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Oranges are highly valued for their vitamin C content. It is a
primary source of vitamin C for most Americans. This wonderful
fruit has more to offer nutritionally than just this one nutrient,
containing sufficient amounts of folacin, calcium, potassium,
thiamin, niacin and magnesium. Most of the consumption of oranges
is in the form of juice. Eating the whole fruit provides 130%
of the recommended dietary allowance for vitamin C, less than
the juice, but more fiber, which is not present in the juice.
The
fruit is technically a hesperidium, a kind of berry. It consists
of several easily separated carpels, or sections, each containing
several seeds and many juice cells, covered by a leathery skin,
containing numerous oil glands. Orange trees are evergreens, seldom
exceeding 30 ft in height. The leaves are oval and glossy and
the flowers are white and fragrant.
These
semitropical evergreens probably originated in Southeast Asia.
Columbus and other European travelers brought sweet orange seed
and seedlings with them to the New World. By 1820 there were groves
in St Augustine, Florida, and by the end of the Civil War oranges
were being shipped north in groves. A freeze produced a major
set back in production in 1895, but by 1910 crops in Florida had
been reestablished. Florida is the number one citrus producer,
producing 70% of the U.S. crop, with 90% of that going into juice.
However, Arizona, Texas, and California also produce small amounts,
with variations in color and peel. (Wellness Encyclopedia of Food
and Nutrition, 1992).
Oranges
- Selection: All varieties should be firm, heavy for
size, and have fine-textured skin. Look for fruit that is firm
and heavy for its size, with bright, colorful skins. Skin color
is not a good guide to quality. Fruits may be ripe even though
they may have green spots. Avoid fruit with bruised, wrinkled
or discolored skins; this indicates the fruit is old or has been
stored incorrectly. Citrus fruit peel may vary in thickness, depending
on weather conditions during the growing season. Thinner skins
tend to be juicier than thick skin fruits.
Oranges
- Storage: Oranges can be stored at room temperature,
in the refrigerator without plastic bags or in the crisper drawer
for up to 2 weeks. They do not ripen further after harvest. Fresh-squeezed
juice and grated peel or zest may be refrigerated or frozen, but
whole citrus fruit should not be frozen.
Oranges
may exhibit some re-greening of the skin; this does not adversely
affect internal fruit quality. Neither does surface scarring,
which occurs when wind brushed young fruit against the tree.
Oranges
- Varieties: Varieties include the sweet orange, the
sour orange, and the mandarin orange, or tangerine. The United
States produces the sweet variety. Spain produces the sour variety,
Seville, which is used in marmalades and liquers. Most all oranges
have a yellow orange color with sizes ranging from small to large.
The inside of an orange is plump and juicy. Sweet favorites include
the Blood, Hamlin, Jaffa, Navel, Pineapple and Valencia. The color
depends on the climate. Florida's warm days and nights produce
oranges with some green in the skin coloring. California and Arizona
oranges tend to have deeper orange color due to cooler desert
nights.
The
principal varieties of the sweet orange cultivated by orange growers
of the eastern United States are the Hamlin and Parson Brown,
both early-maturing, seedy varieties with thin, russet skin and
juicy pulp. Both eastern and western growers cultivate the Valencia,
a late variety that is commercially seedless. Fresh oranges from
California and Arizona are available throughout the year, with
two major varieties, Navels and Valencias. The Moro orange (a
type of blood orange) and the red Cara Navel are two western-grown
seasonal varieties. The Navel orange is a seedless orange, with
medium-thick rind, in which a second small, orange grows. A variety
of the Washington Navel orange is the principal orange product
of Texas.
Oranges
- Tips:
- Drink
a cool glass of orange juice for breakfast or serve orange halves
instead of grapefruit for a change.
-
Combine the juice with other fruits and yogurt in the blender
for a smoothie any time of day.
-
A couple of tablespoons of orange juice concentrate can be added
to a fruit cup for a great flavorful sauce.
-
Cut oranges into wedges and eat them for a light snack or use
them as edible garnishes.
-
Buy a zesting tool or grate orange rind to use in recipes, rice,
or stir fry for added flavor.
-
Carry an orange with you wherever you go, they come in their
own covered container so you can just peel and eat orange segments
whenever the snack craze occurs.
-
Orange juice can be used over fresh fruits to prevent browning.
Oranges Information Page - Return To Top
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