The loveFOOD guide to... oranges
Oranges offer a bright taste of summer whatever the season and have many uses in the kitchen.
Seville Oranges
Sometimes called bitter oranges, these oranges are nearly impossible to eat raw. Peel and cook the juice and pulp with sugar though, and you’ll have the best ever marmalade. Once you’ve got that, the world’s your oyster. Marmalade has many uses in baking, but its sharp/sweet taste is also usable in savoury dishes too. It’s a great glaze for barbecued meats, and even spicy sausages, not to mention chicken.
Roast chicken thighs with marmalade glaze recipe
Satsumas
Popular with kids and easy to eat raw, satsumas are best used in things like fruit salads. They’re the smallest of the orange family, and have a slightly squashed look. If you want to cook them, or you end up with too many, you can use them to make marmalade. Alternatively use in salads too.
Aromatic oranges with pistachios and honey recipe
Clementines
Similar to satsumas as, along with mandarins and tangerines, they are all part of the same family. Clementines were often given at Christmas, due to the fact they peak season is mid-winter. Can be used in a similar way to satsumas, in marmalades and also salads.
Paul A Young's mulled wine hot chocolate recipe
Blood oranges
Slightly smaller than a normal orange and with thicker skin, however once peeled the flesh is a deep blood red. Because of this striking colour it’s nearly always used raw in salads, or even pressed to make a juice to use in cocktails. They’re also great for things like granites and sorbets. Interestingly Arancia Rossa di Sicilia from Sicily have EU PGI status; they also happen to have the highest concentration of vitamin C of any orange.
Smoked mackerel with blood orange and fennel recipe
Other oranges
There are plenty of different cultivars of oranges on the market. Valencia oranges are a late season orange, whereas navel oranges (with there customary ‘belly button’ at the top that gives them their name) come early in the season. Bergamot oranges are not edible as the fruit can be toxic in large doses; however it can be used safely in extract form. Earl Grey tea, for example, is flavoured with bergamot.
Valentine Warner's duck a l'orange with watercress recipe
More orange articles and recipes:
Venison stew with orange, thyme and cheddar dumplings recipe
Sweet rosehip and orange risotto recipe
Roast crown of mallard with an orange and redcurrant glaze recipe
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