You may not realize it, but the peels of your citrus fruits are treasure chests full of flavor that you can use to add more tang to any dish. That’s because the zest within the peels is comprised of aromatic oils that give the fruit it’s distinct, fresh smell. If you want to give your favorite foods a fruity kick, here’s how to extract zest and make it a part of meals. The best approach for extracting zest is by scraping it before you eat it or juice it since it’s easier to zest a whole fruit. The most important thing is that you remove only the colorful part of the peel, and avoid the white parts—the bitter pith. You can use anything from a box grater to a vegetable peeler to remove the zest from the peels. Then, once you have the zest, all you need is a pinch of it to whatever you’re making and you’ll impart that distinct flavor. If you’re not going to use the zest right away, there are plenty of ways to store it. You can put it in a closed storage container and place it in the refrigerator for a couple of days, or freeze it for up to six months. You can also dry the bits of zest, or pulverize them into a powder using a blender or spice grinder. And if you’re really bold, you can put the zest into a jar, add some olive oil, let it rest for at 6 least hours and—voila—you have citrus olive oil.
Don’t toss your citrus peels! Instead, use them to make zest
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