Fruit from palm trees comes in amazing assorted varieties!
Palm trees produce a number of unique fruits. Some are quite delicious. And no doubt you've heard of the well-known coconut and perhaps the date. Did you know the date is a palm tree fruit?
Have you heard of the acai berry? Lately has gotten more popular. There's said to be some healthful benefits from eating acai.
We've tried it a few times. Had a fruit bowl mixture including acai that was quite good. Lately I've been buying organic green tea with blueberry & acai concentrate added in. I love it, & have been reordering.
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You could Try It Out - We Recommend It! Even more-so if you're a regular tea drinker.
For the fruits from palm trees, you can explore many options.
Here at Mission: Palm Trees
Palm lovers can calm their palm-related search tasks & worries. Our articles are intended to inform, while having fun, easily Finding What You Want or Need. Without unneeded shoptalk & tiring endless research. We Research For You!
Actually, all Palms Grow Fruit.
With 2400/+ species of palm trees in the world, there are that many sorts of fruits from palms. Some are edible, probably the fruit from palm trees in about 100 species. So you can see most are not edible.
We'll decipher all of that here!
So, be ready to discover this diverse & sometimes delicious world of palm tree fruit.
Now we know that they all have a stunning variety of fruits!
Even though most people think of palm trees for their connection with tropical climates & unique looks. And not for their fruit.
From sweet & juicy, to tart, tangy, bitter & inedible.
Fruits from a palm tree can be classified as: the good, the bad & the ugly!!
We'll check for these different types of fruit from palm trees. We'll take you to a selection of the edible, the questionable & the awful/don't eat 'em!
Edible fruit from palm trees are used regularly.
Some types of Palms Are Grown exactly for their palm fruit. You may not have heard of many of these palm tree fruits, since they don't ship them elsewhere. They don't last long. No kind of shelf life.
If you visit the area where these palms primarily grow, you may have a chance to taste them. Seeing if you'd like them!
Surely sounds like a palm tree with yummy fruit! Is it?
Bactris gasipaes is found from Central to South America. Fruits are orange, yellow or red.
Hyphaene petersiana is native to central areas of Southern Africa. It can grow quickly.
Jubaea chilensis originated in Chile's savannahs & lower Andes' foothills. Fruits are tiny & round. May be yellow, orange or something in between.
AKA Double Coconut. Which are huge! Resembling two black coconuts hooked together. Lodoicea maldivida comes from two islands of the Seychelles.
Manicaria saccifera fruits becomes a refreshing, nourishing drink. Or even a cough syrup.
From areas in Central & South America.
Mauritia flexuosa loves steamy, Amazonia's swamplands.
Hogging up areas where it grows. Its edible palm fruits are regionally popular.
Salacca affinis is from the islands of Southeast Asia.
Likes swampy rain forests.
The fruit from Acai Palm Trees (Euterpe oleracea) have recently become one of the most favorable fruits from palm trees.
Acai berries are actually drupes (Learn About Palm Fruit Drupes). They're popularized as the superfood of palms. They've become popular around the world, with a unique flavor. They're native to the Amazon rainforest, in estuary-type environments.
You'll find them in Healthy Tea Mixtures smoothie bowls, juices & other creative dishes. Local people use fruit from the Acai palm in many dishes.
These small, (usually) purple berries grow yearly on about 8 infructescences (flower stalk that now produces fruit) per palm. Once picked, they're only good for about 24 hours. They must be dried or flash frozen to survive shipping.
The high antioxidant content accounts for that "Superfood" Reputation. Antioxidants can help protect you from damage of free radicals. But Acai berries are nutritionally packed! They have lots of good fiber & vitamin C. With healthy fats, plus potassium & phytochemicals.
Some palm tree fruits aren't popularly eaten by humans.
Even though they're technically edible.
Like the traditionally used Fruit of the California Fan Palm. You could try them out if you'd want. What do you think your reaction would be? Some are eaten, by having an experimental outlook and getting that acquired taste.
But their value is typically useful as animal feed.
MACAW PALM
Also known as Macaúba. The Acrocomia aculeata has a fibrous fruit. Found in Mexico, the Caribbean & areas of South America.
Phoenix canariensis originated on the Canary Islands - think you figured that!
At full growth, this palm tree is massive.
Some locals eat this palm's fruit!
Probably it's an acquired taste! Phoenix reclinata is also called Senegal Date Palm. Growing in Africa, especially riverside.
Also called Wine Palm, the Pseudophoenix vinifera is sadly endangered within its original indigenous source, on Hispaniola.
Since it's been a constantly cut palm, with sap used for wine production.
Many other varieties are worth looking into. We have a few more examples here.
The Doub Palm or Palmyra Palm has even more common names!
Borassus flabellifer is a Native Palm Tree in South & Southeast Asia. Its palmyra fruit is a popular ingredient in South Asian cuisine. It has sweet, jelly-like flesh.
BE CAREFUL WITH THE KNIFE!
Are there health risks to using it?
This palm tree's fruit produces a stimulant. Coming from the Areca Palm (Areca catechu), it's sometimes called the areca nut.
It's used by people specifically for the energy boost it causes. It speeds up the central nervous system because some of its ingredients causing an adrenaline release.
Commonly chewed in areas of Asia, the Pacific Islands & East Africa. Long-term users can be spotted by their purplish tinted teeth.
It can even cause tooth loss & is reportedly a carcinogen.
Many other palm fruits have their own unique flavor & possible culinary uses. With varied & local uses in multiple cultures. Some examples are:
The next time you're looking to try something new & unique, you might think of these fruits. Now after considering the wide variety of fruits from palm trees.