Every year around the Spring Festival, it is the season when sugar oranges are on the market in large quantities, and it is also the time when it becomes the top of the fruit industry. Every household buys baskets and baskets, and many people can't stop eating them, and the "hill of orange peels" is piled up one after another.
Image source: Weibo screenshot
Indeed, during the Spring Festival, when family and friends gather together, the most suitable fruit to show off together at this time is sugar oranges.
Why say the best fruit for the party
Is it a sugar orange?
Sugar orange was first planted in Sihui City, Guangdong Province, and was introduced to Guangxi by Guangdong Sihui in the early 80s of the 20th century, and Guangxi has become the largest sugar orange planting province in the mainland. Sugar oranges are called sugar oranges because they taste as sweet as sugar, and because they can be eaten when the peel is still green in the tenth month of the lunar calendar, they are also called "October oranges".
As a seasonal fruit that is on the market around the Spring Festival, there are 5 main reasons why sugar oranges can become the "C-rank" players of party fruits:
1
It's really delicious - it's extra sweet
The sugar content of sugar oranges is at a high level in fruits, such as the sugar content of mandarins, kumquats, mandarins and blood oranges that we usually eat is 9%, 4%, 10.1% and 7.2% respectively, while the sugar content of sugar oranges is about 12%.
Moreover, the sugar-acid ratio of sugar oranges is also as high as more than 20, and some can reach 27. The sugar-acid ratio has a great impact on the taste, the larger the sugar-acid ratio, the sweeter the taste, such as tangerine, kumquat, mandarin orange, blood orange The sugar-acid ratio is only 16.3, 5.8, 16.8, 5.1.
In addition, the fructose content of sugar oranges is also relatively high. We know that among the three sugars of sucrose, fructose and glucose, glucose is the least sweet, and fructose is the sweetest, even reaching 1.73 times that of sucrose.
Image source: Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents
In addition, sugar oranges will become sweeter and sweeter as they are put together. First, the citric acid content of sugar orange will decrease during storage, and second, sucrose will fluctuate during storage, with fructose and glucose first decreasing slightly and then rising, up to 70.2mg/g and 57.5mg/g respectively.
2
It's really easy to handle - you don't have to wash it, you can eat it when you peel it off
Sugar oranges are small, do not need to be cleaned, the peel is thin, easy to peel, and the edible rate is high, and there are almost no seeds, which is very suitable for chatting while eating, and it is super convenient to show off one bite at a time. However, the peel of the golden autumn sugar orange is closely connected with the pulp, and it is difficult to peel it.
The peel of fresh sugar oranges is thin and crispy, and it will be crumbly when peeled. Image credit: Courtesy of the author
3
It smells really good - it has a natural aroma and a strong sense of atmosphere
When the peel of a sugar orange is peeled, the oil glands (small bumps on the orange peel) burst, and the volatile aromatic substances contained in it emit a strong fragrance, which not only makes the whole space fragrant, but also stimulates the sense of smell and makes people want to eat it.
The peel oil of citrus fruits contains aldehydes with a clear fragrance and terpenes with citrus aroma, and sugar oranges are rich in limonene, α-pinene, 3-carene, ethanol, camphene and other volatile components, among which limonene has a pleasant fresh mint and orange fragrance, which is the most important volatile component in sugar orange, α-pinene and 3-carene have the fragrance of pine resin, and acetaldehyde has a clear and spicy fragrance.
Together, they give sugar oranges a pleasant aroma.
4
It's really cool - the more you eat, the happier you get
The sweetness of sugar oranges can promote the secretion of dopamine in the body, making us feel happy and happy. At the same time, looking at the "orange peel hill" on the table is even more fulfilling, only one is not satisfied at all, and it is more fun to eat one after another, so the more you eat, the more addicted you are, and you can't stop at all.
5
Really cheap
The most important thing is that around the Spring Festival, the price of sugar oranges is really cheap! A few yuan a catty, or even a few cents a catty, so that many families buy sugar oranges on the "basket"!
The small sugar orange has a thin skin and easy to peel, a sweet taste, and such a friendly price, who can refuse such a delicious and cheap fruit at a party!
Hill of orange peel. Image credit: Courtesy of the author
But I really advise you not to eat too much
Eating too much will make you a "Minion"
Although sugar oranges are particularly dazzling, the amount must be controlled.
Eating too much every day may induce many problems, such as obesity, dry mouth, swollen and sore gums, mouth sores, and most importantly, it will make people "yellow".
1
Eating too much will make you a Minion
Orange foods are generally rich in β-carotene, a component that can be converted into vitamin A in the body, which is beneficial for our eye and skin health. However, if you eat too much β-carotene in a short period of time and consume too much carotene for a period of time, it will cause excess carotene to enter the body, and the body cannot metabolize it for a while, which will be deposited in the skin and stain the skin yellow, resulting in "hypercarotenemia".
This symptom has no health effect, we don't need to worry, as long as we stop eating carotene-rich foods for a week or so, we will recover on our own, and the skin will slowly return to its original color. Drinking plenty of water can also speed up metabolism!
2
Eat too much and beware of getting fat
If you want to control your weight without turning yellow, you need to control the amount of food you eat. The calories per 100 grams of sugar oranges are about 56 kcal and contain 13 grams of carbohydrates. Eating 15 small sugar oranges in one sitting, the calorie intake is basically equivalent to the calories of half a bowl of steamed rice.
According to the recommendations in the "Dietary Guidelines for Chinese Residents", it is good to eat 200~350g of fruits every day, if you plan to eat sugar oranges all day, you can eat about 20 of the small ones, and about 11 of the large ones.
About 15 grams of small sugar oranges (about 3 cm in diameter). Image credit: Courtesy of the author
About 30 grams of sugar oranges (about 4.5 cm in diameter). Image credit: Courtesy of the author
Here comes the question: how to buy it
The best sugar orange for a dinner party?
Such a suitable sugar orange for a party, of course, you must choose the sweetest. If you want to buy delicious sugar oranges, the following 5 tips must be coded!
1
Choose the one with the leaves
It is recommended to choose sugar oranges with leaves, the peel of sugar oranges is thin, and if you do not pick them hard with leaves, the peel may be destroyed. Sugar oranges with leaves cut directly from the tree are better preserved, the fruit is fresher and more shelf-stable.
At the same time, it is also necessary to observe the state of the leaves, if the leaves have wilted or curled badly, it may be that they have been left for too long and are not fresh.
Sugar orange with leaves. Image credit: Courtesy of the author
2
Choose the inner skin intact
Sugar oranges have a thin skin and are easily damaged when bumped. When buying, you should take a closer look, and try not to buy sugar oranges whose skin has been punctured or have mechanical damage, otherwise they will not be stored for long when you buy them, and they may have changed their taste.
At the same time, the surface of the lower peel is also observed, and the surface is selected to be rough to the touch, with many small particles (oil glands), and uneven. If the surface is smooth, it may be a tribute orange that looks like a sugar orange.
3
Don't choose one with a reddish peel
If the color of the peel of the sugar orange is too bright, it may have been dyed, and most unscrupulous traders use Citrus Red No. 2. When you gently wipe this dyed sugar orange with a paper towel, it will have a noticeable color, and your fingers will become noticeably red when you peel it.
When peeling a normal undyed sugar orange, due to the action of carotene, it will only remain a faint yellow color and will not be reddish. Even if you accidentally buy a dyed sugar orange, don't worry too much, you can wash it a few times and wipe it clean before peeling it. Experiments have shown that the skin of dyed sugar oranges does contain synthetic colorants, but no synthetic colorants have been detected in the pulp.
4
Don't pick too big
Compared with large sugar oranges, the former is more conducive to maintaining the nutrition and flavor of the fruit, and can be stored for 30 days or even longer when refrigerated. The diameter of the small fruit here is < 3.7cm, the diameter of the medium fruit is 3.7cm~4.2cm, and the diameter of the large fruit is > 4.2cm.
5
Don't choose something that is too soft to pinch
Pinch it gently with your hand, if the feel is firm, it means that the fruit is fresh, this is more recommended. It is not recommended to buy sugar oranges that are soft to pinch or where you can clearly feel the separation of the flesh and skin.
Seeing that the Chinese New Year is coming, and when it comes to the peak season of eating sugar oranges, you don't want to become fat, yellow, or "on fire", so you have to take it easy when you eat!