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Mandarin Oranges: Market and Kitchen

 

Mandarin oranges are smaller than oranges and less acidic. They are perfect for eating out of hand or for cooking.

There are more than 200 varieties of mandarins. The most popular are the swet Satsuma, the smooth juicy Clementines, and the spicy red-orange Dancy. Mandarin cultivars--crosses with sweet oranges or grapefruits--include tart Temple tangor and the honey-flavored Minneola tangelo.

Depending upon the variety, mandarins can be found at the farm store or farmers' market from early winter right into summer. Here's what to look for at the market and how to handle the mandarin at home:

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Mandarin Oranges and Tangerines

  

Mandarin oranges are mostly small, easy to peel, and perfect for snacking out of hand. You can choose a mandarin for a sweet treat or a mandarin for a sweet-tart treat.

Mandarins can be sectioned and added to fruit, green, chicken or seafood salads. They can be juiced to flavor sorbets, marinades, and dessert sauces, or zested to flavor cakes, muffins, stuffing, and rice dishes.

Mandarins have thin, loose skins with only delicate strands of pith attached to their flesh. They are sometimes called “slip-skin oranges” or “kid glove” fruit. Once peeled the mandarin’s segments separate easily in the fashion of the petals of a flower.

Mandarins make up the largest and most varied group of edible citrus. They are usually less acidic and smaller than oranges with a slightly flattened shape. Their skins can vary in color from greenish gold to deep orange-red. They can be seedless or full of seeds, and they can be sweet tasting or tart.

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Tangerines

Tangerines are among the earliest harvested mandarin oranges.

They are distinguished from other mandarins simply by their red-orange to red peels. They have a rough skin and sweet flesh.

All tangerines are mandarins but not all mandarins are tangerines. (Other mandarins are the tangelo and the clementine.)

The tangerine is named for the port city of Tangier in Morocco. Before the tangerine was widely cultivated in the United States, the main point of departure for tangerine exports to the U.S. was Tangier. Tangerine means a native of Tangier.

Dancy is the oldest variety of tangerine grown in the United States. It got its name from Colonel G.L Dancy of Buena Vista, Florida who introduced it into cultivation in Florida in about 1871. The first Dancy seedling was said to have arrived in Florida from Morocco in 1867.

Dancy is the traditional Christmas tangerine often found in Christmas stockings and gift boxes. It has a deep orange color and a rich sprightly flavor. It is smaller than other mandarins—about 2-3 inches (5-7.5 cm) wide and 1½-2⅛ inches (3.8-6.2 cm) tall.

Dancy has a thin, leathery skin but peels easily. It has dark-orange flesh and divides into 10-14 segments with 6-20 small seeds.

Other tangerine varieties are Sunburst, Page and Pixie.

Sunburst is a hybrid between a clementine and a ‘Orlando’ tangelo created in 1967. It is predominately a tangerine. Sunburst is about the same size as the Dancy with an orange to scarlet peel. It has about the same number of segments and seeds as a Dancy but much more colorful juice although it is not quite as flavorful as the Dancy.

Page is a cross between a clementine and ‘Minneola’ tangelo. Page is small, sweet and juicy with few seeds. It has a deep orange rind that can be tough to peel. Page ripens from November through January.

Pixie is a hybrid offspring of Dancy with a mild, sweet flavor and a seedless fruit. Pixie has a medium-orange flesh with yellow-orange rind and is easy-to-peel. Pixie ripens late and holds well on the tree well into summer.

Choose: Select a tangerine that is plump and fills its skin. A tangerine that feels heavy for its size will be filled with juice. Avoid tangerines that are that feel hollow or soft or look like they’ve been bumped or dented.

Store: Tangerines will keep for 1 week in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.

Serve: Tangerines are best for simply eating out of hand. Add tangerine segments to a spinach salad. For a tasty dessert dip segments in chocolate sauce, caramel sauce or a flavored yogurt. Tangerine juice can be used in sauces, dressing, sorbet, and marinades.

Nutrition: High in vitamin C and contains about 45 calories.

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Mandarin Oranges and Tangerines

Say mandarin orange and you are describing a large and diverse group of citrus varieties and hybrids that vary from very sweet to tart and from egg-sized small to medium grapefruit-sized large.

The one thing that mandarin oranges have in common is that their peel or skin easily pulls away from their flesh and their segments are easily separated.

Mandarins—the majority of which are smaller and squatter than most oranges--have less acid than oranges, and generally contain more water and less sugar than oranges.

Mandarins vary in color from orange to deep, nearly reddish orange. Those with the deepest red-orange peels are often called tangerines.

The earliest ripening mandarin oranges and their hybrids are coming to market now. The mandarin season extends from December into summer—with the harvest divided into early, midseason and late.

This week the Satsuma mandarin, the Clementine, and the hybrid tangelo will be at your farm market.

Here’s a roundup of the most notable mandarin orange varieties and their hybrids and when you will find them at the farm market:

Clementine or Algerian Tangerine. Juicy, sweet, mild to rich flavor, excellent taste. Medium-small to medium sized and usually seedless flesh. Rind is deep orange to orange-red, smooth and glossy. Peels easily. Ripens late fall into winter: December, January and February. Originated and grown in North Africa and grown extensively in California since 1914.

Dancy or Dancy Tangerine. Rich, spicy flavor. Dark orange-red, smooth, thin rind. Peels easily. Flesh is deep orange. Smaller than other mandarins and seedy. The traditional Christmas “tangerine.” Ripens fall into winter: December and January. Best when grown in desert regions. First planted in Florida in 1867.

Encore. Delicious sweet-tart taste. Juicy, sweet, rich and spicy flavor. Pulp is deep orange and seedy. Yellow-orange rind mottled with dark spots. Ripens spring into summer. The last mandarin to ripen: March, April and May.

Fremont. Rich, sweet fruit and seedy. Medium-size with bright orange rind. Ripens early, fall into winter.

Honey or Murcott. Wonderfully sweet tangerine flavor and juicy. Very small and seedy. Yellow-orange rind, peels poorly. Midseason maturing winter into spring.

Kara. Sweet-tart, sprightly, aromatic flavor with varying seediness. Large fruit to 2½ inches (6.5 cm) in diameter. Ripens winter into spring: March and April. Will be tart if grown near the coast.

Kinnow. Very sweet and fragrant with seedy fruit. Somewhat hard to peel. Midseason, ripens winter to early spring: January through April. Grown best in very hot regions.

Mediterranean or Willow Leaf. Sweet, flavorful, aromatic and juicy. Yellow-orange rind, smooth and glossy. A few seeds. Midseason, ripens in spring.

Pixie. Mild, sweet and seedless fruit. Medium-orange flesh with yellow-orange rind. Easy-to-peel. Ripens late. Grows well in intermediate and coastal areas.

Ponkan or Chinese Honey Mandarin. Of ancient origins in India or China. Very sweet and aromatic, somewhat dry. Flesh and rind are deep orange. Few seeds. Ripens early: December and January. Widely grown in Asia and Brazil. Ripens early.

Satsuma. Called Unshiu in Japan. Moderately sweet, sprightly flavor. Seedless with loose skin, peels easily. Medium-small to medium sized fruits. Rind and flesh are orange. Ripens very early: November and December. Ripens well in low summer heat regions. Cultivars include ‘Owari’, ‘Dobashi Beni’, ‘Okitsu Wase’, and ‘Kimbrough’.

Wilking. Rich flavor and juicy. Deep yellow-orange rind with rich yellow-orange flesh. Medium sized. Ripens in midseason: January-April. Grow well in cooler areas.

 

Mandarin Orange Hybrids

There are several mandarin orange hybrids:

Tangelo. Hybrid between a mandarin and a grapefruit. There are two notable varieties: ‘Minneola’ is bright orange-red and has a distinctive neck. It has a rich, tart flavor tangerine flavor when picked late and some seeds. Early to midseason: December through February. ‘Orlando’ has small fruit with mild, sweet flavor and is seedy. Ripens early to midseason: November through January. A third tangelo, ‘Sampson’ has grapefruit like flavor. Ripens midseason to late: February through April.

Tangor. Hybrid between a mandarin and a sweet orange. Cultivars include ‘Murcott’ which is sweet and seedy and ripens in winter: January and February. This cultivar is marketed under the name “honey tangerine.” ‘Ortanique’ is sweet, juicy. Orange, slightly pebbled rind with a distinct neck. Some seeds. Ripens midseason: January to March. ‘Temple’ is rich and spicey sweet to tart. Orange to red-orange rind and seedy. Ripens midseason, winter to spring: January to April.

Ambersweet. Cross between a ‘Clementine’ mandarin and an ‘Orlando’ tangelo and a sweet orange. Juicy and seedy. Slightly pear shaped and pebbly. Easy to peel. Ripens fall into winter: October through December.

Fairchild. Cross between ‘Clementine’ mandarin and ‘Orlando’ tangelo. Rich flavored, juicy and sweet especially when very ripe. Orange flesh. Medium to medium-small and round. Red-orange rind that is somewhat difficult to peel. Ripens in winter.

Fallglo. Cross between a mandarin and the ‘Temple’ tangor. Juicy, tart and very seedy. Reddish-orange, thin, smooth rind which peels easily. Ripens early: October and November.

Gold Nugget. Cross between ‘Wilking’ and tangor. Rich flavor. Medium oblong to round shape with golden orange pebbly rind. Flesh is orange and seedless. Ripens mid to late season. Introduced in 1999.

Lee. Cross between a ‘Clementine’ and Orlando tangelo. Tender, juicy and sweet. Medium-size, round to oblong with yellow-orange rind that is smooth and thin. Seedy. Best flavor in hot regions. Ripens fall to winter: October through December.

Nova. Cross between ‘Clementine’ and ‘Orlando’. Juicy and very sweet. Medium-sized, orange, pebbly rind. Pulp is deep orange. Ripens fall into winter: November and December.

Page. Cross between ‘Clementine’ and ‘Minneola’ tangelo. Small, sweet and juicy with few seeds. Orange rind that can be tough to peel. Ripens fall into winter: November through January.

Robinson. Hybrid between ‘Clementine’ and ‘Orlando’. Mile to very sweet flavor and seedy. Yellow to yellow-orange skin that is smooth and glossy. Ripens in fall: October through December.

Sunburst.  Cross between ‘Robinson’ and ‘Osceola’. Sweet complex flavor with an undertone of grapefruit. Large, sweet, red-orange fruit with smooth skin. Easy to peel. Some seeds. Ripens late fall: November and December.

Wekiwa. Also called ‘Lavender Gem’ or pink tangelo. Cross between a tangelo and a grapefruit. The size of a small grapefruit. Juicy, mild, sweet; the flesh can be purplish rose in hot climates. Ripens late fall into winter: December through February.

 

Sour-Acid Mandarin Hybrids

Calamondin. Cross between mandarin and a kumquat. Very small, orange edible rind. Flesh is juicy and zesty tart with some seeds.

Rangpur. Also called Rangpur lime (but it’s not a lime). Less acid than a lemon. Used as a base for punches and mixed drinks. Peels like a mandarin.

 

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