Page Tangerines
Estimated Inventory, lb : 0
Description/Taste
Page tangerines are small to medium fruits, averaging 6 to 8 centimeters in diameter, and have a round to oblate shape with slightly flattened ends. The peel is thin, semi-smooth, leathery, and dark orange to orange-red, covered in many prominent oil glands giving the surface a pebbled appearance. The peel is also moderately adhered to the flesh, causing it to come off in smaller pieces compared to other tangerine varieties with looser skin. Underneath the surface, the orange flesh is divided by thin membranes into 9 to 10 segments and is dense and slightly chewy with a soft, aqueous consistency. The flesh is also seedless or contains a few cream-colored seeds, depending on the fruit’s growing conditions. Page tangerines are known for their high juice and sugar content, developing a sweet, subtly tart flavor with floral and sugary nuances.
Seasons/Availability
Page tangerines are available for a short period in the winter through early spring.
Current Facts
Page tangerines, botanically classified as Citrus reticulata, are an early-season variety belonging to the Rutaceae family. The sweet fruits were developed from a cross between a minneola tangelo and clementine mandarin in the mid-20th century and were selected for their balanced flavor and juicy nature. Page tangerines are sometimes labeled as Page mandarins in local markets as the variety was initially released to Florida growers as an orange despite it being a tangelo hybrid. The cultivar is highly regarded among citrus enthusiasts as one of the best tangerine varieties for fresh eating and juicing. Page tangerines are also highly productive and can remain on trees for over four months, allowing growers to stagger the fruit’s harvest.
Nutritional Value
Page tangerines are high in vitamin C, an antioxidant that protects the cells against external aggressors, folate to develop healthy red blood cells, and fiber to regulate the digestive tract. The fruits are also a good source of vitamin A to protect against vision loss, potassium to balance fluid levels within the body, calcium to strengthen bones and teeth, and magnesium to regulate blood pressure.
Applications
Page tangerines have a sweet, fruity, and subtly floral flavor well-suited for fresh and cooked applications. The fruits can be consumed straight, out-of-hand as a snack, or they can be segmented and tossed into green salads, stirred into fruit bowls, or used as a topping over cereal, yogurt, and granola. Page tangerines are also popularly juiced and incorporated into cocktails, sparkling beverages, smoothies, and fruit punches. In addition to drinks, the juice can be mixed into salad dressings, sauces, and vinaigrettes, or it can be used to flavor cakes, muffins, cookies, and sorbet. The peel of Page tangerines can also be zested into rice or cooked with roasted meats, sliced and simmered into marmalades, chopped and candied, or dried and ground into spice mixtures. Page tangerines pair well with meats such as poultry, turkey, beef, and fish, honey, cinnamon, vanilla, other citrus, olives, avocado, and dark leafy greens. Whole, unpeeled Page tangerines will keep up to one week when stored at room temperature and 1 to 3 weeks when stored in a plastic bag in the refrigerator's crisper drawer.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
Page tangerines are a favored fruit incorporated into Chinese New Year festivities throughout the United States. Chinese New Year has been celebrated for over 5,000 years and is a holiday centered around cultural traditions and superstitions to usher good fortune into the year to come. The word for tangerine in Chinese sounds similar to the word for luck, leading the fruits to be a symbolic representation of happiness, prosperity, and luck during the New Year celebrations. The bright orange fruits also share a similar color with gold coins, further establishing tangerines as an auspicious symbol. Tangerines are often given to friends and family and are gifted in pairs for double the luck. The juicy, sweet, and tangy fruits are also displayed in bowls around family homes as New Year decorations and are served to guests as a welcome snack.
Geography/History
Page tangerines were created in 1942 in Orlando, Florida, through the United States Department of Agriculture. Breeders Gardner and Bellows crossed the clementine mandarin with a minneola tangelo and spent years perfecting the new variety, eventually releasing Page tangerines to commercial markets in 1963. Today, Page tangerines are widely grown in the coastal temperate regions of Southern California and Florida and are sold through farmer’s markets and specialty grocers.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Page Tangerines. One
is easiest, three is harder.
