Few people know why tangerines are sour.

Many of us love to eat citrus fruits, especially since they are very healthy. And during the New Year holidays, eating tangerines has already become a real tradition. There are several methods by which sour tangerines will not spoil your holiday, since they can be turned into sweet ones, which we will talk about in the material.

Why tangerines are sour – a simple explanation

Almost all citrus fruits are sour to a greater or lesser extent. Scientifically, it depends on cells called vacuoles: they are acidic due to the presence of positively charged hydrogen ions.

However, the main reason that tangerines turn sour is a lack of nutrients and drying out of the soil when the fruits were forming. In addition, unripe tangerines can also be sour.

How to make sour tangerines sweet – the best life hacks

If the tangerines you bought turned out to be sour, do not be upset, because this can be corrected as soon as possible. Moreover, it is very difficult to distinguish unripe tangerines by sight. Let’s describe a few life hacks on how to make sour tangerines sweet.

• You need to put the tangerines in the microwave for just half a minute, turning it on at the highest possible power. To cool them down, place them in the refrigerator for a few minutes. Please note that after heat treatment in the microwave, tangerines cannot be stored for a long time, as they will quickly spoil.
• You can also make sweet tangerines from sour tangerines using water: pour the fruit with a liquid whose temperature is about 40 degrees, and hold in such an environment for 10 minutes. If the fruits do not become sweet, then place them in ice water for half an hour.

If you are not in a hurry, then there is another proven method of “sweetening” tangerines. In order for them to ripen naturally, they need to be placed on a windowsill exposed to sunlight for several days.

We previously wrote about how to use orange peels, describing a unique method of using them in the garden.