Pictured clockwise from lower left are a navel orange, a Satsuma tangerine, a Fairchild tangerine, a Clementine, and a royal Mandarin orange. Photo by Esther Oertel.
Did you get a tangerine or orange in your Christmas stocking this year? The tradition of putting these fruits in the toes of Christmas stockings dates back many centuries.
When I was growing up, my siblings and I always found a round orange globe – usually a tangerine with leaves attached – waiting for us at the very bottom of our stockings, and I’ve continued the tradition with my own children through the years.
The grandfather of one of the guests at our Christmas table received an orange each year during childhood Christmases in Switzerland in the late 1800s. This was an exciting event for the grandfather – as well as for his siblings, who each received their own orange – and he tried to make the exotic treat last through the days following Christmas.
Some say that the tradition of giving citrus fruit at Christmas stems from its being a rarity in northern climes, making it a special holiday indulgence, while others point to a legend involving Saint Nicholas.
Saint Nicholas, also known as Nikolaos of Myra, was a fourth century bishop who inspired the folk legend of Santa Claus. He lived in what is now modern day Turkey.
The story goes that Saint Nicholas was passing through a village and overheard talk about a poor man who had three daughters and no money. Wanting to help them in secret, he crept into their home at night and left a bag of gold in each daughter’s stocking, which were hanging on the mantle to dry before the fire.
Not only does this legend provide a reason for the origin of Christmas stockings, it is said that the oranges or tangerines left in the toes of them represent the bags of gold that Saint Nicholas left for each daughter.
Whether or not this legend is the reason for the practice, these colorful fruits are intertwined with the memories of many a Christmas.
Oranges are members of the genus citrus which also includes lemons, grapefruit and limes. They began as a sour fruit in China and were cultivated there by 2500 B.C. Since then, oranges and other citrus fruits have been grown in ever-widening areas throughout the world.
Currently Brazil is the main cultivator of oranges, with the U.S. in second place.
There are three main types of oranges: sweet oranges, bitter oranges and Mandarins, which include the many varieties of tangerines.
Sweet oranges include navel oranges, Valencia oranges and blood oranges.
Navel oranges have a mutation that causes them to develop a second, smaller orange – a conjoined twin, so to speak – at its base. Inside the peel, this appears as a set of smaller segments. From the outside, it looks like a human navel, which is the reason for its name.
It’s a very sweet orange, perfect for eating out of hand.
Valencia oranges, a late season fruit, become more popular when navels are out of season. They’re grown especially for making juice.
The blood orange has deep red pigmentation in its flesh. When squeezed, it produces a dark burgundy-colored juice, spawning its moniker. These typically appear in markets in late December, and I’m always happy to see them, as their season is short-lived.
As the name implies, the taste of bitter oranges prevents them from being eaten out of hand like sweet oranges. Rather, they are used in cooking – such as for making marmalade – or as orange flavor in a variety of products.
Bitter oranges include the Seville orange, used for marmalade and to flavor orange liqueurs; the bergamot orange, the oil from which is used to flavor Earl Grey tea; and the chinotto orange, which is used in Italian bitters and in Campari, an aperitif.
I found it interesting that Seville oranges come mainly from decorative trees planted in the city of that name in Spain. They’re harvested and sent to Britain for marmalade making. Since they have a higher pectin content than sweet oranges, they’re prized for this purpose.
Finally, we come to the largest category of oranges, that of Mandarins. There are a large number of subgroups within the Mandarin orange category, including tangerines, which has its own long list of varieties.
The Satsuma, a special Mandarin from Japan, is one of my favorites. My sons called them “easy peels” when they were young because the outer skin is loose and comes so easily off the flesh. They’re often harvested with stems and leaves intact, making for a nice presentation when placed in a bowl.
The hybrid tangelo, of which there are several different types, is a cross between a tangerine and a grapefruit (or a pomelo, its extra-large cousin, which is also known as the Chinese grapefruit). The Minneola may be the best known variety, but I’m partial to the ugli fruit.
This poor thing is so named because it’s considered, well, ugly. It may have been crossed with a bitter orange. Depending on the variety, it can look a bit like a large, bumpy lime. Its flesh is often light yellow in color and is mildly acidic.
Tangerines are quite popular this time of year because of their association with Christmas, as well as their season. During a visit to the grocery store last week, I found four varieties available in the produce department.
Tangerine varieties include Dancy, Fairchild, Honey and Sunburst, to name a few.
Clementines are sometimes marketed as “cuties” because of their small size. They’re known to be the smallest variety of tangerine; however, a recent article in the London Times sang the praises of a cherry tomato-sized tangerine, which is purported to be quite sweet.
These tiny tangerines been grown in China for more than 1300 years. They’re finding their way to England with the hopes that the tradition of giving tangerines at Christmastime will be resurrected through such a unique offering.
One of the loveliest attributes of citrus fruit in the orange family as far as I’m concerned is the scent of their skin. When I zest oranges in my cooking classes, I joke that if I were wealthy, I’d pay someone to walk near me zesting an orange at all times. It’s a beautiful scent, as well as one of my go-to ingredients in cooking.
Orange blossom water (also known as orange flower water) adds a delicate flavor to foods cooked with it. It’s often used to flavor desserts (such as French madeleines and Mexican wedding cakes) and is a traditional component in the cuisines of the Middle East.
If you can eat many of these lovely fruits this winter, please do. They’re rich with nutrients that support our immune system and stave off colds and flu, such as vitamin C. Just one orange provides the recommended daily dose of it.
In addition, this nutrient dense fruit packs over 170 different phytonutrients and more than 60 flavonoids, many of which have been shown to have anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and blood clot inhibiting properties, as well as strong anti-oxidant effects.
Oranges are also full of dietary fiber, especially when eaten raw.
In addition to being eaten out of hand or used for juice, orange segments are fantastic tossed in a salad or used in Asian-inspired stir-fried dishes. They’re especially good when paired with ginger.
As I was researching this column, I ran across a wonderful-sounding recipe by Michael Chiarello for tangerine mayonnaise. The mayonnaise was presented as an accompaniment for grilled asparagus, but, according to Chiarello, “it tastes great on all sorts of vegetables and on poached fish, and can be used to bind a chicken salad or as a sandwich spread.” Chiarello's Web site can be found at http://www.napastyle.com/custserv/custserv.jsp?pageName=Bio .
The recipe calls for gray salt, a type of culinary salt mined in France on the coast of Brittany. Grey salt is moist and unrefined and retains a light gray (almost purple) color because of the clay in the salt flats where it’s collected. Kosher salt or coarse sea salt may be substituted instead.
Tangerine mayonnaise
2 cups freshly squeezed tangerine juice
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped fresh tarragon
1 egg yolk
Gray salt and freshly ground pepper
1 cup pure olive oil
Put the tangerine juice in a small non-reactive saucepan and bring to a boil.
Cook until reduced to 1/2 cup. Let cool to room temperature.
Combine the reduced juice, tarragon, egg yolk, and salt and pepper to taste in a blender and blend until well mixed.
With the machine running, add the 1 cup olive oil, at first by drops and then, as mixture emulsifies, in a thin, steady stream until all the oil is incorporated.
Taste for seasoning.
Scrape into a jar, cover, and refrigerate until needed. You should have about 1 to 2/3 cups mayonnaise, which will keeps two to three days, refrigerated.
Chef Chiarello’s note: Every cook has insecurities. One of mine is mayonnaise. I always get a little anxious until I see it coming together in the blender. If the mayonnaise is too thick, thin it, with the machine running, by pulsing in a little cool water.
Esther Oertel, the “Veggie Girl,” is a culinary coach and educator and is passionate about local produce. Oertel teaches culinary classes at Chic Le Chef in Hidden Valley Lake, Calif., and The Kitchen Gallery in Lakeport, Calif., and gives private cooking lessons. She welcomes your questions and comments; e-mail her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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