I bought a bag of what I thought were clementines … bright little gems like that … but I realize now they’re just labeled “citrus,” so I’m not sure just what they are. They are not easy peelers … and they are soooooo sour that my eyes rolled back into my head trying to eat one. Office colleague was super hungry and said she’d eat my other one, but it made her wince, too! (Not lemony at all, just a very very sour orange flavor.)
So, creative CCers … what, besides chuck these, should I do with them? Add them to meat in a crock pot, whirl them into a smoothie, candy them or something? Thoughts and, especially, links to recipes appreciated.
You could use the juice in a vinaigrette salad dressing. Or squeeze it into a pitcher with water and some other fruit and a scoop of sugar to make an agua fresca. If you cook big chunks of meat like brisket, pork shoulder, or pork belly, Emeril has a nice “Asian” braising gravy for those that uses orange juice. They might also be nice in lemon/citrus muffins, or just straight up squeezed as a wedge into water.
Or squeeze some into vodka and make a little weekend mother’s little helper 
@anomander, I like those thoughts–thank you.
Keep 'em coming … I have 5 pounds of these. Any links would be great.
Make a curd out of them. Since curd requires sugar, it’ll take the pucker out a bit while still being somewhat tart. I love different citrus curds and they can be used for a lot of other recipes.
They would probably be good in Puerco Asado which is a slow roasted Cuban pork dish using citrus.
I’ve got a good orange cake recipe with orange cream cheese frosting.
A version of key lime pie that isn’t lime.
Sangria? Some kind of mojito twist?
Thanks, everyone! I happen to be making a pork picnic roast in the crock pot today, so a couple of them are in there … mmmm, curd sounds good next. 
+1 on the marmalade idea. Sour oranges (which I assume is what you bought) also go well with pork, especially when brightened with some herbs late. I have also used them with honey, soy sauce and red pepper to make a glaze for grilled chicken.
What size are they? Are they kumquats maybe?
Can you peel a kumquat? I thought kumquats were basically peel.
If the peel is sweet and the fruit is sour, they are kumquats. They could also be citrons. In either case, you can make marmalade, or candy them to use in cakes or other pastries, or as part of a dessert tray.
OP states “They are not easy peelers” so I don’t think they are kumquats. All kumquats I’ve encountered are pretty tiny without much on the inside and too small to be confused with clementines.
Hi! OP here. They’re not kumquats, for sure. They look just like clementines, small and jewellike. They’re not as easy to peel as a normal clementine but easier than an orange. In my mind I’m calling them bitter oranges.
I made a nice pork roast in the crockpot over the weekend: dry rub of cumin + paprika; onion, garlic, citrus juice. That used up 5 of them.
Next up: something sweet. Maybe the curd.
Thank you for all the suggestions!
Might be Mandarin limes. They look like tangerines, small and orange, but they taste like a really strong lime. They don’t peel so well, but they juice wonderfully. We had a tree of them, and they make great limeade and margaritas after you adjust for how strong they are. Also marmalade, key lime pie, etc. Anything you’d normally use limes for, these will work. You might need more sugar is all.
If they are kinda wrinkly and small, and especially if the peel is thick, they are bitter/sour oranges.
OP here, just have to let you know this! After using a few of these in various ways, I left the rest in the fridge and forgot about them till today. It’s been two weeks, hmm… they still look fine… peeled one (easier than before) and tasted: Wow, it is a clementine, sweet and juicy! So what I had was underripe clementines, evidently. I just ate three, and they’re awesome.
TL, DR: Neglect pays off in the form of sweet clementines.