What’s so magical about “orange peel” that is better off dried than fresh?

At the beginning of this year, the TV series "The Storm" made people remember several excellent actors, and also made some foods in the play popular. In addition to the fish given by Lao Mo, the tangerine peel given by Gao Qiqiang to his father in the play also attracted attention. In the play, Gao Qiqiang specifically emphasized that this was the best old tangerine peel. In fact, in Guangdong, my country, there has always been a popular saying that "one ounce of tangerine peel is worth one ounce of gold, and a hundred years of tangerine peel is better than gold." Old tangerine peel is not only the best choice for gifts in the local area, but also a precious heirloom. But what is so magical about this tangerine peel from oranges?

1. Tangerine peel is not dried orange peel

"Oranges grown in the south of the Huai River are oranges, while those grown in the north of the Huai River are bitter oranges." I remember my grandma always nagging me this poem while peeling sweet oranges for me to eat, and drying the orange peels on the windowsill. Grandma said that drying orange peels like this, making tea or stewing soup, can regulate qi and strengthen the spleen, and eliminate dampness and phlegm. Indeed, in traditional Chinese medicine culture, tangerine peel is a common medicinal material. It can treat abdominal distension, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc. caused by spleen and stomach qi stagnation. The "Erchen Decoction" created by Ye Tianshi, a famous doctor in the Qing Dynasty, uses tangerine peel and pinellia tuber to make a prescription. It is mainly used to treat chronic bronchitis, chronic gastritis and other diseases caused by spleen deficiency and phlegm, and is known as the first prescription for treating phlegm.

In addition, tangerine peel is a food ingredient that can be used as both medicine and food. It can be added to food to relieve the fishy smell of fish and aquatic products. At the same time, tangerine peel is also a popular tea. People firmly believe that drinking tangerine peel tea regularly can prevent and improve coughs and phlegm caused by cold and dampness. It seems that the popularity of tangerine peel in Guangdong is closely related to the local hot and humid climate all year round and the high incidence of phlegm and dampness problems caused by it.

Image source: Tuchong Creative

However, grandma was wrong about one thing. To make tangerine peel, it is not as simple as drying the tangerine peel. First of all, from the perspective of material selection, not all tangerines produced anywhere are qualified to be used to make tangerine peel. For example, the famous tangerine peel production area in my country is Xinhui, which is known as the "Hometown of Chinese Tangerine Peel". Even the Compendium of Materia Medica records that the tangerine peel "is the best in the world from Guangzhong (now Xinhui area), and the tangerine peel from Jiangxi is second". Secondly, the tangerine peel must not only be air-dried and sealed, but also humidified and softened, and then go through a long process of air-drying and sun-drying again, and stored for more than three years before it can be transformed into "tangerine peel". Moreover, the so-called "tangerine peel" is better if it has been air-dried for a long time and aged for a long time. Generally, the tangerine peel that has been stored for a year is the best choice for medical use. The longer the tangerine peel is stored, the less likely it is to get hot and irritated, and the better its effects of removing phlegm and dampness, regulating qi and strengthening the spleen are. It is said that the old tangerine peel produced in Xinhui is fragrant after opening the package, and has high medicinal value, so the price is naturally amazing.

2. Is it okay to soak fresh orange peel in water?

A friend said that since they can’t afford the authentic Xinhui dried tangerine peels and can’t wait for the peels to dry slowly, they can just drink fresh tangerine peels in water. Is there a similar effect? ​​Even if the effect is slightly weaker, it’s fine.

Unfortunately, fresh orange peels do not have similar medicinal effects. Not only do they not have the effect of regulating qi, eliminating phlegm and relieving coughs, but they also cause gastrointestinal discomfort, such as diarrhea, abdominal pain, and vomiting, because they contain a large amount of volatile essential oils (the smell we smell when we break orange peels comes from this). In addition, fresh orange peels inevitably have pesticide residues sprayed by fruit farmers during the growth process. When we eat the orange flesh directly, this pesticide residue will not cause any negative impact at all, because the orange peels have been thrown away long ago, and the orange segments inside will not be contaminated with pesticides. However, when we use fresh orange peels to soak in water, the pesticides remaining on the surface of the orange peels can be dissolved in the tea and drunk. Considering that most people do not wash the orange peels very carefully before eating oranges, the microorganisms on the fresh orange peels may also cause illness in people who drink fresh orange peel water.

On the contrary, if fresh orange peel is sun-dried or air-dried for a long time to become tangerine peel, the pesticides and microorganisms remaining on the surface of the peel can be greatly reduced. Because long-term exposure to the sun can help most of the pesticides remaining on the fresh orange peel to volatilize, reducing the harm; and microorganisms will not be able to survive in the process of sun-drying and air-drying due to lack of nutrients and water, and will gradually disappear. Therefore, from the perspective of food hygiene and health effects, tangerine peel is safer and healthier than fresh orange peel, and is more suitable for tea.

3. Choose the right tangerine peel and eat it right. Pay attention to these

Since good tangerine peel is so valuable, we should naturally understand how to choose tangerine peel. According to the method of selecting medicinal tangerine peel, we have summarized the following key points for you:

1. Smell the smell.

The best old tangerine peel has a very strong aroma, and generally speaking, as long as it does not rot, the longer the tangerine peel is stored, the mellower the aroma will be.

2. Feel the texture.

Generally speaking, the longer the tangerine peel is stored, the drier its surface tends to appear. It also feels quite brittle and hard to the touch, and is easily crushed and broken, and is not easily softened by moisture.

3. Look at the place of origin.

As mentioned earlier, if the tangerine peel is produced in the main producing areas of high-quality tangerine peel such as Xinhui, the quality will generally be relatively guaranteed.

4. Taste it.

As the storage years increase, the volatile essential oils in the tangerine peel have almost evaporated. Therefore, when we use old tangerine peel to make tea, the bitterness of the tea soup will be reduced and it will have a smoother taste.

When it comes to drinking tangerine peel tea, in addition to drinking it with other teas such as Pu'er, you can also use tangerine peel with other ingredients or medicinal materials to make tea, and make individualized choices based on the health effects you want to achieve.

For example, if you want to dispel wind, cold and resolve phlegm, you can use tangerine peel and ginger together. Tangerine peel can resolve phlegm and eliminate dampness, and ginger can warm the middle and stop vomiting, warm the lungs and resolve phlegm. The combination of the two is particularly suitable for coughs and phlegm caused by wind, cold, dampness and cold. For another example, if you want to strengthen the spleen and digest food, you can use tangerine peel and hawthorn together. Tangerine peel can regulate qi and strengthen the spleen, and hawthorn can digest food and resolve accumulation. The combination of the two is helpful for food accumulation, phlegm and physical weakness caused by weak spleen and stomach and indigestion.

In addition to making tea, tangerine peel is also excellent for making soups and cooking. The famous Hong Kong-style dessert Tangerine Peel and Red Bean Paste uses the citrus fragrance of tangerine peel to neutralize the sweetness of red bean paste, creating a refreshing delicacy. Tangerine peel is also commonly used in various Cantonese meat dishes, such as tangerine peel spareribs. The spareribs are greasy in themselves, and adding tangerine peel can not only help to relieve the greasiness, but also give the spareribs the unique fragrance of tangerine peel. Eating stewed tangerine peel together can also prevent phlegm and indigestion caused by eating too much meat.

It seems that the fresh orange peel is really better than the dry one! After dinner, brewing a cup of orange peel tea can not only replenish water and relieve greasiness, but also help digestion and reduce phlegm. Isn't it wonderful? As for fresh orange peel, you can't use it to soak in water, just put it on the windowsill to add a touch of orange fragrance to the air!

The article is produced by Science Popularization China-Starry Sky Project (Creation and Cultivation). Please indicate the source when reprinting.

Author: Wang Lu, Chinese registered dietitian, Master of Public Health, Peking University

Reviewer: Zhang Na, associate researcher and doctoral supervisor at the School of Public Health, Peking University