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There's the fruits that we're all familiar with: Apples, oranges, grapes, figs etc. Then there's the fruits that we consider exotic but can buy in a reasonably well-stocked supermarket: mangoes, lychees, kumquats, passion fruit etc.
What proportion of the fruits that grow in the world will the average Westerner know about?
Biological fruit, or culinary fruit? I'd say a well-eaten Westerner probably has a passing familiarity with maybe 60% of the fruit in the world, and might have heard of maybe 15% more.
These are fruits I've eaten at home:
Oranges - navel and whatever's on sale
Apples - Usually Granny Smith and a few I don't know the names for
Bananas - I eat at least one banana every day, usually 2 or 3
Plums - I'll buy them if they're firm
Nectarines - in season
Peaches - in season every week
Watermelon - the fruit of the gods - I can eat a melon per week when I can find them
Cantaloupe - can't spell it, but maybe 1 per month
Honeydew - about 1 per month
Grapefruit - every other month or so
Kiwi - only buy them in fruit salad
Pineapple - Fresh maybe twice per year - canned in water once per month or so
Coconut - once in my life
Grapes - seedless - at least every other week
Pears - once per month or so
Pomegranite - "Chinese Apples" in da hood. At least a couple in season
Lemons, limes - every week
Strawberries - every other week - fresh or frozen
Blueberries - once or twice in a blue moon
Raspberries - maybe once per year
Pumpkin - maybe once per year
Mangos - regularly
Papaya - once in a while - every couple of months
I can't think of any others right now but I feel full of fiber for writing this down!
There are a number of fruits which apparently don't travel very well, so if you don't have a local source, you can't sample them.
There's also some fruits that require an awful lot of work before they're edible. bletting is one process used to make some fruits, like medlars and persimmons, palatable.
I think I've eaten all of these too although a lot of them aren't very good at our grocery store. A lot of fruit is mushy or too hard so I tend to stick to the basics, apples, oranges, bananas and grapes if they're not too expensive. Americans get a lot of fruit from around the world but they keep the best of it for themselves.Quote:
Originally posted by jali
I'm lucky to have an Asian grocery nearby, so I can find lovely fruit every week.Quote:
Originally posted by Mister Peanut
Here's a list of culinary fruits.
That list has some repeats, but here's what I've eaten:
* Apple and crabapple (Malus)
* Loquat (Eryobotrya japonica)
* Medlar (Mespilus germanica)
* Pear, European and Asian species (Pyrus)
* Quince (Cydonia oblonga and Chaenomeles)
* Rose hip, the fruitlike base of roses (Rosa)
* Serviceberry or Saskatoon (Amelanchier)
* Apricot (Prunus armeniaca or Armeniaca vulgaris)
* Cherry, sweet, black, sour, and wild species (Prunus avium, Prunus serotina, P. cerasus, and others)
* Greengage, a cultivar of the plum
* Hybrids of the preceding species, such as the pluot
* Peach (of the normal and white variety) and its variant the nectarine (Prunus persica)
* Plum, of which there are several domestic and wild species; dried plums are called prunes
* Blackberry, of which there are many species and hybrids, such as dewberry, boysenberry, olallieberry, and tayberry
* Cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus)
* Loganberry (Rubus loganobaccus)
* Raspberry, several species (genus Rubus)
* Bilberry or whortleberry (Vaccinium spp.)
* Blueberry (Vaccinium spp.)
* Cranberry (Vaccinium spp.)
* Huckleberry (Vaccinium spp.)
* Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea)
* Strawberry (Fragaria)
* Açaí (Euterpe), a palm fruit native to the Amazon region
* Currant (Ribes spp.; Grossulariaceae), red, black, and white types
* Eggplant (Solanum melongena Solanaceae), purple berry thought to be a vegetable
* Elderberry (Sambucus; Caprifoliaceae)
* Gooseberry (Ribes spp.; Grossulariaceae)
* Mulberry (Morus spp.; Moraceae) including:
o Red Mulberry (Morus rubra)
* Coconut (Cocos nucifera; Arecaceae)
* Hardy Kiwi (Actinidia arguta; Actinidiaceae family)
* Kiwifruit or Chinese gooseberry (Actinidia spp.; Actinidiaceae)
* Longan (Dimocarpus longan; Sapindaceae family)
* Lychee (Litchi chinensis; Sapindaceae family)
* Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana; Clusiaceae family)
* Persimmon (aka Sharon Fruit) (Diospyros kaki; Ebenaceae)
* Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum; Sapindaceae family)
* Rhubarb (Rheum rhaponticum; Polygonaceae)
* American grape: North American species (e.g., Vitis labrusca; Vitaceae)
* American plum (Prunus americana; Rosaceae
* Beach Plum (Prunus maritima; Rosaceae)
* Black cherry (Prunus serotina; Rosaceae very popular flavoring for pies, jams, and sweets.
* Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis or Rubus leucodermis; Rosaceae)
* Blueberry (Vaccinium, sect. Cyanococcus; Ericaceae)
* Cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccus; Ericaceae)
* Jícama, also called Mexican Turnip
* Prickly pear (Opuntia spp.,; Cactaceae) used as both a fruit and vegetable depending on part of plant.
* Salal berry (Gaultheria shallon; Ericaceae)
* Southern crabapple (Malus angustifola; Rosaceae)
* Lady apple (Syzygium suborbiculare; Myrtaceae)
* Saguaro (Carnegiea gigantea; Cactaceae)
* Gourd, (usually regarded as vegetables in cuisine) including, but not limited to:
o Butternut squash (Cucurbita moschata)
o Hubbard squash, Buttercup squash (Cucurbita maxima)
o Pumpkin, Acorn squash, Zucchini, Summer squash (Cucurbita pepovarieties)
* Melon (Cucumis melo): cantaloupe, and other muskmelons, honeydew
* Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas; Cornaceae)
* Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera; Arecaceae)
* Fig (Ficus spp. Moraceae)
* Grape, called raisin, sultana, or currant when it is dried. (Vitis spp.; Vitaceae)
* Jujube (Ziziphus zizyphus; Rhamnaceae)
* Olive (Olea europea; Oleaceae)
* Pomegranate (Punica granatum; Punicaceae)
* Blood Orange
* Citron (Citrus medica)
* Clementine (Citrus reticulata var. Clementine),
* Grapefruit (Citrus paradisi)
* Hybrids of the preceding species, such as the Orangelo, Tangelo, Rangpur (fruit) and Ugli fruit
* Kumquat (Fortunella)
* Lemon (Citrus limon)
* Limes
o Key Lime (Citrus aurantifolia)
o Kaffir lime (Citrus hystix)
* Mandarin (Citrus reticulata)
* Orange, of which there are sweet (Citrus sinensis)
* Pomelo (also known as the shaddock) (Citrus maxima)
* Tangerine, and similar
* Avocado (Persea americana; Lauraceae)
* Carob (Ceratonia siliqua; Fabaceae)
* Guava (Psidium guajava; Myrtaceae)
* Kumquat (Fortunella spp.; Rutaceae)
* Longan (Dimocarpus longan; Sapindaceae)
* Lychee (Litchi chinensis; Sapindaceae)
* Passion fruit or Grenadilla (Passiflora edulis and other Passiflora spp.; Passifloraceae) Galendar in some part of east India (Darjeeling)
* Peanut (Arachis hypogaea; Fabaceae)
* Tamarillo or Tree Tomato (Cyphomandra betacea; Solanaceae)
* Ugli (Ugli molinae; Myrtaceae)
* Papayas
* Ackee (Blighia sapida or Cupania sapida; Sapindaceae)
* Banana (Musacea spp.; Musaceae); its starchy variant is the plantain
* Bitter gourd
* Brazil nut
* Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis; Moraceae)
* Cashew * Cherimoya (Annona cherimola; Annonaceae)
* Chili pepper
* Cacao
* Coffee
* Custard-apple (Annona reticulata; Annonaceae), also called Bullock's Heart
* Damson plum (Chrysophyllum oliviforme; Sapotaceae), also called Satin Leaf
* Date
* Date-plum (Diospyros lotus; Ebenaceae)
* Dragonfruit (Hylocereus spp.; Cactaceae), also called pitaya
* Elephant apple (Dillenia indica; Dilleniaceae) * Guarana (Paullinia cupana; Sapindaceae)
* Guava
* Horned melon (Cucumis metuliferus; Cucurbitaceae)
* Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus Moraceae), also called nangka
* Kumquat
* Macadamia, also known as a Queensland nut
* Mango (Mangifera indica; Anacardiaceae)
* Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana; Clusiaceae)
* Mountain soursop
* Mung bean
* Muskmelon
* Nutmeg
* Neem
* Okra
* Papaya (Carica papaya; Caricaceae)
* Pigeon pea
* Pineapple (Ananas comosus or Ananas sativas; Bromeliaceae)
* Plantain
* Pummelo
* Soursop (Annona muricata; Annonaceae), also called guanabana
* Soybean
* Star apple (Chrysophyllum cainito), also called caimito or caimite
* Summer squash
* Sweet pepper
* Tamarind (Tamarindus indica; Caesalpiniaceae)
* Vanilla
* Watermelon
WOW! That is a lot of fruit! I haven't even heard of some of those!Quote:
Originally posted by susan
I'm not saying that I'd eat some of them more than once.
Just HAD to quote it, didn't we, Mister Peanut?
Well, technically, he's a legume.Quote:
Originally posted by Zsofia
He's also a fruit, according to your list.Quote:
Originally posted by susan
Who isn't?
If you've ever done any wilderness survival courses, you'll instantly realize that there is a sizable gap between 'edible' and 'tasty'.
Viz., salal.Quote:
Originally posted by chacoguy420
Even someone who has eaten a lot of fruit is missing a lot. I'm no stranger to exotic food, but in Cameroon every day someone brought me a pile of some completely unknown fruit. A lot of this stuff never gets eaten because it's not very good or it's just a lot of work for little reward (lots of seeds, hard shells, etc.) But there is a ton of stuff there. Even they often did not have names for these things. They'd just be described as "something from the bush."