Mandarin (Citrus reticulata) is a small tree of the Rutaceae family, with lustrous leaves, native to South East Asia (China and Vietnam).
Its fruit, with a sweet and aromatic flesh, is one of the least acid citrus fruits and contains many seeds (unlike a clementine). It is divided in about ten quarters sometimes called "pigs". The species called "satsuma" (Citrus unshiu), called mikan in Japan, has two hundred cultivars. One of the best known is owari, whose fruit ripens in winter in the Northern hemisphere.
Main aromatic molecules: Monoterpenes (limonene, γ-terpinenes) monoterpenols (linalool, α-terpineol), terpene aldehydes.
Family: Rutaceae.
Productive organs: Zest (fruit pericarp).
Yield: 800g to 1.2kg of essence per 100kg of peel.
Equivalence: 1ml → 31 drops (dosage calculated for a calibrated dropper European Pharmacopoeia).
