Citrus Fruits

[viscousmemories]

I thought there was a thread on this subject already, but I must've been thinking of the lemons thread.

Anyway, citrus fruits! What about 'em?

All I really wanted to say here is that I bought a 3 lb. bag of clementines yesterday, and I have only three of them left. :eek:

I guess I likes me some clementines.

[livius drusus]

Oh my darlin', oh my darlin', oh my daaaaaaarlin' Clementine. You are eaten and digested, oh my darlin' Clementine.

Having said that, I like blood oranges. Best juice ever in the history of juice.

[Legs]

What classifies a fruit as 'citrus' ?

I am partial to lime in every cold drink (except milk) and I like pink grapefruit, halved, with honey drizzled on

[viscousmemories]

I'm pretty sure it's the presence of citric acid. :)

[viscousmemories]

Nope, looks like I was wrong. Dictionary.com says:

Any of various evergreen, usually spiny shrubs or trees of the genus Citrus, such as the grapefruit, lemon, or orange, native to southern and southeast Asia, having leathery, aromatic, unifoliolate compound leaves and widely cultivated for their juicy edible fruits that have a leathery aromatic rind.

Here's more, from Answers.com:

citrus fruits, widely used edible fruits of plants belonging to Citrus and related genera of the family Rutaceae (orange family). Included are the tangerine, citrange, tangelo, orange, pomelo, grapefruit, lemon, lime, citron, and kumquat. Almost all the species bearing edible fruits are small trees native to SE Asia, Indonesia, or Malaysia. The citron was introduced to the Mediterranean area from Asia before the advent of Christianity; the others were spread chiefly by the Arabs during the Middle Ages. Introduced throughout Europe during the Crusades, they were brought by Portuguese and Spanish explorers to the West Indies, whence they were introduced into North and South America. Commercially they are now the most important group of tropical and subtropical fruits in the world. The fruits are rich in vitamin C (ascorbic acid), various fruit acids (especially citric acid), and fruit sugar. The rind, which contains numerous oil glands, and the fragrant blossoms of some species are also a source of essential oils used for perfumes and similar products. Citrus fruits can be damaged by freezing temperatures, pests (scale insects, rust mites), and various bacterial, viral, and fungal diseases (e.g., citrus canker, tristeza, and melanose).

[Legs]

I'm almost sorry I asked now :boythink:

[pescifish]

Wow, clementines must be in season -- I bought a large bag of them last week, too. My bird and I have only had two of them as of this point.

I love citrus, especially lemons and limes. One of my favorite salad dressings is simple lemon juice, olive oil and salt & pepper. Add a ton of garlic and I use that for a chicken dipping sauce. I use lime juice for marinades. Sliced mango with lime juice is sublime. Canned mandarin oranges (drained) and green onions, red wine vinaigrette on mixed baby greens is a favorite salad.

I don't eat oranges, tangerines and such very often for the fruit (though Flutter does), but I toss some in my morning juicing on occasion. I eat lemons and limes with a little salt, but not as often as I'd like since it seems hard on the teeth enamel.

[viscousmemories]

One of my favorite salad dressings is simple lemon juice, olive oil and salt & pepper. Add a ton of garlic and I use that for a chicken dipping sauce. I use lime juice for marinades. Sliced mango with lime juice is sublime. Canned mandarin oranges (drained) and green onions, red wine vinaigrette on mixed baby greens is a favorite salad.
Mmm... that all sounds really good.

[HighOnHotSauce]

Citrus byproducts are quite useful and good, but when it comes down to it I'll take non-citrus fruits over citrus. I'll always take an apple over an orange and a peach over a banana.

[Ari]

I eat canned Mandarin oranges as dessert.
They are good if you freeze them just enough for the juice to become slushy.

There is no good light (color, not diet) beer beyond Lime+Corona.

[livius drusus]

I was just checking out this list (http://www.foodsubs.com/Fruitcit.html) of citrus fruits, and was reminded of how much I love kumquats. They've got that one-two tart-sweet punch that makes your cheeks draw in so tight you don't think you're going to be able to squeeze another delicious kumquat in there, but somehow you find a way.

[viscousmemories]

Interesting. I did not know that the clementine was a type of mandarin orange. :carson:

[ApostateAbe]

Satsuma mandarins are my fave.

[Lauri D]

I was just checking out this list (http://www.foodsubs.com/Fruitcit.html) of citrus fruits, and was reminded of how much I love kumquats. They've got that one-two tart-sweet punch that makes your cheeks draw in so tight you don't think you're going to be able to squeeze another delicious kumquat in there, but somehow you find a way.

Heyyyyy! I thought I was the only person in the world who actually knew what a kumquat was. My parents have a couple bushes of 'em. Amazing fruit! I love the way they "pop" in your mouth.

[livius drusus]

Cool! I sometimes think California and Rome were separated at birth. Now if only I could find a kumquat smiley... :homer:

[RevDahlia]

Satsuma mandarins are my fave.
Me too. They have that nice baggy skin that's so fun to peel. I had a satsuma tree in my yard growing up (also a kumquat tree and a Meyer lemon tree; I was not a citrus-deprived child.)

My favorite nontraditional citrus fruits are Meyer lemons, yuzu and kaffir lime. I have never actually eaten a yuzu, but I have a small vial of yuzu essential oil and it smells just divine. You can't eat kaffir limes, but the leaves are essential in Thai curries. I used to live down the street from a nursery that had a kaffir lime shrub for sale; whenever I wanted to make a curry or tom kha gai or something I'd steal a couple of leaves. That poor shrub was nearly naked by the time we moved.