Ingredient Name: Dried Tangerine Peels Traditional Chinese Name: 陳皮 (chen pí) What is this?
- The aged and/or dried skin of tangerines or mandarin oranges
- They come in a variety of colours and sizes depending on the original peel
- In its raw form, it is relatively pungent and bitter in taste
- A small amount (a piece with a radius of 1-inch) is sufficient for a whole pot of soup
How do I prepare it?
- You can soak this in warm water for at least half an hour prior to usage (to remove excess pesticide)
- Some people will also scrub the outside skin after soaking to clean it
Where can I buy this?
- In most Asian supermarkets, you can buy it bulk or prepackaged
- You can definitely purchase this in Hong Kong wet marts in bulk
What is the cost?
- There are varying costs of dried tangerine peels depending on the quality produced, on average you can expect 8 oz to cost around $20 – $30 CAD
Any benefits?
- Dried tangerine peels are often used for coughs and to release excessive phlegm in the lungs and throat
- It is also known to assist in improving digestion
- Sweetened dried tangerine peels are often eaten as a snack and are helpful in reducing morning sickness and nausea
Any precautions?
- If you can, try to obtain organic dried tangerine peels as regular peels may have high levels of pesticide residue
The dried tangerine peel is truly a very pungent additive (or herb). Some people will make a tea out of it, by soaking it in hot water and then adding some honey. I have eaten the processed kind during morning sickness and it did help somewhat (but when morning sickness hits, it hits hard sometimes, so nothing helps!). You can also follow a post on drying your own tangerine peels here.
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