Rare & Exotic Fruit please....

So we have all heard or tried fruits like oranges, grapes, strawberries, etc...
But what are some of the fruits you have tried that are not so common in your area?

One that I like that is not so common like the orange... is guava. I love the taste of it and can eat several at a time lol :sillySmiley:
The smell of these can be strong. If they are left out in the kitchen... the smell is very noticable. If someone walks in the house, you can tell right away, that guavas are somewhere around. LOL

About Guavas:
The guava fruit is edible, round to pear-shaped, from 3-10 cm in diameter (up to 12 cm in some selected cultivars). It has a thin delicate rind, pale green to yellow at maturity in some species, pink to red in others, a creamy white or orange-salmon flesh with many small hard seeds, and a strong, characteristic aroma that is hard to describe but generally reminiscent of refreshing fruit like apples, passionfruit or strawberries, with an inoffensive acidity and a fragrance reminiscent of rose petals. Guavas are often considered "superfruits", being extremely rich in vitamins A, B, and C. A single guava fruit contains more vitamin C than a typical citrus fruit; the rind alone contains over five times more vitamin C than an orange. It also contains high amounts of calcium – which is unusual in a fruit.



How about you guys? What rare fruits do you enjoy?

Carol wrote:

What rare fruits do you enjoy?

That's a loaded question.

Not sure how rare they are, but I like clementines, which are very distantly related to oranges.

ClementineOrange

Savannah wrote:

I like Kiwi - and that's pretty rare for our area. . . . . I mean........Not ONE of the farmers around here grows it.

Really?? Up here there's a kiwi plantation on every corner.

Ah, what a pretty picture! Makes me think summer!!

I'm allergic to kiwi actually...I LOVE it, but the roof of my mouth itches terribly after I eat it!

I just discovered pomagranates this year! My son had one at his school (the teacher brought in 'unusual' food for the kids to try, and he loved it and wanted me to buy some. So I did and now I'm hooked! They're messy though...be prepared to get your hands stained red!

Part of the reason I'm not a 'winter person' is the lack berries in season...I love strawberries, blueberries, rasberries, etc..., but they're all WAY too much $$ now!! The other day I found a container of strawberries priced at $6.00!!!

I agree with, Rob, I really like clementines too. They are easy to peel, which is a plus, and they have just the right amount of sweet. A perfect snack.

Not long ago we bought mango's, papaya and guava so that Kelsey could try them. I liked them all, except for the papaya.

These are Avocados Very Good to Put in a Salad or But em of a Bun Just Like Butter Just The Inside the Green Stuff Hmmmmm that is soo good

Wow, I've never heard of Clementines before. I will have to try it... first I gotta find out where to get it. Thanks Rob!

Amy wrote:

I just discovered pomagranates this year! My son had one at his school (the teacher brought in 'unusual' food for the kids to try, and he loved it and wanted me to buy some. So I did and now I'm hooked! They're messy though...be prepared to get your hands stained red!

Ah yes... pomegranates ARE really messy! My friend recently experimented and added lemon and salt to it.... I guess the taste is really good... she was boasting about it... but as she prepared it... she kept on wiping the mess it made on the counter... on the window blinds nearby



Another one I really like is Tamarind. I LOVE a drink my mom makes with Tamarind.
In Latin America, especially Mexico, and Latin American immigrant communities in the US, the fruit is wildly popular and is fashioned into a drink, "Agua de Tamarindo", and many kinds of treats. Many popular Tamarindo concoctions are hard candies and suckers and one of the most popular aguas frescas is flavored with tamarind.



I eat them as they are (but they do have a little tart taste at first and then it's sweet... not sure how to explain it lol)... and the Tamarind drink is one of my favorites. :sillySmiley:

I also love clementines, like Pam said, it's easier to peel. The watery sweet tangy taste is just yummy.

Oh Jacob, I love avocados. I buy them all the time to put in my salad.

I love avocados too, Jacob!! I love to make fresh guacamole.

Exotic fruit? We didn't have in Argentina, but some guavas and avocados in the very nord-East. However, you can eat whatever you want if you goes to some "exotic" markets and Asiatic ones. I have one near my home, and there you may purchase mangoes (I love it), Papaya (the bigger variety is named "mamón"), lichies, rambuthan, , plantains, Custard apples, Star Fruit (Carambola) and absolutely all you wants. This is great, since I love fruit. Exotic and not exotic ones.

Vanesa.

We Love Avocados but they are rather expessive here how about there?

They're not too expensive, but sometimes it's difficult to find avocados that are ripe and nice and soft. Exactly what you need to make guacamole.

I love avacados, too! Never tried any of the other ones and I don't really think I've had any exotic fruits. You know, Amy, I'm like that with certain foods I eat...the roof of my mouth "aches" (does that make sense) and I don't really know why. Your situation sounds similar.

My brother and I gook a trip to Florida years ago and we stayed at a resort near Disney World. Our section of the resort was called Kumquat and we wondered "what the heck is kumquat?" While we were in another part of the state we went to a cirtus farm and discovered just what a kumquat is. It was really cool. Af first we just ate the thing and it tasted horrible. My brother tried to peel it, lol. A kind passerby showed us how to get the juices flowing and then eat it. They were really good. I have been to FL once since but didn't see any of that fruit. We don't get them up here in Ontario so I guess I'll just have to take another trip to get some more.

Rob wrote:

Savannah wrote:

I like Kiwi - and that's pretty rare for our area. . . . . I mean........Not ONE of the farmers around here grows it.

Really?? Up here there's a kiwi plantation on every corner.

Wow............So, do the plantation owners market chilled kiwi this time of year?


Vanesa! I love star fruit! I'd forgotten about that. I pretty much love any fruit, though.

LIWnut wrote:

My brother and I gook a trip to Florida years ago and we stayed at a resort near Disney World. Our section of the resort was called Kumquat and we wondered "what the heck is kumquat?" While we were in another part of the state we went to a cirtus farm and discovered just what a kumquat is. It was really cool. Af first we just ate the thing and it tasted horrible. My brother tried to peel it, lol. A kind passerby showed us how to get the juices flowing and then eat it. They were really good. I have been to FL once since but didn't see any of that fruit. We don't get them up here in Ontario so I guess I'll just have to take another trip to get some more.

Kumquats or Cumquats, are so little.......can't get much juice from them, but they do have their own flavor......



OK, so I had a picture, but when I hit Send, it comes out looking like that above.... So, here's the link to it....

Cumquat

Cumquats are called "Quinotos" in Argentina, and they comes from China, but are adapted here. They are a "winter harvest" and they tastes more tarty than a grapefruit. My great-granny would cook a very tasteful confiture with them. They were boiled in sugar syrup until they are trabslucid as candies, and they are put into jars with all thys golden.heavy syrup. A real treat! Yummy!

Vanesa.

Hmm...I thought when I had a mango for the first time last year that was "exotic" to me, LOL. I also tried kiwis and thought both were pretty good. Oddly enough, I can eat them both and not have allergies bother me, but if I try some "every day" kind of fruit that I can find in any store nearby, like an apple or pear, then my allergies act up. :think:

When we were over visiting the children a few weekends ago, my Mom and I found a huge market that has an absolutely amazing variety of fruits and vegetables! So, this week, I tried a persimmon for the very first time. It won't be the last. I also bought a mango, but I haven't tried that yet. And Carol! They have tamarinds! So maybe I'll try that, too. They also carry some of the "older" vegetables that I don't see around here very often. Turnips, parsnips, rutabaga. . . .

Persimmons need a better name. They taste much better than they sound.

We had persimmon trees in California. My daddy couldn't WAIT for them to get ripe so he could suck the sweet fruit out of it.......

Savannah, get some and make persimmon bread. Use a banana nut bread recipe and substitute the persimmon for it......or google a recipe online.....it is aMAZing........

Savannah wrote:

And Carol! They have tamarinds! So maybe I'll try that, too.

Yeah? That's neat!
Here is a recipe for the Tamarind drink:

Ingredients
1/2 lb dried tamarind (remove shell)
3 cups water
1 cup sugar (or to taste)

Directions
1 Put the tamarind and water in a large bowl.

2 Let soak for an hour or so.

3 Then remove seeds with your hands.

4 Try to mash up the tamarind, for this will make it easier to remove the seeds and give the water a more pronounced flavor.

5 Pour water through a strainer.

6 Add sugar.

7 Refridgerate until well chilled. Serve and enjoy!

8 Serve chilled with lots of ice.