Tacos and Kumquats

Sounds dirty.

I tried my first kumquat the other day. Tiny, orange citrus fruits that taste as exotic as they sound. To eat, roll one between your fingers to release the oils, and pop the whole thing in your mouth. Before I googled this helpful bit of info, I thought you had to peel them. Big mistake. The pulp inside is so tart! After peeling a little bit off of the end, I squeezed the juice onto my tongue and was not prepared for that. I had to pass it around the table to Andrew and our two friends, who all made hysterical faces after trying the juice. Too bad I didn't have a camera ready! As tart as the inside is, it's balanced by the sweetness of the peel.


It's not my favorite fruit, but I had a whole package that I had to do something with. I googled recipes, none which sounded appetizing. The only one seeming palatable was a salsa, but even then I couldn't imagine it being appealing with chips. Tacos came to mind, so I got to work making kumquat salsa. Since I wanted a thicker, more simple version than the recipe online called for, I made some changes and had dinner made in about 10 minutes.

The salsa still had somewhat of a tart taste, but it was masked pretty well by the earthy flavors of cilantro and the sweetness of the pepper and red onion. The juice of the kumquats marinated everything together to create a delicious, unique blend. It tasted even better wrapped in a tortilla with refried beans. The original recipe had the kumquats sliced, but I had to dice them even further since they were kind of tough to chew. I've been known to put unconventional topping on tacos, but this salsa takes the cake.

Kumquat Salsa

Makes about 2 cups

• 2 cups of kumquats, sliced and diced
• 1/2 cup of red onion, diced
• 1/4 cup sweet red pepper, seeded and diced
• Loose handful of cilantro, chopped.

1. Mix everything together and let sit for at least an hour to blend the flavors. 
2. Serve over tacos with refried beans.