{"id":3013,"date":"2012-02-22T17:25:24","date_gmt":"2012-02-22T22:25:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/?p=3013"},"modified":"2021-08-23T10:53:06","modified_gmt":"2021-08-23T15:53:06","slug":"the-colourful-world-of-colombian-fruits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/2012\/02\/the-colourful-world-of-colombian-fruits\/","title":{"rendered":"The Colourful World of Colombian Fruits"},"content":{"rendered":"

I remember traveling to Sri Lanka some years ago and being told that no matter how poor people were, going hungry was very rare as the abundance of fruit the country had to offer ensured there was always something to eat. Now I\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s the same here in\u00a0Colombia<\/a>, but certainly there\u2019s an incredible amount of fruit here and, more impressively, a huge amount of diversity. In fact, there\u2019s a book in publication that details 150 commercial Colombian fruits. One hundred and fifty.\u00a0Commercial<\/em>! That means there\u2019s even more than that on the underground fruit scene! I wonder which fruit was the latest to sell-out?<\/p>\n

Anyway, it\u2019s beyond the scope of this blog to list 150 fruits for you (sorry) but since fruit and food is such a big part of\u00a0Colombian culture<\/a>, here\u2019s 10 of the best we at the Colombia Travel Blog<\/a> have enjoyed in Colombia:<\/p>\n

Uchuva \/ Cape gooseberry fruit<\/strong><\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Uchuva\"<\/a>
Uchuva (Photo Courtesy of\u00a0Ignacio Sanz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

I first tried these little, round treats when my housemate came home carrying a bag full of relatively familiar fruit, and then something that looked like pot-pourri. Naturally I was outraged. How dare she spend our food budget on pointless decorations, no matter how pleasant smelling it might make our humble abode?! Of course, upon closer inspection I found a small, marble-shaped orange thing inside. Turned out it was fruit. Turned out it was delicious, very sweet and very more-ish. It\u2019s pretty ideal for a small snack to munch on, or for jams and pies. Humble pie in my case.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Feijoa \/ Pineapple guava<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Feijoa\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As with many of the fruits in this list, I first tried feijoa in the form of a smoothie (good tip, if you\u2019re unsure of what flavor smoothie the waiter\/waitress just offered you, just accept it, it\u2019s usually delicious). It was less sweet than I expected but then I\u2019m used to smoothies back home, where the fruit is almost always mixed with half a cup of sugar. Still, it was a great\u00a0accompaniment\u00a0to my meal and I\u2019ve since tried it on it\u2019s own and, yes, it was lovely.<\/p>\n

Lulo \/ Naranjilla<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Lulo\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

This is somewhat of a favorite in Colombia and it\u2019s not hard to understand why. Many times when I\u2019m out in a restaurant my Colombian friend will implore me to try a lulo smoothie and so, not wanting to disappoint, I\u2019ve tried it for the first time about a dozen times. Still, it\u2019s easy enough to act surprised when it really does taste\u00a0that\u00a0<\/em>good.\u00a0It stands alone just fine but the real triumph of the lulo is found in smoothie form. The fruit has a citrus flavor, not a million miles from a lime, but with an extra little something to it. I\u2019d highly recommend giving it a go as a juice, especially if you like your juices hearty, healthy-tasting and green.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Maracuy\u00e1 \/ Passion fruit<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Maracuya\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Another fruit that surprised me with its diversity. Apparently it comes in 3 different species, all of which you can get in Colombia very easily. My personal favorite is the granadilla strain of passion fruit, which you dig your thumb into and then suck out the delectable, sweet seeds you\u2019ll find inside. Of course, the other varieties you can\u2019t go wrong with and I\u2019m sure we\u2019re all fans of passion fruit smoothies since they are out-of-this-world good (especially here in Colombia).<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Guayaba \/ Guava<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Guayaba\"<\/a>
Guayaba, photo courtesy of\u00a0saguayo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unbeknownst to me there\u2019s about an absolute ton of species of guayaba in the world. Although guava is available in some countries, it\u2019s still relatively rare and, as always, tastes much better direct from the source. In Colombia the fruit is utilized in everything from juices and pies to pastry and doughnuts.\u00a0Yes, it really is that popular here and you\u2019d be a fool not to try it.<\/p>\n

Carambola \/ Star fruit<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Carambola\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The truth is even if I didn\u2019t love the taste of carambola it\u2019d still find its way onto this list because\u00a0it\u2019s shaped like a star!<\/em>\u00a0Now, unfortunately I don\u2019t live in Mushroom Kingdom and my name isn\u2019t Mario, so when I eat carambola music doesn\u2019t start playing I you don\u2019t turn invincible, but I do get a tasty punch of a kind of citrus-y, apple-y mixture. The textures also very satisfying, not unlike a grape but slightly crunchier and very juicy. A delightful treat.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tomate de \u00e1rbol \/ Tamarillo<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Tomate<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Another smoothie classic. I don\u2019t tend to eat tomate de \u00e1rbol straight, for no other reason than I have a habit of heading to my local smoothie vendor in the morning and getting myself a delicious, hearty drink. Of course, you can eat it by itself and no doubt you\u2019ll enjoy it, I just believe you\u00a0can<\/em>\u00a0have too much of a good thing, so I limit myself to once-a-day. Tomate de \u00e1rbol tastes like a mix between kiwis and tomatoes, and is easily sweetened with a little sugar. Like lulo, it\u2019s very popular with locals and so it\u2019s a must-try when visiting Colombia.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Guan\u00e1bana \/ Soursop<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Guanabana\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Texture-wise, the guan\u00e1bana can take some getting used to. Its exterior is soft and spikey while inside it\u2019s reminiscent of custard, but not the thick, lumpy custard like dad makes. You know, the good, smooth kind, like your mama makes you. The taste is kind of acidic and if the fruit isn\u2019t ripe it can taste pretty weird, but when you get the right guan\u00e1bana its like a cacophony of fruity goodness, mixing strawberry, banana and citrus with a hint of coconut, just for good measure. And yup, you guessed it, it makes a great smoothie.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Pitaya \/ Dragon fruit<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Pitaya\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I first discovered this fruit in Sri Lanka and was thrilled when, on my first\u00a0Colombia vacation<\/a>, I discovered it was available here too. I admit my immediate attraction to pitaya is the fact that it\u2019s the most colorful fruit I\u2019ve ever laid eyes upon. Its exterior is bright pink with dashes of green, and when it\u2019s cut open it\u2019s a deep pink with black seeds. Pitaya in South America is slightly different to its Asian cousin (which on the inside looks like cookies & cream ice cream), but still just as nutritious and delicious.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Banano \/ Banana & Pi\u00f1a \/ Pineapple<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Bananos\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

 <\/p>\n

Ok so it\u2019s hardly like you won\u2019t have heard of pineapples or bananas, but they deserve a brief mention because, like any food, they taste so mouth-watering here because you\u2019re eating directly from the source. No 2-3 day delay between being farmed and arriving in your local supermarket, they\u2019re sold out on the street a few hours after being picked. A special mention must go to the smoothie lady in on Playa Grande in Taganga, who made the best banana smoothie this young man has ever tasted. Props to you, smoothie maestra.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Paul<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I remember traveling to Sri Lanka some years ago and being told that no matter how poor people were, going hungry was very rare as the abundance of fruit the country had to offer ensured there was always something to eat. Now I\u2019m not sure if that\u2019s the same here in\u00a0Colombia, but certainly there\u2019s an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[115,624,625,626,4,66,97,65,393],"tags":[2872,2875,2867,768],"yoast_head":"\nThe Colourful World of Colombian Fruits - Colombia Travel Blog by See Colombia Travel<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/seecolombia.travel\/blog\/2012\/02\/the-colourful-world-of-colombian-fruits\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Colourful World of Colombian Fruits\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I remember traveling to Sri Lanka some years ago and being told that no matter how poor people were, going hungry was very rare as the abundance of fruit the country had to offer ensured there was always something to eat. 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