The present study reports on the extraction of polyphenols especially flavanones from orange (Citrus sinensis L.) peel by using ethanol as a food grade solvent. After a preliminary study showing that the best yield of extraction was reached for a particle size of 2 cm2, a response surface methodology (RSM) was launched to investigate the influence of process variables on the ultrasound-assisted extraction (UAE) followed by a central composite design (CCD) approach. The statistical analysis revealed that the optimised conditions were a temperature of 40 °C, a sonication power of 150 W and a 4:1 (v/v) ethanol:water ratio. The high total phenolic content (275.8 mg of gallic acid equivalent/100 g FW), flavanone concentrations (70.3 mg of naringin and 205.2 mg of hesperidin/100 g FW) and extraction yield (10.9 %) obtained from optimised UAE proved its efficiency when compared with the conventional method. Furthermore, the antioxidant activity determined by the DPPH and ORAC tests confirmed the suitability of UAE for the preparation of antioxidant-rich plant extracts