Generally speaking, people only need to dry the orange peel and leave it for more than 3 years to make it. Pericarpium Citri Tangerinae is a typical medicinal material, which is homologous to medicine and food. Because citrus is widely planted and cost-effective, dried tangerine peel has many fans among the people. In recent years, with the rise of dried tangerine peel drinks such as Xiaoqinggan, Ganpu tea and Sanbao tea, Xinhui dried tangerine peel has become more and more famous. As a medicine, dried tangerine peel has the effects of regulating qi and blood and relieving cough. There are many ways to use dried tangerine peel as a cooking condiment, among which the main function of dried tangerine peel as a cooking condiment is to enhance fragrance and remove fishy smell. Cantonese people often use dried tangerine peel as seasoning, and there are many products derived from dried tangerine peel, such as Jiuji dried tangerine peel, plum peel, dried tangerine duck, dried tangerine peel ginger and so on. They are all famous authentic snacks made with dried tangerine peel as seasoning.
Therefore, self-made dried tangerine peel can not only be used for pharmacy, boiling water, making tea, but also cooking. Pericarpium Citri Tangerinae can be eaten, boiled in tea and used in daily cooking. Decades ago, in Guangdong, many people would string orange peels on the kitchen stove, because cooking would have the effect of drying and heating, coupled with the smoke generated by wood burning and the effect of insect prevention, so that orange peels could get the most suitable humidity and temperature control. When the chef wants to use dried tangerine peel, he can take a slice from his head and put it in the pot. Chenpi has been smoked and stored for three times, which is the most traditional appearance of Xinhui. Although its appearance is not outstanding, it is indeed a necessary condiment for ordinary families.
The "bitterness" of dried tangerine peel is mainly due to "insufficient aging", which leads to the need for aging of dried tangerine peel. The reason is that the bitter taste of dried tangerine peel, such as limonin, is transformed into many glycosides and lipids by oxidation. This chemical transformation process needs the assistance of physical processes, including drying and storage. That is, the process of transforming dried tangerine peel into medicine itself. The bitterness of dried tangerine peel is partly related to intracellular limonin in dried tangerine peel oil. Take Xinhui orange tea orange as an example. Tea orange is a citrus plant of Rutaceae, belonging to the genus Citrus, and its peel also contains a lot of limonin. In the process of making dried tangerine peel, the ancients found that the bitter taste of dried tangerine peel can only be removed after a certain aging time, thus making the flavor of dried tangerine peel richer and the effect more remarkable. So if it is fully fermented tangerine peel, it is not bitter in itself.