difference between clementine and tangerine and satsuma

In North America the name Tangerine is commonly used for a number of late varieties with deep colour and thin, fairly tight rinds, such as Honey Tangerine. Clementines as a group, are small to medium in size, sweet, generally seedless, and have smooth orange peel that is easy to remove. Most of the common easy-peeler varieties have been described as Clementines at one time or another, which is understandable as they have a similarity in the eyes of consumers, and their differences are mostly subtle until the late varieties come into the market. The name Clementine covers the many different Common Mandarin varieties, as well as a fair few of the Tangors and Tangelos, so it is a type of mandarin rather than a distinct variety in itself. Satsumas are seasonal as they do not store well and there are few late season varieties, so there are gaps in availability in January – February and August – September. They are also very juicy, with soft segments, which is part of the attraction.

The rind is very easy to remove, the fruit is quite delicate, and the flavour is mild with a delicious tang and background sweetness. It originates from Japan in its modern form of 3 or 4 varieties, such as Okitsu and Mihowase. The Satsuma is type of mandarin and is a distinct, easily recognisable fruit, which is particularly popular in UK. The Mediterranean and King Mandarins are of limited commercial importance, but the other three contain all the varieties that we see in our retail stores. Mandarins are broadly categorised as Satsumas, Mediterranean Mandarins, King Mandarins, Common Mandarins, and Tangors / Tangelos. The broad similarities between these types are a small to medium size fruit, rind that peels away quite easily, sweetness, a distinctive flavour and popularity!

The following description will help to understand these fruit a little better:Īlthough the name is sometimes used on retail packaging, this is actually the collective name for all easy-peeler type citrus fruit, which are thought to have originated in north-east India or south-west China. The list goes on, and has largely developed to help retailers differentiate a complex group of similar fruit for consumers. It is confusing to browse the citrus aisle in our stores looking at easy-peelers because of the plethora of names and descriptions used: Satsumas, Clementines, Tangerines, Mandarins, etc. What are Clementines, Mandarins, Satsumas and Tangerines?

Difference between clementine and tangerine and satsuma