There are only three original species of citrus fruits – mandarin orange, pummelo, and citron. All the other citrus fruits we see in stores and at farmers’ markets today are actually products of crossing these original species. Yes, this includes the common sweet oranges, lemons, and limes! Mindblowing, isn’t it? There are many more amazing things about citrus fruits that you are not yet aware of, and they will completely blow your mind. But before we delve into that, let’s look at all the types of citrus fruits that you can get your hands on.
List Of Citrus Fruits
Here are some popular varieties of citrus fruits (1):
Sweet oranges: Blood orange, kumquat, navel, cara cara Mandarins: Clementine, tangerine, tangelo, calamondin Limes: Key lime, Persian, kaffir Grapefruit: White, ruby red, oroblanco Lemons: Meyer, eureka Other kinds: Citron, yuzu, ugli, Rangpur, pomelo, Buddha’s hand, kinnow
1. Orange
The beloved orange that is readily available around the world is actually a hybrid between a pomelo and a mandarin (2). This sweet fruit grows in tropical and subtropical climates and has been around longer than Christianity as it has been mentioned in Chinese literature dating all the way back to 314 BC!
Botanical Name: Citrus sinensis Origin: Southern China, Northeastern India, and Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 30-33 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic to neutral soil with good drainage
2. Tangerine
The trusty ol’ tangerine is believed to be a variety of another citrus fruit, the mandarin orange. It is much sweeter than a regular orange and is used in preparing a bunch of drinks, desserts, salads, and other dishes. Tangerine peels are so delicious that they are also eaten coated in chocolate!
Botanical Name: Citrus tangerina Origin: Morocco Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 8-10 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic to neutral loamy soil with good drainage
3. Key Lime
Who hasn’t experienced the slice of heaven that is key lime pie? This delicious fruit is also known as Mexican lime and West Indian lime (3). Besides the fruit has a sweet flavor, the flowers that bloom with it are also super pretty off-white with a delicate purple tinge at the edges.
Botanical Name: Citrus aurantiifolia Origin: Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 16 feet Exposure: Full sun, protected from cold winds Soil: Well-drained, slightly acidic to neutral broken rocky soil
4. Clementine
I’m sure you must have spent some part of your childhood being taught the ubiquitous song Oh My Darlin’ Clementine. Well, this classic also features one of the most commonly found citrus fruits out there. Clementine is a sweet citrus fruit that is a cross between a mandarin orange and a sweet orange. It has lesser acid than a sweet orange and is often confused with mandarin orange (4).
Botanical Name: Citrus clementina Origin: Algeria Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 25 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
5. Blood Orange
Blood orange has quite the fitting moniker considering its flesh is a very distinctive dark red. This is because it contains unique antioxidants called anthocyanins that are not found in any other citrus fruits (5). Another feature that sets it apart from its other citrus counterparts is that it has a distinct raspberry flavor to it in combination with the usual citric flavor.
Botanical Name: Citrus sinensis Origin: China Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 15 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic, well-drained loamy soil
6. Mandarin Orange
The mandarin orange is a citrus fruit that closely resembles the more common sweet orange. This sweet citrus fruit holds a special place in Chinese medicine and Ayurveda for treating abdominal, digestion, and phlegm-related issues (6). Mandarin oranges are also traditional symbols of abundance and are thus presented and displayed during the Chinese New Year.
Botanical Name: Citrus reticulata Origin: China Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 8-10 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained loamy soil
7. Lemon
Who doesn’t know the joy of having a glass of cold lemonade on a hot summer day? Owing to its unique sour taste, lemon is a citrus fruit that is used in preparing food and refreshing drinks all over the world. Additionally, its high citric acid content makes it a strong cleaning agent, and its essential oil is used in aromatherapy for relaxation (7).
Botanical Name: Citrus limon Origin: Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 10-20 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Acidic, well-drained, loamy soil
8. Grapefruit
The grapefruit boasts of a unique flavor profile that ranges from sour to semi-sweet to bitter notes. It’s a cross between two other citrus fruits – sweet orange and pomelo (8).This citrus fruit gets its name from the way it grows in bunches that resemble grapes. The flesh of this beautiful fruit can come in red, white, or pink hues, depending on its cultivars.
Botanical Name: Citrus paradisi Origin: Barbados Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 16-20 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
[Read: Health Benefits of Longan Fruit]
9. Meyer Lemon
The Meyer lemon is named after the American agricultural explorer Frank Nicholas Meyer, who first sampled and brought this citrus fruit to the US from China. It’s a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange (9). Though first used as an ornamental tree in China, this fruit found its way into cooking, thanks to popular chefs like Alice Waters and Martha Stewart.
Botanical Name: Citrus meyeri Origin: China Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 6-10 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic, well-drained, loamy soil
10. Kaffir Lime
Kaffir lime (also known as makrut lime) is a citrus fruit that features quite prominently in Southeast Asian cuisine (10). In fact, its leaves are used way more than the fruit in preparing Thai, Cambodian, Vietnamese, and Indonesian dishes. Kaffir lime juice is also used as a shampoo in this region and is believed to kill head lice.
Botanical Name: Citrus hystrix Origin: Tropical Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 6 to 35 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, loamy soil
11. Tangelo
Tangelo is a citrus fruit that is a cross between a tangerine and a pomelo or grapefruit (11). It is extremely juicy and has a mildly sweet flavor. This sweet flavor makes it possible for tangelos to be used as a substitute for sweet oranges and mandarin oranges in drinks and dishes.
Botanical Name: Citrus tangelo Origin: USA Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 8-12 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, slightly acidic soil
12. Kumquat
Kumquat (the name just rolls off your tongue, doesn’t it?) is very similar to a sweet orange but is much smaller in size and more resistant to cold weather (12). This juicy citrus has many more variants like the Morgani (round) kumquat, Nagami (oval) kumquat, Jiangsu kumquat, and the Centennial Variegated kumquat.
Botanical Name: Citrus japonica Origin: South Asia and Asia Pacific region Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 8 to 15 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
13. Persian Lime
Persian lime is the most widely cultivated lime species and is a hybrid between a key lime and a lemon (13). The unique features that make it great for commercial cultivation are that it is seedless, has a longer shelf life, is bigger than the key lime, and its bushes have no thorns. However, it is less acidic and has a less bitter taste than key lime.
Botanical Name: Citrus latifolia Origin: Persia (now Iran) Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 15 to 20 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
14. Sweet Lime
Sweet lime is a cultivar of lemon and is immensely popular in South Asia. It has a very mild, sweet flavor and is low in acid content (14). Sweet lime is most commonly consumed in its juice form and is the most common fruit drink found in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
Botanical Name: Citrus limetta Origin: South and Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 26 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic, well-drained soil
15. Pomelo
Pomelo (or pummelo/pamplemousse/jabong/shaddock – this fruit has way too many names!) is one of the three original citrus species from which the rest of the citrus fruits hybridized. The white-fleshed pomelo is sweet while the pink-fleshed one is sour (15). Pomelos are eaten in Asia during the Mooncake festival.
Botanical Name: Citrus maxima Origin: South and Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 25 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, loamy soil
16. Yuzu
Yuzu is a highly aromatic citrus fruit that looks a lot like a small grapefruit. The interesting thing about yuzu is that it is rarely consumed as a fruit (16). Yuzu juice is used in the preparation of ponzu sauce, yuzu vinegar, yuzu tea, and some alcoholic drinks.
Botanical Name: Citrus junos Origin: Central China and Tibet Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 12 to 18 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
17. Ugli Fruit
This fruit may sound ugli and look ugly, but it sure is one delicious citrus fruit. Ugli fruit is created by crossing a grapefruit, an orange, and a tangerine. This super juicy fruit is sweet like a tangerine, less bitter than a grapefruit, and has a very aromatic rind.
Botanical Name: Citrus reticulata × Citrus paradisi Origin: Jamaica Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 6 to 8 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, slightly acidic soil
18. Citron
And we’re back to one of the original citrus fruit species with citron! This dry, pulpy fruit is used to make jams and pickles in South Asia. Citron serves a variety of medicinal purposes like combatting nausea, hemorrhoids, and skin diseases and ejecting parasitic worms from the body.
Botanical Name: Citrus medica Origin: Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 8 to 15 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, loamy soil
19. Rangpur
A hybrid between mandarin orange and lemon, rangpur is named so after Rangpur in Bangladesh, where it is found in abundance. Due to their high acid content, rangpurs are used as a substitute for lime while cooking.
Botanical Name: Citrus limonia Origin: Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 12 to 18 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Slightly acidic, well-drained, loamy soil
20. Finger Lime
The finger lime, as the name suggests, looks like an elongated lime. Its juicy vesicles are used as garnish in various dishes and are referred to as ‘lime caviar.’ Finger lime has a tangy flavor that makes it perfect for making pickles and marmalade. But that’s not all! Its peel is also dried and used as a spice.
Botanical Name: Citrus australasica Origin: Australia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 20 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
21. Bitter Orange
As you may be able to tell by the name, bitter orange is a very bitter flavored variety of citrus fruit. It’s a cross between a pomelo and a mandarin orange (17). The world-renowned British marmalade is made using bitter orange. It is widely used in preparing Turkish cuisine and is also known to act as a dietary supplement as it suppresses your appetite.
Botanical Name: Citrus aurantium Origin: Southeast Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 30 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, slightly acidic, loamy soil
22. Buddha’s Hand
When it comes to oddly shaped fruits, Buddha’s hand sure does top the list. This unique fruit is divided into finger-like segments (18). Due to its lack of pulp or juice, only its zest is used in preparing desserts, dishes, and alcoholic drinks.
Botanical Name: Citrus medica var. sarcodactylis Origin: Northeastern India and China Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 10 to 17 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
23. Calamondin
A cross between a mandarin orange and a kumquat, calamondin is a small citrus fruit that is rarely consumed by itself owing to its sour taste (19). Its juice is used as a seasoning and condiment in Asian cuisines, and the fruit itself can be used to make marmalade.
Botanical Name: Citrofortunella microcarpa Origin: South Asia Preferred Zones: Zones 9-10 Size Of Tree: 10 to 20 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained, slightly acidic soil
24. Kinnow
Kinnow is a delicious citrus fruit that is a cross between the citrus cultivars of ‘King’ and ‘Willow Leaf.’ Due to its high seed content acting as a hindrance during consumption, a low seed variety of kinnow was developed in 2015 by Pakistani agriculturalist Niaz Ahmad Chaudhry.
Botanical Name: Citrus nobilis x Citrus deliciosa Origin: Pakistan and India Preferred Zones: Zones 9-11 Size Of Tree: 8 to 12 feet Exposure: Full sun Soil: Well-drained soil
Now that’s what I call a long list of fruits! But here’s the best part – the wide variety of citrus fruits that you can get your hands on also means that you get an equally wide variety of health benefits. Don’t believe me? Then just keep on reading…
What Are The Health Benefits Of Citrus Fruits?
But wait a minute! While it sure is great that citrus fruits give you a wealth of nutrients, you need to keep in mind that you can obtain their benefits only if you select the right fruits at the market, store them properly, and eat them before they start rotting. Here’s what you need to do…
What Are Some Healthy Ways To Eat Citrus Fruits?
When it comes to taste, no fruit can beat the perfect blend of sweet, sour, and slightly bitter flavor notes of citrus fruits. You can simply peel and eat them out of hand, drink their freshly squeezed juice or incorporate them in a ton of healthy and simple recipes!
When I watched The Jungle Book as a kid, I absolutely fell in love with the idea of plucking fruit straight off a tree and devouring it because of how delicious it looked when Mowgli did it. Now you may not have the option of picking your citrus fruits off a tree, but you sure can eat them the way God intended you to. Most citrus fruits also have the added advantage of having a loose peel that can be removed by hand and being naturally divided into bite-sized segments. So you don’t need to mess around with knives or forks! Eating citrus fruits this way also ensures that you don’t miss out any of the fiber and great nutrients that they pack. The best time to eat citrus fruits is right in the morning with a glass of milk. And if you’re diabetic, make sure there’s a gap of a couple of hours between your meals and citrus fruit consumption because otherwise, it could raise your blood sugar level too much.
For those of you who prefer drinking juices instead of eating fruits (like me!), freshly squeezed citrus fruit juices are going to be your new best friend. But don’t you dare strain out the pulp before chugging that juice! The pulp of citrus fruits contains fiber that has the all-important pectin that is responsible for getting rid of cholesterol from your body.
Add peeled segments of any citrus fruits you like to your salad, a bowl of low-fat yogurt or chia seed pudding to add a dash of sweet and tangy freshness to an otherwise boring meal!
While these are some super simple ways to enjoy citrus fruits, you can also prepare some yummy dishes with them that will make you a hit with your family and friends. Below are just a few dishes that you can try out.
Recipes
1. Glazed Lemon Coconut Loaf
1 cup powdered sugar 5 tbsp unsalted butter 3 tbsp vegetable oil 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 tsp lemon extract 1 1/2 tbsp grated lemon zest 1/4 cup milk 2 big eggs 3/4 cup buttermilk 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 1/2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 sweetened desiccated coconut 9 x 5 inch loaf pan Parchment paper
1 cup powdered sugar 2 tbsp unsalted butter 2 tbsp lemon juice 1/4 tsp lemon extract A pinch of lemon zest 1/3 cup sweetened desiccated coconut
2. Citrus Tart
1 1/2 cups Marie biscuits (crushed) 5 tbsp butter (melted) 2 tbsp demerara (brown) sugar 1/4 tsp powdered cinnamon 1 can sweetened condensed milk 1/3 cup chilled orange juice concentrate 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice 2 large eggs 1 cup heavy whipping cream 3 tbsp powdered sugar 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom
3. Citrus Mango Salsa
1 blood orange 1 grapefruit 1 lime 1 ripe mango (peeled and chopped/sliced) 1 red bell pepper (seeded and diced) 3 tablespoons red onion (finely chopped) 1/2 jalapeno Salt (as desired)
What citrus fruit has the most vitamin c? The infographic below summarizes the other numerous benefits you can achieve from these lovely citrus fruits, thanks to their rich nutritional profile. Among citrus fruits, orange has the most vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content with about 70 milligrams of vitamin C found in a single medium-sized orange. Are grapes citrus? No. Grapes are berries that grow on deciduous vines and belong to the genus Vitis. Though they do contain a small amount of citric acid, the main acids found in grapes are tartaric and malic acids. Is tomato a citrus fruit? No. Though tomatoes do contain citric acid in abundance, they are not considered citrus fruits because they grow on vine plants that belong to the genus Solanaceae. Is pineapple considered a citrus fruit? No. Only fruits that belong to the genus Rutaceae are considered to be citrus fruits. Pineapple belongs to the Ananas genus of plants. It is acidic and has a tangy flavor because it contains ascorbic acid, not the citric acid that is found in citrus fruits. Why do citrus fruits conduct electricity? Citrus fruits conduct electricity because they contain acid and water. When a metal comes in contact with acid, the metal’s atoms give up electrons. The water in citrus fruits, in turn, allows the electrons to flow through and conduct electricity. How to freeze citrus fruits? When it comes to freezing citrus fruits, there are a bunch of different ways you can go about it. You can leave them whole and unpeeled, or you can peel them and cut them in slices. If you want to wet pack them, put the fruits in a freezer safe jar and fill it up with water. Make sure you leave about an inch wide space on top to so that the jar doesn’t break when the water expands after freezing. You can also dry pack them by simply laying them on a tray covered with cookie paper. Once the fruits have frozen, simply pop them in a ziplock bag for easy storage. Is apple a citrus fruit? No, an apple is not a citrus fruit. Though they contain a very low percentage of citric acid in it, malic acid is the main acid found in apples. Another key point to note is that apples belong to the genus Rosaceae whereas citrus fruits are from the Rutaceae family of flowering plants. Is cucumber a citrus fruit? No, cucumber is not a citrus fruit. Unlike citrus fruits that belong to the genus Rutaceae, cucumbers are from the Cucurbitaceae family. Are strawberries citrus fruits? No, strawberries are not citrus fruits. They belong to the Rosaceae family of plants as opposed to the Rutaceae genus that citrus fruits belong to.
