Colombian Fruits

Emanuela Orsini December 6, 2012 Fruit, World Cuisine

One of the most amazing and memorable aspects of Colombian gastronomy would have to be the wide variety of delicious and exotic fruits that this country has to offer. They are refreshing, tasty and a great and healthy part of the Colombian diet.

Colombian territory encompasses a large part of the Amazon rain forest, two coastlines along the Caribbean and Pacific, and its altitudes vary up and down the Andes Mountains – all in a tropical climate of heavy rainfall, which makes way for very fertile land.

The extensive diversity of flavors, colors, textures and smells of Colombian fruits contribute to the richness of this area. Most of these fruits are made into juices, and served with your daily meals. Some fruits are not usually eaten, and merely drunk when made as a delicious juice.

Here are some of my favorite discoveries:

Lulo: Lulo juice is probably one of the most popular juices in Colombia. It’s difficult to eat raw because it is very sour, however the juice, which can be made with water or milk, is absolutely scrumptious!

Tomate de Arbol (tree tomato): An egg-shaped edible fruit that looks like a tomato, not usually eaten raw but drunk as juice.

Granadilla: This fruit has a hard outer shell that can be easily broken with your nails. Inside, the fruit contains a yellow, jelly-like pulp with a scattering of black edible seeds. The fruit has a sweet and sour flavor, and was one of my favorites!

Guanabana: It has a dark green speckled skin with a diamond shape pattern, and each diamond has a soft, curved spine. The white interior pulp is studded with many large seeds, and pockets of soft flesh that cover big seeds. The flesh is juicy and has a sweet taste. This fruit is usually mixed with milk for a yummy fruit juice.

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Pitahaya: Cactus fruit which has a sour and refreshing taste. It must be cut to get to the fleshy center, and eaten with its crunchy black seeds. In this picture, pitahaya is accompanied by the carambola (star fruit).

Maracuya: Also known as “passion fruit”, it is used in fruit salads, sorbets, juices and syrups.

I never liked mangoes until I tasted these… Whether in juice or in its natural form, in Colombia the mango is juicy, fresh and highly recommended. There exist different types of mangoes such as the mango dulce (sweet mango) and mango biche (green mango). The green mango, or unripe mango, is a typical snack that is chopped up into small pieces and served with a bit of lemon juice and salt and can be found being sold on the street.