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Cooking with Citrus
Citrus fruits belong to the 'Rutacecae' family that includes
lemons, limes, pomelos and grapefruits. Citrus trees are evergreen
trees that produce fruits of different forms and sizes (from round
to oblong), which are full of fragrance, flavor and juice.
The internal part of the fruit is the pulp. This is divided into
individual segments or juice sacs (with or without seeds,
according to the variety) by a thick radial film or endocarp. This
part is rich in soluble sugars, significant amounts of vitamin C,
pectin, fibres, different organic acids and potassium salt, which
give the fruit its characteristic citrine flavor.
Citrus fruits and citrus juices have several beneficial health and
nutritive properties. They are rich in Vitamin C or ascorbic acid
and folic acid, as well as a good source of fibre. They are fat
free, sodium free and cholesterol free. In addition they contain
potassium, calcium, folate, thiamin, niacin, vitamin B6,
phosphorus, magnesium and copper. They may help to reduce the risk
of heart diseases and some types of cancer. They are also helpful
to reduce the risk of having children with birth diseases in
pregnant women.
Oranges
So which came first - the fruit or the colour? Apparently it was
the fruit. The orange fruit got its modern name from its ancient
Sanskrit name "Naranga" and the fruit then lent its name to the
colour that it projects.
There many different types of oranges available such as the naval
orange, the mandarin, tangarine, Satsuma and the green skinned
ones from Malaysia. Interestingly enough, the reason the ones from
Malaysia or any tropical climate are green in colour is because it
needs the weather to be cold for the skin to develop it wonderful
orange colour.
Oranges were cultivated in ancient India and China 3000 years ago.
The fruits were then brought back to Europe by Medieval crusaders
and Spanish explorers carried them to America.
The orange may actually be an ancient hyrid of the Mandarin and
Pomelo. The Japanese oranges called Satsuma came about in the 16th
century and the Mediterranean ones called Tangarine (the names
comes from the Morroccan city of Tangier) appeared in the 18th
century.
Interestingly, the calcium in fortified orange juice is better
absorbed than the calcium in milk. A glass of milk has 291 mg of
calcium; of which 93 mg is absorbed (31%). A glass of orange juice
has 350 mg of calcium; of which 130 mg. is absorbed (37%). One
orange contains about 50 mg of vitamin C or about two thirds of
our daily need. Oranges are also acidic and therefore detoxifying.
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