Tangerines
Clementine, tangelo
Tangerines are also known as “mandarin oranges.” Clementines are small Algerian tangerines. Tangelos are a cross between the grapefruit and the tangerine. All there are high in sugar with moderate amounts of dietary fiber (soluble pectins), good sources of vitamin A and vitamin C.
One peeled tangerine, 2.5 inches in diameter, has 1.6 g dietary fiber, 599 IU vitamin A (26 percent of the RDA for a woman, 20 percent of the RDA for a man), and 24 mg vitamin C (32 percent of the RDA for a woman, 27 percent of the RDA for a man).
 |
Freshly peeled.
Low-fiber diet
Look for: Tangerines that are heavy for their size (which means they will be juicy). The skin should be deep orange, almost red, and naturally puffy and easy to peel.
Choose firm, heavy tangelos, with a thin, light-orange skin that is less puffy than the tangerine’s.
Choose small-to-medium clementines with bright orange skin. They should be heavy for their size.
Refrigerate tangerines and clementines. Tangerines are very perishable; use them within a day or two. Store tangelos at room temperature for a few days. Refrigerate them for longer storage.
Wash the fruit under cold running water. Don’t peel it until you are ready to use it; peeling tears cells and activates ascorbic acid oxidase, an enzyme that destroys vitamin C. Although many people prefer citrus fruits very cold, bringing the tangerines, clementines, and tangelos to room temperature before you serve them liberates the aromatic molecules that make the fruit smell and taste good, intensifying the flavor and aroma.
Canning. Before they are canned, Mandarin oranges are blanched briefly in steam to inactivate ascorbic acid oxidase, an enzyme that would otherwise destroy the fruit’s vitamin C. Canned Mandarin oranges contain approximately as much vitamin C as fresh ones.
Antiscorbutics. Like other citrus fruits, tangerines, tangelos, and clementines are useful in preventing or curing the vitamin C–deficiency disease scurvy.
Contact dermatitis. The oils in the peel of the tangerine, tangelo, or clementine may be irritating to sensitive individuals.
Aphthous ulcers. Eating citrus fruit, including tangerines, tangelos, and clementines, may trigger an attack of apthous ulcers (canker sores) in sensitive people, but eliminating these foods from your diet will neither cure nor prevent an attack.
Aspirin and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs: ibuprofen, naproxen, etc.). Taking aspirin or NSAIDs with acidic foods such as grapefruit intensifies the drugs’ ability to irritate your stomach and cause gastric bleeding.
