I have solved the small orange problem

[noblegiraffe]

I just saw a Waitrose billboard that said "You know it's Christmas when you peel your first clementine" which made me think "I know it's Christmas when I consider Pigs in Blankets to be a viable crisp flavour" but it got me mulling over the issue of small oranges, and I think I have finally solved it.

The correct order for small oranges is:

1. Mandarin - the <chef's kiss> of small oranges.

2. Satsuma - a solid entry in the small orange category, easy to peel. Sometimes you get the odd duff tasteless one but usually delicious.

3. Tangerines - could be ranked higher but rarely on the shelves so I kind of forget they exist.

and WAY down the bottom, basically in the bin

4. Clementines - the absolute worst. What is up with that horrible flavour? You'd get a better orange experience from drinking some juice straight after brushing your teeth. They try to disguise them by rebranding them 'easy peelers'. Look at the small print and it's a covert clementine.

I think this is one thing we can all agree on this Christmas.

Please support your local green grocers. Ours sell delicious satsumas and pomelos.

But Clementines come in a nice wooden crate, sat atop a bed of tissue paper, with their leaves still attached!! Regardless of what's on the inside, can I be superficial and judge solely on appearance?

That’s because it is delicious! Much nicer than bottled orange juice.

I far prefer clementines to mandarins as they are sweeter.

I find tangerines have that extra bit of zesty bite compared to everything else - but you need your best Jilly Goolden head on to notice the difference perhaps.

Can anyone ever really easily peel any of these little orange balls? Go large with an orange stored in the fridge it seems to shrink the nasty white bits. Then cut it half around the middle, then each half into 3 segments. The lovely juicy bit almost falls away from the peel and pith. A wooden box of mandarins with heir leaves on does look very festive.

Glad I've finally been vindicated. Late dh preferred clementines, I preferred satsumas. Seems I was right, although I hope late dh is up there enjoying his clementines.

"The correct order for small oranges is:

1. Mandarin - the <chef's kiss> of small oranges.
2. Satsuma - a solid entry in the small orange category, easy to peel. Sometimes you get the odd duff tasteless one but usually delicious.
3. Tangerines - could be ranked higher but rarely on the shelves so I kind of forget they exist.
4. and WAY down the bottom, basically in the bin Clementines - the absolute worst. What is up with that horrible flavour? You'd get a better orange experience from drinking some juice straight after brushing your teeth. They try to disguise them by rebranding them 'easy peelers'. Look at the small print and it's a covert clementine."

Oh no, no NO... this is ALL wrong.

Satsuma's are the absolute KING of small orange fruits - the season is sadly too short though.

Followed by Clementines, then Tangerines and Mandarins somewhere around the "Nah, you're alright - I'll pass" bottom of the small orange heap.

This thread made me consume a tangerine 🍊. I had high hopes as it was very firm but it was a bit hard work to peel, tasted lovely but there was at least 1 pip per segment and most had 3/4!! Messy.

Satsumas have a very specific taste that I kind of prefer but most of them don’t taste quite right so for me it’s not worth the gamble!

This thread made me consume a tangerine 🍊. I had high hopes as it was very firm but it was a bit hard work to peel, tasted lovely but there was at least 1 pip per segment and most had 3/4!! Messy.

Bugger, I bought tangerines yesterday because of this thread. I haven't tried one yet as I was finishing the satsumas I had got in Aldi. I can't be doing with faff, or bastard pips. I'll be raging if my tangerines are rage inducing.

I think satsumas don't last as long or travel as well as the other fruits, hence the lack of them.

@Cakeonthefloor We get kumquats in our veg box every Christmas and every year we forget what they are. I feel they're probably best for their christmassy decorative function (unless they're just unripe) because even DS, whose favourite fruit since toddlerhood has been limes, says they're too sour/bitter.
Apparently kumquat marmalade is very good but I can't even begin to imagine slicing up all the little blighters.

However, the best citrus is...
tangerine.

I went to Sainsbury's today and thoroughly investigated the small orange section. They had proudly labelled tangerines and satsumas, then loads of bags and boxes of things simply marked 'easy peelers'. I turned to the back of the label to find the truth - they were all clementines. The easy peeler label is to trick the unwitting purchaser.

But there was something else - the fancy box and the bag both had the instruction to REFRIGERATE

The bag also told you that they were best served at room temperature. So you are supposed to refrigerate them, then take them out well before eating to warm up. And to wash them?!!

Satsumas all the way with me. A a child they were ALL either oranges or tangerines, although in the US they are more correct in that the generic used is often Mandarin. Not a fan of the usually sharper clementines which like most easy peelers are anything but - life is too short.

Oranges tend to go sharper when stored in the fridge, which the others do not. I would also buy a large orange (preferably blood) or a pink grapefruit and simply cut into quarters to eat not peel.
As to cooking, if you really can be bothered to peel, I think the sharper and more solid flesh may well be the reason for Nigella's preference

Thank you so much for this thread. I have been out and bought tangerines (Sainsburys and M&S) and they are bloody brilliant. Much nicer than those nasty little easy peelers.

Oh I am so pleased to have helped someone see the light and shun the clementine! 🍊

I shall never shun the sweet clementine !

Flounces off

Things were going quite well. The first tangerine took a little effort to peel, had four pips but they were easily dealt with and the flavour and texture was very pleasant. The second one was similar.

Last night however, came Tangerine No 3. To begin with I very nearly broke a nail trying to get into the damn thing, but I got there in the end. Duly peeled, I separated the fruit into two parts. Hmm, thought I, it looks a bit pippy. The first segment had five, FIVE, pips . I carried on, segment by segment, the 'best' one contained three pips. One of the fuckers squirted into my face as I was depipping the fucker. All in all there were THIRTY ONE fucking bastard pips. That is unforgiveable, even for citrus.

Agreed. I know it's petty but I won't buy them because of the name. Cut out the patronising baby talk and tell me what kind of small orange it is.

What I really want is for them to be sweet and with minimal pith and pips but it always seems hit and miss no matter what I buy.

@FreeAdamsApples
😂
Stick with the Clementines

Glad you’ve done a thread on this and noticed what the supermarkets have been doing for years now. They’ll be selling the same variety - usually Clemenules as shown in the pic you shared - at different prices and labelled as different products. Tesco are terrible for it. The “finest” clementines in the boxes with the leaves still on the fruit will be the same variety as the cheapest “easy peelers” in the net sacks.

Refrigeration will help them keep a bit longer than if you’re putting them into a fruit bowl in a room where the central heating’s on a lot. I eat so many this time of year there’s 0 chance of me still having any left after a few days let alone a week-10 days. I think they taste better at room temperature. I never noticed the “wash” suggestion until your post though - that’s crackers!

For me the “Clemenvilla” variety, which supermarkets label as “tangerine” is the best you can buy this time of year for flavour - balanced between sweet and tart - and aroma. You will get ones with pips but by and large most in a sack don’t have any. Slightly harder to peel but worth it. When I was growing up in the 90s what were then labelled “clementines” were like the Clemenvilla variety. They always felt heavier than they looked, which was a good sign they’d be juicy and not some crappy husk of a fruit when you bit into it.
Anything I’ve bought labelled as a “clementine” in the last 10+ years has been bland.

What’s wrong with Clementines? We buy lovely sweet easy-peeler ones by the (almost) ton.

Being of South African descent, they’re all naatjies to me.
Sometimes they’re a bit bland and tasteless, sometimes they’re little balls of juicy, fruity heaven.

Absolutely nothing as I have been posting on this thread.
They are the best !
The sweetest !

I think I’ve also solved the small orange problem.

l consumer an entire chocolate orange last night😳that’s honestly the best orange I’ve ever had.

Nothing “wrong” with them as far as I’m concerned. I just find most of the varieties the supermarkets sell on the bland side. Thankfully other options are readily available.