Tangerines

Guide Note

Tangerines are the most common type of Mandarin orange found in the United States. They are distinctive for their loose peel that is easy to tear of to get to the sweet fruit inside. They are smaller than oranges, but have an intense orange color, even more orange than an orange! They grow on a tree similar to an orange, under similar conditions, but the fruit is more suitable for eating out of hand, as it is smaller, easier to peel and usually sweeter than an eating orange.

Fast Facts

1. High in Vitamin C
2. High in Vitamin A
3. High in folate and beta-carotine
4. Contain a third as much Vitamin C as oranges
5. When selecting, pick firm fruits
6. Season: November through January
7. Keep in refrigerator for one week
8. Grated tangerine peel lends a citrus zing to foods
9. May be seedless or have seeds
10. Name derives from Tangier, Morocco

Though once thought of as simply tangerines, the varietal names are become more renowned by consumers:

1. Fairchild
2. Dancy
3. Pixie
4. Clementine
5. Honey or Murcott
6. Sunburst
7. Tangelo: cross between a tangerine and a grapefruit
8. Minneola is a type of tangelo