Citrus crunch


Citrus crunch
These are fine crumbs of candied citrus peel. It can be used to sprinkle a dessert or other preparation to add both crunch and the flavour of the chosen citrus fruit. It is easy to prepare well in advance, and will keep in an airtight jar. This recipe is given for clementines, but can be made with all citrus fruits: lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit...
226K 3.9/5 based on 24 reviews
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Last modified on: February 2nd 2016

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For 150 g, you will need:

Change these quantities to make:
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 36 min.
Cooking: 40 min.
All in all: 1 hour 16 min.
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Step by step recipe


Stage 1 - 20 min.
Citrus crunch
Take 9 clementines, organic if possible.

Scrub fruit thoroughly, dry them, then with a very sharp knife cut off as much zest as you can.

Stage 2
Citrus crunch
The goal is to remove the zest, leaving the white pith on the fruit as far as possible. This pith is responsible for the bitterness.

Another possible technique is to use a peeler, but it must very be very sharp.

Stage 3
Citrus crunch
Continue like this for all the clementines, which you can then use for another recipe, or eat.

Stage 4
Citrus crunch
The volume of peel is quite small, but this is normal.

Stage 5 - 5 min.
Citrus crunch
Put 300 g caster sugar and 150 ml water in a pan, heat to dissolve.

Stage 6 - 1 min.
Citrus crunch
Then add the clementine peel.

Stage 7 - 10 min.
Citrus crunch
Reduce over medium heat, until obtaining a thick syrup around the peel.

Stage 8 - 3 min.
Citrus crunch
Pour peel and syrup onto a rack (or into a chinois or a strainer) to drain them.

Stage 9 - 30 min.
Citrus crunch
Lay them on a baking sheet, then put in the oven at 130°C or 266°F for about 30 minutes.

The goal is to dry the peel to make it crunchy, not to cook it any further.

Stage 10 - 2 min.
Citrus crunch
At the end of 30 minutes, allow to cool, then tip the peel onto your work surface. At this point you can remove any excess sugar.

Stage 11 - 5 min.
Citrus crunch
Then crush with a rolling pin, more or less finely according to taste.

Stage 12
Citrus crunch
You should obtain crumbs, still with a few small pieces, not too fine.

Stage 13
Citrus crunch
Keep in an airtight jar.
Remarks
This powder is used on desserts to which you want to give a "lift" (the tang of citrus) and add crunch, like Chaud-froid of grapefruit-pineapple, Fruits with sabayon, or Poelée de petits fruits au sabayon gratiné. But even on a simple ice-cream, the effect is striking.

As it can be prepared in advance and stored, you can prepare several varieties, and powder your desserts with several flavours.

I advise you to use organic fruit, because it's the peel which is used in this recipe, and that's first in line to pick up all the chemical treatments applied to the fruit...
Keeping: Several months in a jar.
Source: From chef Michel Bras, via famous teacher Hervé This (only great people...).
Nutritional information
Proteins (gr)Carbohydrates (gr)Fats (gr)Energy value (in k-calories)Energy value (in k-joules)
Whole recipe7 3 %380 40 %01,550 80 %6,490 80 %
Per 100 g030 3 %0110 6 %480 6 %
The % figures are calculated in relation to the Recommended Dietary Intake , or RDI of 2,000 k-calories (or 8,400 k-joules) per day for a woman Change to a man
How much will it cost?
  • For 150 g : 7.44 €

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Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
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