Zero waste in the New Year: how to use tangerine peels in everyday life?

At the beginning of winter, tangerines appear in abundance on the tables of Russians. Tasty juicy pulp of exotic fruits contains vitamins C, D and K, fiber and other healthy elements. Mandarin peels can also be found worthy of use. They are used in cooking, for the preparation of medicinal and cosmetic preparations, as a remedy for moths, for feeding indoor plants and protecting against pests.

In cooking

A zealous hostess will never throw tangerine peels into a bin. After all, you can make wonderful aromatic jam or candied fruit from them, make tea or make spices for meat.

To prepare candied fruits from tangerine peel, you will need 3 ingredients:

• tangerine peels - 0.5 kg;
• sugar - 450 g;
• water - 200 ml.

The cooking process consists of several stages:

1. Fresh crusts must be thoroughly washed, sprinkled in a saucepan and pour clean cold water. Soak for 5 hours.
2. Drain the settled liquid, put the skins on a sieve and dry slightly. Can be cut in the form of strips, cubes or rhombuses.
3. Fill the pan with clean water at the rate of 1 cup per 0.5 kg of product, add sugar and bring to a boil.
4. Dip the prepared peel in boiling syrup and simmer over low heat for an hour.
5. Put the finished slices on a baking sheet or tray, covered with parchment paper, and dry.

Candied tangerines are added to cakes and muffins or eaten as a treat.

The crusts dried and crushed by a blender or a meat grinder are used as spices for frying meat. They will give the dish an original taste and aroma. A pinch of dried zest added to tea will make the drink tastier, more aromatic and healthier.

At home

Thanks to the persistent exotic smell, tangerine peels have been used in everyday life as fresheners and fragrances. You can simply sprinkle them in a convenient place and enjoy the delicate fresh aroma. Or make a decoration: pour sea stones, shells and tangerine peels into a glass vase.

The citrus smell repels moths. To protect clothes from pests, dried peels are placed in canvas bags and hung in a wardrobe.

The sharp tropical smells scare away not only flying pests, but also domestic cats. If a tailed pet undertakes to mark the territory, it is enough to sprinkle crusts from tangerines in the place he loves - and the disgrace will be stopped.

For home flowers

The zest and peel of citrus is great for preparing nutritious dressing for indoor plants.

Fertilizer is prepared as follows:

1. A 1/3 liter glass jar is filled with chopped zest and pour boiling water to the top.
2. After a day, the wet crusts are removed, cold water is added and mixed.

The resulting solution is used for watering domestic flowers.

Citrus essential oils contain limonene, a deadly substance for many insects. To rid the plant of aphids, thrips or spider mites, it is enough to treat the leaves with tangerine peel infusion. To prepare the product, 200 g of the peel is poured with 1 liter of warm water and insisted for 5-7 days. Before processing, a little liquid soap is added to the infusion.

In cosmetology

Mandarin peels are used for the preparation of various cosmetic products: scrub, tonic, lotion.

Here are some simple recipes with which you can get rid of oily sheen and black spots on your face, whiten and strengthen your nail plates:

• Tangerine water - An excellent tool for cleansing pores. For cooking, you need to finely chop the peel, pour cold water and insist for a day.
• Mandarin Peel Tonic used to combat age-related changes. Inexpensive, but effective tool will help tighten sagging skin and remove black spots, smooth out small wrinkles. Preparing a tonic is very simple: you need to pour 100 g of the peel with a glass of mineral water, let it stand for a day and wipe the face and decollete area several times a day with the resulting infusion. To preserve tangerine water, it can be frozen in ice tins.
• Mandarin crust scrub improves the mood, gives the skin a wonderful aroma and well-groomed appearance. To prepare this cosmetic product, the dried peel must be crushed with a blender and pour water. As soon as the zest particles are swollen, the scrub can be used as intended. Dried crushed crusts can be stored in a tightly closed glass jar and used as needed.

Mandarin peel is very useful for the health and beauty of nails. If you wipe the nail plates from time to time with a fresh tangerine peel, the nails will be clean, smooth and strong.

According to the ancient Chinese tradition, in the New Year, along with other gifts, it is customary to give tangerines as a symbol of financial well-being, wealth, success, love, happiness and longevity. Even the peel of this exotic fruit contains vitamins and minerals, which is why it is used in everyday life, cosmetology, and cooking.