sour orange

For the fruit known as "Chinese Bitter Orange," see Trifoliate orange.

Citrus aurantium
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Sapindales
Family:	Rutaceae
Genus:	Citrus
Species:	C. aurantium
Binomial name
Citrus aurantium L.[1]

The name "bitter orange", also known as Seville orange, sour orange, bigarade orange, and marmalade orange, refers to a citrus tree (Citrus aurantium) and its fruit. Many varieties of bitter oranges are used for their essential oil, which is used in perfume and as a flavoring. Bitter orange is also used in herbal medicine as a stimulant and appetite suppressant, and has replaced the banned stimulant ephedra in many herbal weight-loss products.^[2]

Varieties

• Citrus aurantium subsp. amara is a spiny evergreen tree native to southern Vietnam, but widely cultivated. It is used as grafting stock for citrus trees, in marmalade, and in the liqueurs Triple sec, Grand Marnier and Curaçao. It is also cultivated for the essential oil expressed from the fruit, and for neroli oil and orange flower water, which are distilled from the flowers.
• Seville orange (or bigarade) is a widely-known, particularly tart orange which is now grown throughout the Mediterranean region. It has a thick, dimpled skin and is prized for making marmalade, being higher in pectin than the sweet orange, and therefore giving a better set and a higher yield. It is also used in compotes and for orange-flavored liqueurs.
• Bergamot orange, C. aurantium subsp. bergamia is cultivated in Italy for the production of bergamot oil, a component of many brands of perfume and tea, especially Earl Grey tea.
• Chinotto, from the myrtle-leaved orange tree, C. aurantium var. myrtifolia, native to Italy; used for the namesake Italian soda beverage.
• Daidai, C. aurantium var. daidai, used in Chinese medicine and Japanese New Year celebrations.
• Wild Florida sour orange, found near small streams in generally secluded and wooded parts of Florida.

Uses in cooking

The unripe fruit called "narthangai" is commonly used in Southern Indian food, especially in Tamil cuisine. The unripe fruit is pickled by cutting it into spirals and stuffing it with salt. The pickle is usually consumed with thayir sadam. The fresh fruit is also used frequently in pachadis. The juice from the ripe fruit is also used as a marinade in meat in Cuban and Dominican cooking. The peel can also become an ingredient in bitters. The Belgian Witbier (white beer) is a beer made from wheat which is spiced with the peel of the bitter orange. The Finnish and Swedish use bitter orange peel in gingerbread(Pepparkakor), also in mämmi. It's also used in the Nordic mulled wine "Glögg".

Health supplement status

The extract of bitter orange (and bitter orange peel) has been used in dietary supplements as an aid to fat loss and as an appetite suppressant, although in traditional Chinese medicine it is always prescribed in concert with other support herbs, not in isolation. Bitter orange contains synephrine, a substance similar to ephedrine, which acts on the α₁ adrenergic receptor to constrict blood vessels and increase blood pressure and heart rate.^[3][4]

Following bans on the herbal stimulant ephedra in the U.S., Canada, and elsewhere, bitter orange has been substituted into "ephedra-free" herbal weight-loss products by dietary supplement manufacturers.^[2] While bitter orange has not undergone formal safety testing, it can cause the same spectrum of adverse events as ephedra.^[5] Case reports have linked bitter orange supplements to strokes,^[6][7] angina,^[8] and ischemic colitis.^[9]

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine found that "there is currently little evidence that bitter orange is safer to use than ephedra."(PhD. Ronito Alvares)^[10] There is no evidence that bitter orange is effective in promoting weight loss.^[11]

See also

• Neroli
• Orange flower water
• Grand Marnier

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Citrus aurantium

• Bitter Orange: Information from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Bitter Orange List of Chemicals (Dr. Duke's Databases)
• Bitter Orange Under Scrutiny as New Ephedra, from the New York Times