Kumquat

A kumquat (from the Cantonese 柑橘 "Gam2 Gwat1"; the Pinyin rendering of the Mandarin word is "Gān Jú"; also cumquat) is a small tree and its fruit, related to the Mandarin orange, and classified in the flowering plant Family Rutaceae.

The plant

The kumquat tree is slow-growing, evergreen, and 2.5 to 4.5 meters tall. It is a richly-branched shrub with branches sometimes bearing small thorns, with dark green glossy leaves and pure white orange-like flowers standing singly or clustered in the leaf-axils.

Kumquats originated in China (noted in literature there in the 12th century), and have long been cultivated there and in Japan. They were introduced to Europe in 1846 by Robert Fortune, collector for the London Horticultural Society, and shortly thereafter into North America. Originally placed in the genus Citrus, they were set apart in the genus Fortunella in 1915.

Current varieties (species) include Hong Kong Wild (Fortunella hindsii), Marumi (Fortunella japonica), Meiwa (Fortunella crassifolia), and Nagami (Fortunella margarita). They are currently cultivated in China, South East Asia, Japan and the USA. Kumquats are much hardier than citrus plants such as oranges.

The fruit

The fruit of the kumquat is also called kinkan. In appearance it resembles an oval or oblong orange, 3 to 5 cm long and 2 to 4 cm wide. Depending on variety, peel color ranges from yellow to red. A Nagami kumquat is oval and has a yellow skin, while a Marumi kumquat is round with an orange colored skin. Kumquats are frequently eaten whole — the skin is tart and the inner layer sweet (or vice-versa) and green. The variety of kumquat in Hong Kong has rather sweet rind compared to the rind of other citrus fruits. The juicy center is often too sour to eat and is thrown away before the rind is consumed. The fruit is also candied and made into preserves, marmalade, and jelly.

The Cantonese often preserve kumquats in salt. A batch of the fruit is buried in dry salt inside a glass jar. Over time, all the juice from the fruit is extracted through osmosis into the salt. The fruits in the jar will become shrunken and wrinkled in dark brown color, and the salt will become a dark brown brine. A few salted kumquats and a few teaspoonful of the brined juice are mixed with hot water to make a remedy for sore throat. A jar of such preserved kumquats can last several years.