Mandarin oranges anyone??

[mlukan]

Coming from the west I grew up eating mandarin oranges during the holidays. I find they are not very accessible here in Toronto. I bought some the other day from Metro, they were very small, had seeds, and weren't very tasty. They barely had any in stock either. Do any hounds know where to get some mandarin oranges?

[mlukan]

Alright, I went to T&T and they were gross, all rotten boxes. So I stopped at QQ Loblaws and found boxes, they arent rotten at all and excellent flavor and perfect size, they are even wrapped in the green paper which is nostalgic for me, I already got my fix and I'm going to buy more tomorrow. Thanks for the help hounds! As usual Your the best!

[TorontoJo]

I just saw California mandarins at Bruno's on Avenue Rd.

[Tatai]

I'm quite sure I saw some at Whole Foods in Yorkville today.

[1sweetpea]

If you do find some boxed ones, as I did at my local Zehrs (a.k.a. Loblaw), open up and take a good look at the box's contents before buying. I noticed that most boxes had been opened by customers. I peeked inside a few and found at least a few rotten ones that were pure mush. You know what happens when one goes off ... Anyway, I settled on some organic California clementines. They were not great. Maybe there is something to the irrigation theory.

[budeeez]

I saw some at the Queens Quay Loblaws this past Saturday morning still with some stems and leaves attached. They were sold loose and not boxed.

[Kagemusha]

They've been upstaged by cheaper N. African clementines in most stores. They do surface boxed at T&T, some Loblaws and sometimes Costco.

[mlukan]

What are the clementines like compared to mandarins?

[phoenikia]

Clementines tend to be a little more tart, and smaller than mandarins in my experience. When I lived in Calgary, I was frustrated that all I could find were Japanese, Korean and Chinese grown mandarins, when I was craving my beloved clementines;) Most clementines have no or very few seeds.

I guess it's cheaper to bring clementines to Eastern Canada, and Mandarins to Western Canada. Not sure whether the mandarin/clementine divide is located- maybe Winnipeg or Thunder Bay?

In addition to the North African-grown clementines, I found some California-grown clementines in Toronto at Lady York last winter.

[Tatai]

I bought some California clementines last week and found them to be less flavourful than the North African ones. It might also be too early in the season.

[phoenikia]

I wouldn't be surprised if the California clementines are irrigated to some degree- the flavour might be more intense in North African clementines if they aren't being watered, and if they're getting more sunshine and/or heat units.

[Mila]

Got some mandarins at T & T Cherry Street last night for $3 a box. Very delicious.