Fruits with white seeds in them, When a fruit has a colored exterior and white interior, you know that it’s a very unique type of fruit with white seeds. The most common fruit with white seeds is the watermelon, Apples, apricots, cherries, and pears; however, there are other types of fruit that contain seeds such as grapes and lemons.
What Are the Benefits of Dragon Fruit, and How Do You Eat It? Here’s What to Know
Although dragon fruit may not feature regularly on your grocery list, this brightly colored fruit, with its white flesh and black seeds, may be worth a taste if you’re looking to change things up.
Here’s what you need to know about this exotic treat, including its many potential health benefits, nutritional information, how it tastes, and the ways to eat it.
What Is Dragon Fruit (Also Called Pitaya or Pitahaya)?
As the name suggests, dragon fruit is just that — a fruit.
It’s grown primarily in Asia, Mexico, Central America, and South America, and historians think it originated in Central America. But the American Culinary Federation Education Foundation suggests a different story: “Ancient Chinese legends say that the dragon fruit was created thousands of years ago by a dragon in battle who blew a burst of fire containing the fruit,” its website states.
If you’ve never heard of dragon fruit, you might be familiar with its other names: strawberry pear and pitaya or pitahaya.
Dragon fruit (or pitaya) comes from a cactus of the type Hylocereus. It’s a fast-growing crop, and the plants can produce for more than 20 years once established.
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Is a Dragon Fruit Sweet or Sour? What to Expect From Its Taste
Given dragon fruit’s unique appearance, you might hesitate to give it a try. But don’t let its spiky strangeness scare you. Dragon fruit will likely agree with your palate if you prefer sweet-tasting, rather than sour, fruit.
Some people compare the taste of dragon fruit to a combination of kiwi and pear. So if you’re a fan of these types of fruit, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll fall in love with dragon fruit
What Are the Different Varieties of Dragon Fruit?
There are different types of dragon fruit. The three main ones include:
- Hylocereus undatus or pitaya blanca pink/red skin, white flesh, and black seeds
- Hylocereus costaricensis or pitaya roja pink/red skin, red flesh, and black seeds
- Hylocereus megalanthus or pitaya amarilla yellow skin, white flesh, and black seeds
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What Are the Nutrition Facts of Dragon Fruit?
Dragon fruit boasts several nutrients and vitamins for better health, as per the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate guidelines. If you’re watching your waistline and want to help reduce your caloric intake, you’ll be happy to know that 100 grams (g) of dragon fruit (which you can enjoy in bite-size cubes) contains about 60 calories, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
In addition, the same amount of dragon fruit has about 2.9 g of fiber (11 percent daily value, or DV); 18 milligrams (mg) of calcium (1.8 percent DV); 59 international units (IU) of vitamin A (1.18 percent DV); 40 mg of magnesium (10 percent DV); 2.5 mg of vitamin C (4.16 percent DV); 0.74 mg of iron (4.1 percent DV); 1.18 g of protein (2.3 percent DV).
What Are the Benefits of Dragon Fruit?
Because dragon fruit is full of vitamins and nutrients, and offers potentially disease-fighting antioxidants, it probably come as no surprise that eating this fruit on a regular basis can have a positive influence on your health and wellness.
Here’s a look at some of the possible benefits you can receive from dragon fruit.
Improves Cardiovascular Health
Dragon fruit might be the perfect food if you’re looking to improve your cardiovascular health and possibly help reduce your risk of heart attack and stroke. Because of the antioxidants in the fruit, and the fact that its seeds — which are edible — provide your body with omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, eating the fruit may help reduce LDL “bad” cholesterol levels. Improving your cholesterol can help reduce plaque buildup in your arteries, which promotes healthy blood flow
Supports Your Immune System
People who have a weakened immune system are more susceptible to a variety of illnesses. This can include the common cold and flu and infections.
Dragon fruit contains vitamin C, which can give your immune system a boost and defend your body against foreign invaders (germs and bacteria) and free radicals. Free radicals are unstable atoms in the body that can lead to cell damage.
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Aids Your Digestion
The dietary fiber in dragon fruit also can help promote healthy digestion and gut health. Adults need between 21 and 38 g of fiber per day. About 100 g of dragon fruit contains 2.9 g of fiber, or 11 percent of the daily value. Adequate dietary fiber contributes to bowel regularity and can prevent and treat constipation
Plays a Role in Cancer Prevention
Not only does the immune-boosting ability of vitamin C help prevent cancer, but red dragon fruit also contains lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that gives red fruits their color.
This antioxidant has been shown to help reduce cancerous cells in the body. According to some reports, red dragon fruit extract may play a part in the prevention and treatment of breast cancer, but researchers need to conduct more studies to determine its role in the chemoprevention of breast cancer.
Lowers Blood Sugar in Diabetes
The fiber in dragon fruit can also help people with type 2 diabetes stay fuller for longer and lose weight, helping normalize blood sugar levels.
Eating dragon fruit also carries benefits for the skin. It may help reduce age spots, wrinkles, dry skin, and acne. The potential skin benefits come from its vitamin C and antioxidants in the fruit. These vitamins and minerals can play a role in gradually repairing cell damage, resulting in a more youthful appearance.
Fruit and Nut Plants from around the world
Check out our Papaya Seed Page for Papaya ( carica ) varieties from around the world
A strong-growing vine with dense, dark green foliage. The fragrant but inconspicuous white flowers appear in early spring. The fruit, which ripens in late summer or fall, is about 3/4″-11/4″ long. It tastes much like the commercial kiwi fruit, to which it is closely related, but is somewhat sweeter and has smooth skin. The seeds are very small and not noticeable, so eating the fruits is somewhat like eating large seedless grapes. Most selections should be hardy to around -30° F. In the native Asian habitat of this species the vines typically grow wild in trees, where they are known to climb as high as 100′.
Kiwi Fruit ( Actindia chinensis )
Cold hardy to zone 4. Kiwis are vigorous vines. They cannot support their own weight and will spread up to 30 feet. They require strong support such as trellis, arbor, or fence. In nature, they grow up into trees. Training to the south side of a building is excellent for the small planting. Kiwi vines are heavy feeders and like their roots to be in warm soil. A mature kiwi vine can produce 200 pounds of fruit.
Kiwis require special training and pruning to produce good crops. When planted, the vines should be pruned back to 4 or 5 buds. From these a main stem should be selected and staked to grow to the top of the arbor or trellis, usually 6-7’ high. The trellis should be strong to support the heavy future fruit loads.
Kiwis are beautiful vines. Their vigorous spring growth is a spectacular sight. Excellent for a privacy screen, they will rapidly cover a fence and with support will cover a wall or steep slope. Kiwis grow in a manner similar to grapes but more rapidly. They are very high in Vitamin C. (Ten times as much as lemons.) They are excellent for eating fresh and are a tasty addition to salads and desserts. Ice cream, pies, jam and wine are other ways to use kiwis. Package of 10 seeds $2.95 Package of 100 seeds $7.95
Issai Kiwi ( Actinidia sp. issai )
Small 1″ fruits with a very sweet taste. The vines will grow vigorously and bears loads of small fruit that is great for salads, desert or jelly. A vigorous, fast-growing, deciduous, woody vine that grows 25-30′ but can fill a 200 sq. ft. trellis in time. Grown for its foliage and edible fruit. Foliage is a lustrous dark green throughout the growing season. Flowers appear in May-June and are slightly fragrant and greenish white, but are not particularly showy since they are largely hidden by the foliage. This cultivar does not require a separate male pollinator plant. Smooth-skinned kiwi fruits ripen in early fall and are the size of a large grape. It tastes similar to, though slightly sweeter than, its larger-fruited relative, the true kiwi, Actinidia deliciosa, which can not be grown north of Zone
Seed of Heaven ( Aframomum sp. )
Also known as Guinea Pepper. A spice and fruit native to West Africa. The dried seeds are a popular spice locally and were once extensively exported as African Pepper. This ginger from Uganda also has edible fruits borne in clusters at the base of the plant that are harvested for their tangy, sweetish, juicy pulp. The seeds are used as a piquant spice. Can be grown outside in tropical climates, or inside in tubs in warm greenhouses.
Juneberry, Saskatoon Serviceberry ( Amelanchier alnifolia )
Low water requirements, grows as high as 10,000 feet. A deciduous shrub that seldom exceeds 15 feet in height and occasionally suckering to form a slowly spreading clump. An easily grown plant, it prefers a rich loamy soil and thrives in any soil that is not too dry or water-logged. The largest yields, and best quality fruits, are produced when the plant is grown in a sunny position, though it should also do reasonably well in semi-shade. The plants are fairly lime tolerant and they will also grow well in heavy clay soils. They are very cold-hardy and will tolerate temperatures down to at least -20°c and probably much lower. Flowers in Early Spring, these white flowers are produced before the plants come into leaf, and are usually produced so abundantly that the whole plant turns white. They look particularly beautiful at this time. By late June, or more commonly early to mid July, the plants will usually be carrying large crops of fruits. These fruits are about 15mm in diameter, they are soft, sweet and juicy with a taste that reminds us of apples. Small enough to be eaten without problems, though they can add a slightly bitter almond-like flavour to the fruit if they are crushed whilst eating. The fruit can also be cooked in pies etc., when dried it is quite sweet and can be used in the same ways as raisins. Package of 10 seeds $2.95 Package of 50 seeds $7.95
Black Cardamom, Nepal Cardamom ( Amomum subulatum )
A small ginger, native to valleys from the eastern Himalayas to central China, produces an underground rhizome that gives rise to clusters of evergreen, leafy shoots to about 5 feet tall. The pretty, ivory flowers appear in compact inflorescences at ground level and are followed by seed pods that, in dried condition, are widely know as black cardamom or Nepal cardamom and as such very popular in Indian cuisine.
It is a culinary herb that is used in Chinese, Vietnamese and Indian cooking. Vikings are said to have taken the spice to Scandinavia where it is used in baking breads and pastries still to this day. In the Arabic culture, Cardamom is used to flavor coffees and teas. The flavor of Black Cardamom is said to be a dark, smoky flavor with a taste of camphor and mint.
The Cardamom spice is found in the dried seedpods and seeds. The small, brown-black sticky seeds are contained in pods which are collected just before maturity. Keep the Cardamom seed in its seedpods as husked seed and ground seed loses its flavor quickly. Always store it in an airtight container. Black Cardamom herb was used in Chinese medicine as a medicinal herb. It was said to treat stomach ailments and malaria. Cardamom is rich in vitamins and minerals. The essential oil is used as an antiseptic and local anesthetic.
Black cardamom pods can be used in soups, chowders, casseroles, and marinades for smoky flavor, much in the way bacon is used.
The green cardamom, with smoother, lighter colored pods, and more familiar to westerners, is produced by the plant Elettaria cardamomum. Amomum subulatum is also a great ornamental, suitable to all mild and warm temperate climates that do not experience excessive freezes.
For zones 9-10 outside, it can be container grown in large tubs inside. 10 seeds $3.95
Cherimoya Fruit ( Annona cherimola )
The cherimoya is a fairly fairly dense, fast-growing, evergreen tree, briefly deciduous in California from February through April. The tree can reach 30 feet or more, but is fairly easily restrained. Young trees “harp,” forming opposite branches as a natural espalier.
The cherimoya is subtropical or mild-temperate and will tolerate light frosts. Young growing tips are killed at 29°F and and mature trees are killed or severely injured at 25°F. If cherimoyas do not receive enough chilling, the trees will go dormant slowly and then experience delayed foliation. The amount of chilling needed is estimated to be between 50 and 100 hours. The tree grows well in the coastal and foothill areas of southern California.
The compound fruit is conical or somewhat heart-shaped, 4 to 8 inches long and up to 4 inches in width, weighing on the average 5-1/2 to 18 ounces, but the largest fruits may reach 5 pounds in weight.
The sweet, juicy, white flesh is melting, subacid and very fragrant. The fruit turns a pale green or creamy yellow color as they reach maturity. They should be picked when still firm and allowed to soften at room temperature. Ripe fruit will give to soft pressure. Overripe fruit will be dark brown. Fruit left on the tree too long will usually crack or split and begin to decay. The fruit should be clipped rather than pulled from the tree. Cut the stem close to the fruit so it won’t puncture other fruit during storage.
Store mature fruit above 55°F to prevent chilling injury to the skin and flesh. Ripe fruit will deteriorate quickly but can be stored at temperatures lower than 55°F for short periods. Ripe cherimoyas can be frozen and eaten like ice cream. Cherimoyas are best served chilled, cut in half or quartered and eaten with a spoon. The fruit can also be juiced or used to make delicious sorbets or milkshakes.
Top 20 Fruits You Probably Don’t Know
I was playing a game the other day in which you have to come up with fruit that starts with every letter of the alphabet. Apple, banana, cherry … and that is about where I hit a blank. My epic failure at this game made me do some research and what I discovered was a whole world of delicious-looking fruit that I had never even known about! I was completely shocked to find that there are actually hundreds of different types of fruit (no need to include them all as omissions in the comments), most of which I had never even heard of. This list is not to rank the fruit but rather just to inform you about them. The only fruit on this list I consider ranked is No: 1, as it deserves the spot, in clearly being the coolest fruit on the planet. How many of these exotically delicious fruits have you tried?
20
Sugar Apple
Annona squamosa
Sugar Apples or Sweetsop is native to the tropical Americas but is also widely grown in Pakistan, India, and the Philippines. The fruit looks a bit like a pine cone and is about 10 cm in diameter. Under the hard, lumpy skin is the fragrant, whitish flesh of the fruit, which covers several seeds inside, and has a slight custard taste.
19
Mammee Apple
Mammea americana
Mammee Apple, Mamey Apple, or Santo Domingo Apricot is an evergreen tree native to South America, introduced to various other regions of the world, including West Africa and Southeast Asia. They can also be found in Florida and Hawaii. The Mammee apple is actually a berry and gets up to 20 cm in diameter. It has a thick outer rind, with soft orange to yellow pulp on the inside. It usually has one seed in the centre, but larger fruit have been known to carry up to 4. The pulp is sweet and fragrant.
18
Cherymoya
Annona cherimola
Cherimoya, or custard apple, is a deciduous plant found in the high lying mountainous areas of South America. The fruit is vaguely round and is found with 3 types of skin – Impressa (indented), Tuberculate (covered in nodules), or intermediate (a combination of the first two). The flesh inside the skin is very fragrant, white, juicy, and has a custard-like consistency. It is said that the fruit tastes like a combination of banana, passion fruit, papaya, and pineapple. Mark Twain said in 1866 “ the most delicious fruit known to men, cherimoya”
17
Platonia
Platonia insignis
Platonia or Bacuri is a large tree (reaching 40m) found in the rain forests of Brazil and Paraguay. The fruit becomes the size of an orange and has a thick yellow peel that oozes a yellow latex when pressed. Inside, a sticky white pulp is wrapped around several black seeds, which tastes pleasant and has a sweet and sour flavor.
16
Cocona
Solanum sessiliflorum
Cocona fruit is another tropical fruit found in the mountainous regions of South America. It grows on a small shrub and can miraculously grow from seed to fruit in less than 9 months, after which the fruit will take another 2 months to ripen. The fruit is a berry and comes in red, orange, or yellow. It has a similar appearance to tomatoes and tastes like a mixture between tomatoes and lemons.
15
Durian
Durio zibethinus
Durian grows in tropical regions around the world, particularly in the Southeast Asian countries of Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand. The fruit is distinguished by its large size and spiky, hard outer shell. It has a smelly, custard-like flesh with large seeds. There are several varieties, but the most common one is Durio zibethinus. The fruit’s flesh can range in color. It’s most commonly yellow or white but can also be red or green. The fruit can grow up to 1 foot (30 cm) long and 6 inches (15 cm) wide. A typical durian fruit has about 2 cups (486 grams) of edible pulp.
14
Duku
Lansium domesticum
Duku or lungsat are two very similar fruits found throughout Asia. They come from the same family, look and taste identical, with one difference. The skin of the lungsat contains a latex substance, which is not poisonous but causes the skin to stick slightly to the fruit, whereas the duku has no latex, and the peel is removed with more ease. Inside, the fruit has 5 segments, some of which have bitter seeds inside. It is a very sweet fruit and can be prepared in a number of different ways, including being canned in syrup or being dried like raisins.
13
Safou
Dacryodes edulis
Safou is an evergreen tree found in the humid tropical forests of Africa, as far south as Angola and as far north as Nigeria. The fruits are also known as African pears and are oblong dark blue to violet fruits up to 14cm in length, with pale green flesh inside. These fatty fruits have been said to have the ability to end starvation in Africa, as 48% of the fruit is made up of essential fatty acids, amino acids, Vitamins, and triglycerides. They have estimated that a one-hectare plantation would produce 7-8 tons of oil, and all parts of the plant can be used.
12
Jabuticaba
Myrciaria cauliflora
Jabuticaba, or the Brazilian grape tree, is a very strange plant native to the South Eastern parts of Brazil. What makes this plant so strange is that it fruits from its trunk. No, I did not make that up, and no the picture has not been photoshopped. Initially, yellowish-white flowers will appear all over the trunk and main branches. These flowers will then turn into fruit, about 3 – 4cm in diameter. Inside the thick purple skin is the soft gelatinous flesh of the fruit, along with 1 – 4 black seeds. The fruit is sweet and can be eaten as is or made into a wine or liqueur. Unfortunately, the fruit does not keep long when off the tree and will start to ferment after about 3 or 4 days.
11
Rambutan
Nephelium lappaceum
Rambutan is an odd fruit that looks like a furry strawberry from the outside and much like a lychee on the inside. It is native to South East Asia but has been spread, and a smaller “wild” version can be found in Costa Rica, where it is called a Chinese sucker. The fruit is an oval shape and about 3-6 cm in diameter. Inside the slightly hard but easily peelable skin, you can find a soft fruit that tastes slightly sweet, with a possible sour tinge.