"Tangerines taste sweeter when cold"... Should I put them in the refrigerator before eating?

 

Reporter Choi Ji-hye (jhchoi@kormedi.com)

 

As the chilly weather begins, tangerines are in season. Tangerines, which are in season from October to January, are naturally sweet and tangy, but there is a way to enjoy them even more deliciously. That is by eating tangerines cold.

 

The sweet taste of tangerines comes from fructose. Fructose is the sweetest among sugars that produce sweetness and has the characteristic of undergoing chemical changes depending on the temperature.

 

When fructose is exposed to high temperatures, the hydroxyl group (OH) attached to the fifth carbon atom of the fructose molecule points downward, forming the 'alpha' form. At lower temperatures, it points upward, forming the 'beta' form. It has been revealed that among these two forms, the beta form is three times sweeter than the alpha form. In other words, tangerines stored in a refrigerator or cool warehouse become sweeter than those stored at room temperature.

 

What would happen if you put tangerines in the freezer to make them very cold? Theoretically, the tangerines would become sweeter, but our tongues cannot perceive this. The surface of the tongue contains taste buds, which are organs that detect taste. Taste buds become numb at excessively cold or hot temperatures, making it difficult to distinguish flavors. Even if taste molecules are detected by the taste buds and transmitted to the brain, the brain perceives flavors differently depending on the temperature. According to a study by Yale University in the United States, as the temperature of the tongue decreases, people perceive tastes differently.

If you want to truly enjoy sweet tangerines, choosing the right tangerines is also important. Tangerines are affected by temperature, sunlight, and wind during their growth process. When there is a large temperature difference between day and night or strong winds, stress is applied to the tangerines, which can increase their aroma and sweetness, resulting in delicious tangerines.

 

Based on the commonly consumed mandarin oranges (Onju mandarins), mandarins that have experienced a lot of stress tend to be small in size and have thin skins. Conversely, large mandarins grown without stress have increased nitrogen content, which reduces their taste, and their peels are thicker.

Considering the composition of tangerine peel, thinner tangerines are more likely to be tastier. Tangerine peel is made up of a high-molecular-weight carbohydrate called pectin. For sweetness to develop, carbohydrates need to be broken down into smaller units. If the tangerine peel is thick, it is likely to remain as a polymer of high-molecular-weight carbohydrate that has not been converted into smaller sugar units. On the other hand, Hallabong (a type of citrus) is larger and has a thicker peel, which is more delicious.

 

Meanwhile, eating just 3 to 4 tangerines a day is similar in calories to a bowl of rice. To manage weight while supplementing with the rich vitamin C found in tangerines, eating two per day is appropriate.

 

⟨3-line summary⟩

The sweet component of tangerines, 'fructose,' becomes sweeter at lower temperatures, so refrigerated tangerines taste better.

If placed in the freezer, the tangerine itself can become sweet, but the sweetness is difficult for the taste buds to perceive.

The more stress a tangerine has experienced, the tastier it is, and such tangerines tend to have thin skins and be small in size.

 

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Not putting it in the refrigerator.

I'm eating it at room temperature.

The refrigerated tangerines taste better, haha.

As expected, tangerines with thin skins and small size

It's sweet, maybe because I'm under a lot of stress.