Kumquats are small citrus fruits with sweet skin and tart flesh, and are the only citrus whose peel is eaten. They can be grown at home or in commercial orchards, and celebrated at kumquat festivals, such as the Dade City Kumquat Festival in Florida. The festival includes food, competitions, and a recipe contest featuring kumquat dishes. Kumquats can also be purchased online, with the Nagami and Meiwa varieties available.
Kumquats, spelled “cumquat” in England, are a type of small citrus fruit, typically only an inch or two long, that are grown in many parts of the world. These unique fruits can be grown at home as well as in commercial orchards as long as the climate is mild enough. A kumquat festival is a celebration some growers have at the end of the growing season to celebrate a bountiful harvest. Such festivals also serve as a way to raise awareness of kumquats, ultimately increasing their popularity and sales.
This fruit has the distinction of being the only citrus whose peel is eaten. They are best if the fruit is lightly mashed and rolled between the fingers to release the oil into the skin before eating. The skin is typically quite sweet, but the inside flesh can be tart, which makes biting into a kumquat an interesting mix of flavors.
Dade City, Florida bills itself as the kumquat capital of the world, and every year the city hosts the Dade City Kumquat Festival, the most famous kumquat festival in the United States. The festivities only last one day, but the event attracted as many as 40,000 visitors to buy the fruit and sample the many different types of foods sold there. Local schools and businesses also use the kumquat festival as an opportunity to be seen, but ultimately the festival events focus on this golden little fruit. This kumquat festival takes over the city for the day and includes competitions, face painting and classic car shows. Artists and artisans from around the area set up stalls to display the wares they made throughout the year, and tourist crowds often buy what beautiful and unusual items they find.
An important feature of a kumquat festival is a recipe contest. Participants create new dishes or cook up their old favorites and anything is generally allowed as long as it contains kumquats. Jams, jellies, cakes and biscuits are just some of the popular food choices made in hopes of winning a blue ribbon. Vendors selling many kinds of kumquat treats also fill the streets.
Kumquat fans who can’t attend a festival can purchase their favorite fruit online, choosing between the Nagami and Meiwa varieties. Nagami is very common in the US and is readily available in season, but the Meiwa, while very common in China, is rarely seen commercially in the US In recent years both types have become more available and the Meiwa can be custom ordered by some growers.
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