Tangerine juice, raw

Fresh tangerine juice tastes brighter and less sharp than orange juice, with a floral aroma that makes it a natural match for breakfast, brunch cocktails, or a quick vinaigrette whisked with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Cooks reduce it on the stove with a little sugar to build a glaze for roast duck, pork tenderloin, or grilled carrots, and it blends smoothly into sorbets, gelatin desserts, and marinades for chicken or shrimp where a clear, pourable citrus base is needed rather than the texture of whole segments. Because tangerines are smaller and juicier than oranges, a batch of fresh juice comes together quickly with a hand reamer or citrus press, no blender required.

Choose tangerines that feel heavy for their size and give slightly under pressure, then juice them close to serving time, since fresh-squeezed juice loses its aroma within a day or two even refrigerated in a sealed glass container away from light. A cup (247 g) runs just 43 calories with only 0.2 g of fat, making it an easy low-calorie way to work vitamin C into a morning drink or salad dressing, supplying 34% of the daily value in that serving alongside 9.9 g of natural sugar and only 1 mg of sodium.