Do you Sumo?

Mandarins are one of my favourite fruits to snack on – they’re so sweet and delicate, and much easier to peel than traditional oranges. But they did have a small issue – they’re just so small that it takes so many of them to fill me up!

Well, enter the Sumo Mandarins.

They began as a hybrid between oranges and mandarins in Japan about 40 years ago, and 2014 marks the second year that it’s been available in Australia. More delicate than oranges and more substantial than traditional mandarins, these bumpy sumo mandarins are a great way to vary your traditional recipes that use citrus fruits!

In celebration of these delicious fruits, I try out a recipe featuring the juice and peel of the Sumo Mandarin!

Chocolate Mandarin mousse and candied Sumo Mandarin
Serves 6

[For the Mousse]

300ml thickened cream
50g white sugar
1 large egg white
100g 70% dark chocolate
1 tbsp mandarin juice (optional)

[For the Candied mandarin]

2 Sumo Mandarin skins
Juice of 2 Sumo Mandarins
100g white sugar

To make the mousse, heat half the cream in a saucepan over low heat till at boiling point. Meanwhile, break up the chocolate into small pieces and set aside in a mixing bowl. Once the cream is hot, pour over the chocolate and stir till it’s a homogenous mixture. Cool to blood temperature. I test this by touching the outside of the bowl. It shouldn’t feel hot or cold to your skin.

Meanwhile, whip up the remaining cream with the juice till it reaches very soft peaks. I found this easiest with an electric mixer – I’d usually do this amount by hand but the liquid makes it slightly harder for the cream to whip.

Whip up the egg whites to soft peaks, and continue whipping to stiff peaks while adding the sugar in 1 tbsp at a time, making sure that the sugar is dissolved between additions.

Fold the cream into the chocolate mixture in thirds, then fold in the meringue mixture in thirds.

Separate into serving glasses and chill until needed.

For the candied mandarin peel, thinly slice the peel, place into one litre of water and bring to the boil.

Once boiling, strain and repeat 3 times, changing the water each time. The peel should be tender but not mushy. Separately, combine the mandarin juice and the sugar to make a syrup and boil until the sugar dissolves.

Place the cooked peel into the syrup and boil for approximately 8 to 10 minutes or until the peel is translucent. Leave to cool and store in the syrup in the fridge.

To serve, top each glass with some candied mandarin peels.

These sumo mandarins are available for a limited period from August to mid-September, from Woolworths.

Insatiable Munchies was provided a sample of Sumo Mandarins and recipes courtesy of Liquid Ideas. The above recipe for candied sumo mandarin peel was published with permission.