Heres what to know about the most popular (and some less so!)
varieties, including how to use them in recipes.
Incorporating citrus into my cooking feels like a welcome ray of sunshine.
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So, what are you waiting for?
Oranges
There are many different cultivars of oranges.
The following handful are some of the most popular.
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Navel oranges get their name from their belly button-like indentation on the skin.
Instead, try tossing orange segments in a salad, likethis onewith roasted beets orthis onewith jicama and avocado.
Valencia orange
If you want an orange for juicing, look to the sweet Valencia.
Navel oranges.Lori Rice
It has a similar flavor profile as the navel, but its juice doesnt turn bitter when stored.
Smooth, thin-skinned, and full of juice, Valencias are slightly harder to peel than navels.
Cara Cara orange
The pink-fleshed Cara Cara orange is a bang out of navel orange.
Valencia oranges.Lori Rice
Tarocco blood oranges, another popular variety, have less red pigmentation.
How to use a Seville orange:The fruits bitterness makes it especially good for makingmarmalade.
Sevilles are also lovely in a refreshingorangeadeormocktail.
Cara Cara oranges.Lori Rice
Other bitter oranges include Bouquet de Fleurs and Bergamot, a key flavoring in Earl Grey tea.
Mandarins
Like oranges, there are also numerous cultivars of mandarins.
As the citrus matures, the core loosens, so its also easier to segment.
Sanguinello and Moro blood oranges.Lori Rice
Commercially, groups of mandarins include satsumas and clementines.
How to use mandarins:Since theyre so easy to peel, mandarins andmandarin hybridsare excellent for snacking.
The sweet juice would also be lovely as the base for asorbet.
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The Owari satsuma, which has very few seeds, is the most common.
Tangerine
The tangerines history is rather tangled.
Today, notes Dr. Kahn, the word tangerine is often used interchangeably to refer to any mandarin.
Satsumas.Lori Rice
Its peel is also quite stubby at one end.
Lemons
Here are a few of the most common (and one less common!)
lemon and lime varieties.
Clementines.Lori Rice
Lisbon lemons have overtaken Eurekas as the most commonly grown.
How to use Eureka and Lisbon lemons:Use the juice for makinglemonade.
Both juice and zest can flavor sweets and pastries, such aslemon curdand thislemon tart.
Tangerines.Lori Rice
The zest can also be used to infuse spirits, like in thislimoncello.
Meyer lemon
A darling of the culinary world, Meyer lemons are a lemon-orange hybrid.
The flavor is sweeter and boasts a distinct floral fragrance.
Tangelo.Lori Rice
How to use Meyer lemons:Try using them in thisMeyer Lemon Marmaladeor thispreserved lemon recipe.
The zest and juice also give a lively lift to savory dishes likepastaandrisotto, as well assweet.
Limes
There are two major groups of limes, small-fruited and large fruited.
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Persian limes
These larger fruited Persian limes, shown above, are widely commercially available.
How to use Persian limes:Since theyre large and juicy, Persian limes are excellent for makinglimeade.
For something harder, theres the lime-forwardgimlet cocktail, and of course, themargarita.
Eureka lemon.Lori Rice
Theyre also aces in savory Mexican and Latin American-inspired dishes, like thisCilantro-Lime Shrimpor thiswatermelon and jicama salad.
Same goes for using them in Southeast Asian dishes, such aspad thaiandpho.
For something sweet, theseLime Icebox Cookieshit the spot.
Variegated pink Eureka lemon.Lori Rice
you might also order fresh fruit and bottled key lime juice online.
Most white grapefruits that are grown arent actually widely commercially available.
How to use grapefruit:Go retro with classic recipes likeBroiled GrapefruitorGrapefruit Avocado Salad.
Meyer lemon.Lori Rice
For a cocktail, try aSalty Dog.
Grapefruits bitter rind is also great for makinghomemade Campari.
Its seedless with a greenish-yellow skin and thick rind.
Persian lime.Lori Rice
The flesh is pale yellow and has a mild flavor thats mellow and sweet.
Pomelo
Speaking of pomelos, like the mandarin, this is another original citrus.
Its also huge, growing as large (and sometimes larger) than a persons head.
Key limes.Lori Rice
It has a thick rind thats yellow with a greenish tinge.
The flesh, which can be pink or white, is meaty.
Both the rind and flesh are quite bitter.
Star Ruby grapefruit.Lori Rice
Kumquat
Yet another original species, the kumquat has a peel thats sweet, not the flesh.
The most common kumquat is called Nagami and has an elongated shape and seeds.
Theres also a seedless variety called Nordmann Seedless.
Pomelo.Lori Rice
Kumquats symbolize prosperity in Chinese culture, and small kumquat trees are often displayed during Lunar New Year celebrations.
How to use a kumquat:These petite, bright orange citrus can be eaten whole.
They can also becandiedand are great for marmalades.
Kumquats.Lori Rice
Thissalsarecipe is particularly fun.
In Chinese culture, it symbolizes happiness and long life.
As for the interior flesh, its composed of tiny, crunchy, bubbles that look like caviar.
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How to use finger limes:The bubbles are incredibly tart when they burst in your mouth.
Ive even folded the bubble-like flesh into homemadeaiolifor a tart and unexpected twist.
Makrut limes
This highly aromatic Southeast Asian lime is quite wrinkled-looking.
Buddha’s hand.Lori Rice
It can also be used to make candies and medicinal teas.
If you cant get your hands on the actual fruit, Japanese grocers sell the juice by the bottle.
Calamansi
Also known as calamandon, this is an ancient kumquat-mandarin hybrid.
Finger limes.Lori Rice
The fruit is small, about the size of a golf ball-size.
Calamansi juice also makes for a refreshing limeade-like cooler.
The best way to ensure youre getting your hands on fresh, just-picked citrus?
Makrut limes.Lori Rice
Buy from your local farmers market.
Youre also more likely to happen across moreinteresting and uncommon varieties.
(If I have a ton of fruit, Ill bust out a rimmed baking sheet.)
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You want the citrus to be spread out so theres good airflow.
Ive learned from experience that a tightly-packed bowl of citrus is likely to develop mold more quickly.
For longer storage, both citrus juice and zest can be frozen.
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The main thing is to not let the fruit sit around and languish.
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