Rambutan at first glance looks a bit like a small red hedgehog or a still immature chestnut, as it is enclosed in a spiky “shell.” It is not as spiky as it appears, as the “spikes” are actually soft hairs. Just cut it open and you can taste the sweet, refreshing flesh. It is very healthy, containing many valuable minerals and vitamins. But beware: 100 g of this fruit provides as much as 70 kcal!1)
Mangosteen has thick skin, after which you will get to the white flesh. Caution: you have to be careful with it, because it stains heavily, and mangosteen stains are really hard to wash out of clothes. But what a TASTE it has! Sweet, slightly sour, and very refreshing. True poetry! It's like you're eating a strawberry, pineapple, lychee, and peach at the same time. Simply delicious! 2)
Carambola is also called starfruit because it does indeed resemble a star when cut. In China, it is considered both a fruit and a vegetable (when eaten with the skin). It tastes best when it is bright yellow and has delicate brown spots. Don't eat the green fruit - wait for it to ripen! Carambola is a fairly sweet fruit, with a slightly sour, sometimes bitter aftertaste. It is very healthy and low in calories.3)
Durian is perhaps the most notorious of the world's strange and exotic fruits. It's called the king of fruits in Asia for a reason and is even LOVED by locals. There's even a building built in its shape in Singapore - it's the Esplanade Opera House. The durian's fame is primarily due to its unpleasant smell. That's because it contains as many as 41 different aromatic compounds (odorants), including, for example, having the smell of fried onions, but also honey, caramel, rot, sulfur, and cabbage. It's really an explosive mixture and a challenge to the nose! It smells SO VERY bad that the place where it is sold is impossible to miss. Anyone who smells durian once will always be sensitive. There's a reason you can't walk into a hotel, cab, or airport with it. 4)
Jackfruit is otherwise known as the fruit of the breadtree. Often confused with the durian, but they are easily distinguished - the durian has larger thorns. They also differ in smell, of course, nothing smells when opened like the fruit described above. Instead, jackfruit smells quite pleasant and is the largest fruit growing on a tree in the world. It is very nutritious, has sticky flesh, and is very sweet. 5)
Also called dragon fruit or strawberry pear, the pitahaya is the fruit of a cactus. It has a distinctive pink skin, inside which is white or purple flesh with black seeds. Did you know that the flowers of the dragon fruit bloom only at night? The fruit's taste is somewhat reminiscent of melon and kiwi, actually a combination of the two. 6)
Water apple in shape looks more like a pear. In cross-section, it somewhat resembles a large strawberry, although its flesh can be both white and pink. Wax apples are often sold on bamboo sticks or already cut, for salads. They are great thirst quenchers, very juicy, and not too sweet. 7)
Longan is called a dragon eye. And indeed, it somewhat resembles them, as it is yellow in color, spherical in shape, its flesh is transparent with the consistency of jelly, and the seed is black. In taste, longan is sweet and somewhat resembles lychee. It contains a very high amount of vitamin C. 8)
Langsat is a cousin of lychee and longanu. Often confused outside with dragon's eye. Inside, however, you can see the differences - langsat usually has smaller and lighter seeds, and its flesh is divided into several particles (like tangerine or mangosteen). It tastes a bit like a combination of grape and grapefruit. Sweet, but refreshing, although sometimes tart! As an aside, from the rind of langsat, indigenous tribes used to prepare… a poison used for hunting. 9)
Marang is a cousin of durian and jackfruit. The difference is that it has white rather than yellow tubers inside. It has a very intense aroma, which can be repellent at first, but it is not as intense as the smell of durian. It is compared to the aroma of jackfruit mixed with pear and banana. It is better to open it outside! It also has a very sweet taste and is very nutritious. You can get fond of it! By the way, it is a real vitamin bomb, increasingly popular among athletes. 10)
Salak is also known as snake fruit. Its skin resembles the texture of snakeskin and is rough (and even prickly). It grows similar to, for example, lychees, that is, in bunches on palm trees. The flesh is sweet and sour and juicy, and its aroma is often described as a combination of apple, pear, banana, and pineapple flavors. It is eaten fresh, but also marinated, dried, in juice or jam form. The seeds are ground to make a beverage similar to coffee. 11)
Noni is otherwise known as Indian mulberry. Its smell is quite intense and many react negatively to it. And what about the taste? There are those who consume noni with cheese and salt. Noni can sometimes be bitter! For what it's worth, noni juice is very popular and valued for its health-promoting qualities, for example, it contains substances that can promote anti-cancer. That's why noni is readily used in traditional medicine in Polynesia, and also sold, for example, in powdered form, as a dietary supplement. On its own, the juice is a bit bland but mixed with another, such as grape or peach, it tastes really good! 12)
Persimmon or kaki is another exotic fruit. What does the kaki taste like? It is often referred to as a plum-flavored tomato. It is pleasantly sweet and tastes great both solo and as an addition to yogurt, salad, etc. Interestingly, kaki is used in Chinese medicine to treat irritated skin, as well as after snakebite. 13)
Calamansi is also called calamondin. It is a cross between a tangerine and a Japanese kumquat. It is considered the least tasty citrus. But for that, it is a great addition to cooking and a great ingredient for juices! 14)
The citron is also called the Buddha's hand, due to its characteristic shape, somewhat resembling a hand. It is most likely one of the original citrus species from which today's lemons or limes are derived. The flesh is sour and very aromatic, and the fruits themselves resemble lemons in texture and are quite large. 15)
The kiwano is otherwise known as the African cucumber. It resembles a bit of an invaded chestnut, although it is yellow or orange. That's what a kiwano is - a real vitamin bomb. Inside it has green flesh, deceptively reminiscent of cucumber. Its taste is refreshing, similar to a mixture of cucumber, kiwi, and melon, although by smell the fruit strongly resembles a sweet banana. 16)
Synsepalum dulcificum, most commonly known as Miracle Fruit is a fruit native to Africa that looks like an overgrown berry. It is also referred to as a “miracle fruit” because it contains a substance called miraculin, which partially blocks our taste receptors (for about 1-2 h) and turns sour and bitter taste into sweet. And this means that if you eat a bit of synsepalum first and then bite into a lemon, it will seem sweet to you. 17)
Passion fruit from the Indian “maraú-ya”, meaning “fruit eaten in one breath.” The flesh of this fruit is sticky and dense, slightly sweet and sour in taste, with thick skin on the outside. Passion fruit is highly nutritious and very healthy - it acts as an anti-inflammatory, relieves pain, and aids wound healing. When buying this fruit, it is advisable to choose hard, dark, wrinkled skin with spots - then we are sure that the fruit has the most flavor in it. 18)
Almost all popular and commercially important citrus fruits are bred by humans. The only three original citrus species are mandarin, pomelo, and citron. The rest, like oranges, lemons, grapefruits and limes, were created in the last few thousand years. 19)