Charlotte. I don’t see why not. I would wrap them in plastic wrap and store them in the refrigerator.
Can I use the same recipe for candied ginger? The recipe /instructions I have for ginger is from a very old cookbook, (does anyone use those anymore) and requires 3 days…Anyway I would love to make my own candied ginger. I go through a lot of it in a few recipes I have, 2 cups of it in one in particular.
Hi Nikki! Absolutely!!! Skip step 4 (blanching the peels). I would double or triple the amount of the cooking liquid to make sure you have enough to accommodate a longer cooking time. If you julienne your ginger (Julienne is thin strips about 2mm wide. I would slice it on a mandoline and then cut thin strips from those pieces), it will cook faster. If you are going to chop it finely for a recipe anyways, you might as well cook it in smaller pieces. I’ve never candied ginger but I would guess it would take about 4 hours for julienned strips. They won’t become translucent like zest but when you taste one it should be tender with a nice chew. Let me know how it goes!
Thanks. I am using my last 2 cups of crystallized ginger in Sticky Ginger Squares tonight. I will do some shopping for fresh ginger this next week and candy the ginger. I will let you know how it turns out.
Mmmm sticky ginger squares sound AMAZING! I’m going to google that right now. I will be holding my breath on the ginger!
Umm those squares look divine. I’m going to make them for one of my 12 days of Christmas Cookies. Guess you won’t be the only one candying ginger this week!
Ps – I love using old cookbooks! They are like a treasure trove! Several of the recipes for my 2015 12 Days of Christmas Cookies come from vintage cookbooks.