Candied Kumquats or Mandarinquats

I must confess to you I was never a big fan of kumquats, that is, until I was introduced to a very special tree. Not a kumquat tree exactly, but a mandarinquat tree, a cross between--you guessed it--mandarin and kumquat.

Kumquats are very fragrant, but the astringent skin and acidic flesh never did much for me. One bite into a mandarinquat from that tree, however, won me over entirely. I was seduced by the amazing fragrant and the astonishingly sweet rind. There was still a tang from the acidic flesh, but only just enough to add intrigue without being overwhelming. I ate handfuls after handfuls that day, right from the tree--like candy, albeit a very grown-up kind.

Besides being far more flavorful than regular kumquats, mandarinquats are also quite a bit prettier. Instead of the pale yellow skin and simple oblong shape of the kumquats, mandarinquats are rounder and more like a tear drop in shape, with deep orange, mandarin-like skin. I also find that mandarinquat's rind is a bit thinner than kumquats.

I went up the hills to visit Gene at his fabled citrus grove this weekend, and of course I stopped by to say hi to the tree. It's still bearing loads of fruits, but I knew the season was nearly over. I must do something to stretch it just a bit longer. So, I came home with a big bagful of mandarinquats and set out to candy them.

Candying kumquats or mandarinquats can be pretty quick and easy. You can just slice or chop the fruits and cook it in simple syrup until done. But what fun is quick and easy, huh? Sometimes I like doing things the most roundabout and difficult way possible. I like to candy my mandarinquats whole, keeping the beautiful shape and adding a little drama to whatever I serve them with--which can be quite a few things.

I like to serve one or two gorgeous, plump, and bright orange candied mandarinquats with a slice of bittersweet chocolate cake, spooning the citrusy syrup over the cake to add a lovely and sophisticated touch to an otherwise simple cake--a slice of pound cake works just as well, especially with a spoonful of freshly whipped cream. You can even serve a few of these candied fruits as a condiment on a cheese tray, or drop one or two on your morning yogurt. Don't forget the lovely syrup as well. I use the syrup to make my own citrus soda, by just adding the syrup into sparkling water. Who needs to buy commercial soda full of all that yucky high-fructose corn syrup when you can make your own?

Well, I was kidding really about the "most roundabout and difficult way" I said earlier. Candying kumquats or these beautiful mandarinquats whole is not that hard: there are just a few tricks you need to know to keep the fruits in tact and beautifully plump, and the rest is a breeze. The most important thing is your kumquats or mandarinquats must be very fresh. Old, dried-out fruits will seize up like giant raisins, which won't be very pretty at all. The second is you must cook them very slowly: heating things up too quickly might burst the fruits and you'll end up with marmalade instead--not that there's anything wrong with marmalades, mind you, they're just not what you set out to do!

Candied mandarinquats (or kumquats)

1.5 kilo (about 3 pounds) of mandarinquats, rinsed and patted dry
6 cups of water
4 cups of sugar
a pinch of sea salt

Use a small needle, poke a couple holes into each mandarinquats.

Add all the ingredients into a large pot. Cut a piece of parchment paper the size of the diameter of the pot. Place the paper over the fruit and liquid, and put a plate or the lid of a smaller pot over the paper to hold down the fruits under the liquid.

Set the pot on the stove over medium high heat. When the water begins to bubble, getting close to boiling, turn the heat down to simmer and continue to cook for two hours.

At the end of the two hours, the mandarinquats should be deep orange and completely translucent. Remove from heat, discard the plate and the parchment paper. Skim off any bubble or scum. Close the lid and let the fruits steep in the syrup overnight or at least 6 hours.

The next morning, use a slotted spoon to remove the fruits from the pot into a bowl. Set the pot back on the stove over high heat and cook until reduced by half, about 15-30 minutes. When the syrup is reduced to the consistency you like, turn the heat off, and gently add the candied fruits back into the pot. Bring the content of the pot back to a boil once again and turn the heat off.

At this point you can just fill the candied fruits and syrup into clean jars. They will keep in the fridge for a long time. If you want to make them shelf-stable, use canning or mason jars and follow the manufacture's instruction to properly sterilize and seal the jars.

Comments

[Tiuscha]

I love them, you can also put a little cognac.. delicious ! (recipe on my blog)

[anticiplate]

I like your idea of serving these candied kumquats with a piece of chocolate cake. It would be a lovely presentation.

[missginsu]

I love those jars! They're so retro-cute.

My chef always had me make a terrific kumquat chutney recipe that we served alongside spiced, roasted quail. I'd love to try that out with mandarinquats. I'm so jealous of your fresh citrus hookup.

I'll see if I can dig up the instructions and scale 'em down for home use...

[Christine]

I recently came across mandarinquats and I agree - they're more interesting than the usual kumquat varieties. Their deep orange color is also great. I recently used them to make a variation on vin d'orange and I'm hoping they'll lend their sweet flavor to the wine. If I can get a hold of more of these here in Michigan, I'll definitely try this recipe. I must say also - I do adore those lovely german weck jars :)

[marion]

Looks wonderful. Indio mandarinquats are so good, I eat them before I get around to preserving them.

[schnauzie]

Hi, I am a frequent reader of your blog and is relying on it to plan my food trip to spain and france next month. Not sure if you know, but your blog has been featured as One of the World's 50 most powerful blog! http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/mar/09/blogs

Congrats!

[faustianbargain]

really nice, pim. the skin of this fruit must be rather thin! because you are pricking them, they wont burst. additionally, it will also help if you skewer the fruit from one end, but not all the way through to the other side...

p.s. 2.2 lbs = 1 kg. 1.5 kg = 3.3 lbs

[foodaq]

That looks so good!
Thanks to share with us.And your blog has been featured!

[Pim]

Tiuscha,
Cognac in this sounds like a delicious idea.

Anticiplate,
Orange and chocolate are great together. I just love them.

Miss Ginsu,
please scale your recipe and send me the link!

Christine,
The Weck jars are great. I must reorder now that I've used them all up. I think I'll get another picking or two of the mandarinquats yet, so I might do more before the end of the season.

marion,
a little self control, please!

schnauzie,
Thanks, I saw that. It's a rather odd list but it's always great to be included, of course.

miz faust,
I fixed my math. Thanks.

foodaq,
thanks.

cheers,
Pim

[Fred]

Love ur blog. I made the candied kumquats and follwed receipe exactly. All the kumquats deflated and looked like raisins. What did I do wrong?

[shuna fish lydon]

Pim!

oooh a pesky leetle question from me-- I find that the mandarinquats have really big seeds. When all is said and done from your method are the seeds a noticeable detraction in your mouth or do they just become part of the mix, like okra?

or better-- do you end up eating everything and not noticing the seeds because they get slowly candied as well?

(may I also point your people to my series of mandarinquat portraits?)

[Rebecca]

So pretty! With the Weck jars-how do they seal properly? Or should they just be used for preserves-things to be used fairly quickly?

[Pim]

@Fred, perhaps your kumquats were a little old? Dry, old kumquats will seize up like raisins, and there's not much you could do about it. Sorry.

@Shuna, of course you may point people to your beautiful shots of mandarinquats. Sorry I forgot to link to them in the post.

As for the seeds, for some reason these mandarinquats don't have that many seeds. I've eaten a few that had them, and was never bothered by them. I spat out a couple big, big ones but the rest I just ate them. I was lucky with this batch, I guess.

@Rebecca, you're right, the only problem with the Weck jars is that they don't reseal well after you open a preserved jar. I usually use the metal clips that come with the kit to keep the lid on the jar after it's been opened. It works ok but only for a short time as things dry out quickly. They are so pretty though, I keep buying and using them because they are just so precious. Nothing is perfect I suppose.

[maryeats]

I just tried these recently and was surprised at how tasty they were too. Candying appears to be a lovely way of keeping these beauties on hand through the spring and summer. Thanks for a great idea!

[erica]

It looks so delicious.I am going to make one following your recipe...goodluck to me!
I love your blog.

[dan]

A little Googling suggests that little plastic freshness lids (Frischhaltedeckel) for the Weck jars are available -- and inexpensively -- in Germany. Maybe the importer here carries them?

Wonderful blog, really enjoying reading it :)