When traveling to a foreign country, many of our compatriots, accustomed to apples, pears and oranges, sometimes look with surprise at exotic fruits that have an unusual appearance, name and smell. Some of them attract, others frighten and repel with their bizarre forms and non-standard beauty. But how great is the temptation to try an unusual fruit that literally excites the mind and is able to become part of a gastronomic excursion that allows you to get to know the country in which the tourist is located!
Of course, exotic fruits can also be found in domestic supermarkets. It is unlikely that there will be a person who will be surprised to see "hairy" coconuts, "fluffy" kiwis, sweet bananas and spiky pineapples. However, this list is only a small part of what the inaccessible and alluring tropical world is able to please a person with. In only one relatively small Malaysia, about 350 species of fruit grow. But besides this tropical country, there are many others!
We will get acquainted with the most exotic fruits that exist on the planet and are still not well known to our compatriots.
Lychee
This fruit is amazingly beautiful. Outwardly, it resembles Christmas tree decorations or corals. Lychee fruits are bright and “fluffy”. But at the same time they grow on very prickly branches. Tearing off the fruits one at a time, literally wading through the needles, is very uncomfortable and painful. That is why the one who collects the harvest of these one of the most exotic fruits, immediately cuts off the entire thin branch with fruits, and there are about 6-8 of them on it.
Lychee is very popular in Southeast Asia. This fruit is especially appreciated in China, where it comes from. In the Middle Kingdom, lychees have been eating for about 2 thousand years. This fruit is also called "Chinese plum."
The fruit has a white translucent flesh. Through it you can see a round seed. Thanks to this appearance, this one of the most exotic fruits is called the dragon's eye. Its fruits with a diameter of 3 cm have a length of 3-4 cm. Outwardly, they resemble strawberries with a hard peel. Inside, underneath is a pearl-white pulp that is similar in texture to grape. Lychee is inedible and slightly poisonous.
These exotic fruits have a sweet, sour taste. The fruit is quite juicy, with the aroma of pink petals. On sale you can find close relatives of lychee. These are fruits such as longan and rambutan.
For eating, you need to choose only dark red or slightly pinkish fruits that do not have dents on the peel. Lychees can be stored in the refrigerator, where they do not lose their properties for up to 3 weeks.
How to eat these exotic fruits? To do this, they must be peeled and the inner membrane removed. Next, the flesh is cut with a knife to eliminate the bone.
Juicy and sweet lychees are great when combined with coconut, ginger and lime. They are often added to cocktails and sorbets.
You can buy these fruits in the Chinese markets, where they are sold fresh. If you put them in the refrigerator, the peel will change its color to brown. The taste will remain the same. Litchi is also sold in canned form.
The dragon eye fruit has beneficial properties that contribute to improving human health. This exotic fruit contains a lot of vitamin C, as well as B 1 and B 2 . The composition of the Chinese plum contains nicotinic acid and phosphorus, iron and carbohydrates. They also provide the dragon eye fruit with beneficial properties. Thanks to these components, its use helps to normalize digestion, eliminate anemia, and also prevents the development of atherosclerosis. With this fruit, a person is also able to quench his thirst.
However, eating Chinese plum in large quantities is not worth it. In this case, the fruit can cause bleeding from the nose, as well as the appearance of acne on the face and sores in the mouth.
In cooking, lychee finds its application in the preparation of desserts. Add the pulp of this fruit to salads, and also make it stuffed for puddings and pies. Dragon eye is used in recipes for cooking fish, with which it is combined just fine. It is also used for sweet-sour sauce, which is served with chicken or pork meat.
Durian
Anyone who has decided to study the names and descriptions of the fruits of Thailand, in the first line will certainly meet this fruit. All those travelers who have visited this country know about it.
One can rightly call these fruits the most exotic. And not every tourist dares to try them. Interestingly, the taste of durian is simply delicious and resembles a very delicate cream. But the smell is terrible, similar to the smell of rotten meat. And it is no coincidence that most hotels in Thailand and those countries in whose territory this fruit grows are forbidden to bring it to your room. Moreover, this is connected not so much with a diffusing smell, but with its strength. Just a few minutes, and the entire hotel room will be filled with such aromas, which after a few days will have to be disposed of with the help of perfumes. But it is worth noting that the durian himself, if not opened, does not smell.
Such fruits grow on tall trees, reaching a weight of 2-10 kilograms. That is why durian is called the king of Thai fruits. The fruit is covered with a peel of gray-green or yellow-green color, dotted with thorns threatening in appearance and size. Inside durian are two brown seeds. It is believed that the smaller they are, the stronger the smell of the fruit, and more pale yellow flesh.
The ripeness of durian is recognized by its hardness. Overripe fruit can be identified by a cracked peel.
The pulp of the fruit is sweet, with a delicate texture. However, its use is not recommended for combination with alcohol. The fact is that durian is able to increase blood pressure, and in combination with alcohol, the consequences can be most unpleasant.
Tourists who come to Thailand or to another Asian country can purchase this fruit already peeled, cut into slices and packed in polyethylene. It is not recommended to buy a whole fruit, because eating it due to its impressive size will not work. It will not be easy even to cut the fetus. But those who decide to take such a step, it is better to do it in the fresh air because of a strong and unpleasant odor.
The durian fruit contains a large number of elements useful to the human body. Thanks to this, the king of Thai fruits does the following:
- Eliminates constipation. This is due to dietary fiber, which is part of durian. These components perfectly remove carcinogens from the intestines, preventing the development of cancer of this organ.
- Prevents Anemia. Such a pathology can sometimes be caused by a lack of vitamin B 9 in the body. And there are a lot of him in durian.
- It has a beneficial effect on the skin. This is due to the vitamin C in the fruit, which is involved in the production of collagen.
- Benefits the skeletal system. Durian contains large amounts of potassium. It stores calcium in the body and prevents its excretion. In addition, potassium itself nourishes the bone tissue, preventing them from becoming too brittle.
- Helps eliminate diabetes. Durian has a similar effect due to its manganese. This trace element is necessary to regulate blood sugar.
- It supplies the thyroid gland with copper important for its normal functioning.
- Improves the digestion process. The king of Thai fruits is rich in thiamine. This element helps to normalize appetite and is important for the production of hydrochloric acid, due to which food is digested.
- Relieves pain caused by migraine. This happens due to the presence of riboflavin in the fruit.
- Eliminates depression thanks to tryptophan, which is also called a natural sleeping pill powder.
In addition to the above properties, durian strengthens teeth, supports immunity and heart muscle.
The peeled fruit is included in the composition of ice cream, mousses and pies, as well as canned. Eat and durian seeds.
Pitahaya
If you continue to familiarize yourself with the names and descriptions of the fruits of Thailand, as well as other tropical countries, then you should definitely pay attention to this fruit. This plant comes from Southeast Asia, as well as South America. Pitahaya is a fruiting cactus, on the ends of the stems of which the fruits ripen, in their appearance resembling cones.
The Indians highly appreciated this fruit for its sweet taste and great yield. The fruiting cactus is of several types, depending on which the flesh can be found pink or purple-white. Several different types of fruit and skin tones differ.
In the fruits of pitahaya are black seeds, which are unsuitable for food. You need to get rid of the peel, which is removed very easily.
In this exotic fruit, a large number of vitamins PP, C, as well as group B, iron and calcium, phosphorus. Pitahaya helps people get rid of endocrine ailments, diabetes and stomach diseases.
The taste of this fruit is somewhat sweet and not saturated. They eat it, cutting in half lengthwise, eating the pulp with a spoon. You can also pre-cut the peel in the longitudinal direction. After that, it is completely removed, and the pulp is cut into pieces.
Pitahaya is added to yogurts, sorbets, ice cream and sweets. Pulp serves as the basis for jelly, sauces and jams. It is also used for the preparation of alcoholic beverages.
Mangosteen
The description of exotic fruits would not be complete without this fruit, which is considered sacred for the peoples of Asia. There is a legend according to which the mangosteen was tasted by the Buddha and considered his taste divine. After that, he presented the fruit to people. It is also known that mangosteen came to taste Queen Victoria. She even promised to reward the one who will bring this exotic fruit to England.
Today, mangosteen is very popular in Malaysia and Thailand. He is even called the "king of tropical fruits."
Mangosteen has a dark red peel and aromatic snow-white pulp, which consists of slices. Its taste is a cross between peach and grape. The size of this fruit is about the size of an apple. However, unlike the latter, its thin skin is inedible. In elastic sweet and sour pulp there are practically no seeds. But if they meet, that is, they can be.
Mangosteen has many vitamins and antioxidants. Thanks to this composition, the fruit has a beneficial effect on the immune and cardiovascular system.
How to eat mangosteen? Souffle, milkshakes, jam and jams are prepared from it, added to sauces and fruit salads.
How to eat fresh mangosteen? For this, the fruit is cut in half, opened and eaten with a fork. The pulp that remains on the peel is peeled and boiled, preparing healing tea from the resulting composition.
The skin of mangosteen has a lot of tannin. That is why it is used in production for the tanning process, and in medicine - as an astringent. In addition, the exotic fruit has a lot of calcium, phosphorus, vitamin C and B.
Thais prefer to eat raw mangosteen, placing the flesh on a layer of crushed ice. This gives the fruit a refreshing taste, which is especially good after spicy and hot food.
Carambola
This rare fruit comes from the Moluccas and from Sri Lanka. Today it is cultivated in almost all countries in the tropical climate zone.
Carambola has several names. Namely, “starfruit”, “cannon”, as well as “star apple”. The last variant of the name is not given to the fruit by accident. After all, if it is cut across, the fetus will look like a five-pointed star.
Carambola is a fruit with a bright yellow color. The diameter of the fruit is about 6 cm, and its length is 10-15 cm. The taste of carambola is sweet and sour. In fruits of different types, it may differ slightly.
Interestingly, the very thin skin through which the pulp can be seen has carambola fruit. How to eat it? Whole. The peel of the fetus does not need to be peeled off.
The fruit contains a lot of oxalic acid. That is why it should be used with caution to someone who suffers from a stomach ulcer, duodenal ulcer or gastritis. Thanks to oxalic acid, which is a part of carambola, an exotic fruit can perfectly polish copper products and remove stains from clothes. In addition to this element in the exotic fruit, a large number of vitamins C, B 1 , B 2 and B 5 , as well as potassium and sodium, iron, calcium and phosphorus. This wonderful composition has carambola fruit.
How to eat it? In raw form, stew, canned, squeezed juice out of the pulp, added to puddings, jellies and salads. Star-shaped fruits are often used to decorate a variety of dishes.
Kiwano
This exotic fruit is also called horned melon. His homeland is Africa. To date, you can also find kiwano in New Zealand, as well as in Colombia, where it is cultivated.
In addition to the name "horned melon" there are others. Among them - "jelly melon", "English tomato" and "African horned cucumber."
This exotic fruit has a bright yellow color. Its hard peel is strewn with soft spikes. They gave the name to the fruit.
The peel of a Kiwano is inedible. However, it is so hard that it is used as tableware, the stability of which is ensured by spikes.
The taste of this fruit is sweet and sour, it resembles a cucumber, melon, banana and lime at the same time. It’s impossible to call him pleasant. However, Kiwano is often used as an ingredient for smoothies, fruit desserts, creams, and ice cream.
Guava
The birthplace of this exotic fruit is Central America. In the old days, it was a favorite treat among the Aztecs and Incas.
The guava fruit looks like a small apple with a unique tropical flavor. This fruit is recommended for those who want to replenish their body with reserves of ascorbic acid. Guava has more of it than citrus fruits. In addition, the fruit contains iron, phosphorus, calcium, vitamins included in group B, as well as beta-carotene.
Used guava for making juices, salads and jellies. It is added to milkshakes and ice cream, as well as pickled. From the dried pulp of the fruit, cheese is prepared, which is considered one of the best oriental sweets.
Guava fruits are eaten directly with the peel, having previously cut them in half or into smaller pieces.
Passion fruit
The birthplace of this exotic fruit is Brazil. Passion fruit has a rounded shape with a peel of yellow or purple. The pulp of the fruit, which contains a large number of seeds, has a sour taste.
Passion fruit is very good for human health. The pulp of this fruit has a lot of proteins and fiber, carbohydrates and phosphorus, sodium and calcium, serotonin, as well as vitamins C, B and A. Eating exotic fruits contributes to the normalization of the intestines, urinary tract and liver. However, those who are prone to allergies, it is better not to consume passion fruit.
How is it eaten raw? Before use, the fetus is cut in half. After that, its pulp is eaten with a spoon. Juices and nectars are also prepared from passion fruit. Add it to desserts and salads. Use fruit as an additive to ice cream.
Rambutan
This exotic fruit is a small in size pink fruit that has many soft processes on the skin. Outwardly, they resemble chestnuts, but their shape is more elongated, and the spikes are not rigid.
Under the peel is a sweet and juicy translucent dense pulp of white color, in which there is a large bone of rambutan fruit. How to eat it? The peel is quite easily opened directly with your hands or cut with a knife. After the fruit is peeled, it is eaten raw. These exotic fruits are used for salads and sauces. They are used to make the filling for pies, fruit jams, as well as stewed fruit, are amazingly boiled from fruit.
The composition of rambutan includes vitamin C, as well as a huge number of elements useful to the body, due to which:
- increased food metabolism;
- infections are eliminated;
- cardiovascular system performance is maintained;
- blood pressure decreases;
- intestinal parasites are eliminated.
Sala
This exotic fruit is a fruit of a round or oblong shape, reaching a length of up to 5 cm. The peel of the fat is brown or red. It is covered with small dense thorns.
The lard fruit has an unusual, bright sweet-sour taste, reminiscent of a pear or persimmon. Before use, the fruit should be peeled. Because of the thorns, it is recommended to do this with a knife.
Sala is a very healthy fruit. It contains a large amount of tannin, which disinfects the body, removing pathogenic microflora from the digestive system. The use of exotic fruits has a beneficial effect on the intestines, removing irritation and inflammation in it.