Differences between oranges, tangerines and tangerines
Citrus fruits bring liveliness to the table in the winter months and everyone likes them, even if everyone has their own preferences.
The differences between oranges, mandarins and tangerines, in fact, are not limited to appearance but also affect the taste and texture of each fruit.
More or less juicy, with or without seeds, very sweet or with a sour note that tickles the palate: let’s discover together something more about these products and their characteristics.
Types of citrus fruits: original and hybrid
If the oriental origin unites mandarin, orange and tangerine, the main difference is that only the former can be said to be a true original citrus fruit.
All the types of citrus we know, in fact, descend from only three ancestors: mandarin, cedar and pomelo.
Already from the name, the tangerine claims to have inherited the best of the two species from which it derives: sweet and juicy like orange, small and easy to peel like tangerine.
The orange, on the other hand, is an unsuspected hybrid.
The long history of the spread of orange also in the West, in fact, leads us to assume that it is a primeval species.
However, this is not the case, both in their sweet and bitter variant, oranges are the result of the cross between pomelo and mandarin.
Properties and calories of oranges, tangerines and tangerines
All citrus fruits are precious foods for health thanks to their antioxidant properties and high content of vitamin C and fiber.
The values of the nutritional elements are variable according to the different species of each: blood or blonde oranges, mandarins or clementines, mandarins or Kumquats …
For health and taste, therefore, the advice is always the same: vary often and taste everything!
Finally, in terms of calories, again and without too many surprises, the tangerine is something in between: its approximately 53 Kcal per 100 grams are halfway between the 47 of the orange and the 72 of the mandarins.
Mandarin sorbet and RivaReno orange chocolate ice cream
When mandarins and oranges are sweeter and juicier, we at RivaReno let ourselves be enthused by their goodness and choose the most suitable fruits for each preparation.
This is how our Sicilian mandarin or Sanguinella sorbets are born, which we produce exclusively from December to February, but also a timeless specialty such as orange chocolate ice cream.
In the sorbets you can savor the taste and aroma of seasonal fruit in purity, while you give in to a small temptation when the orange aroma marries the strong flavor of cocoa: the choice is yours!