Colombian Fruits!!!

What better than surrender to the delicacies of a place?
I really recommend eating as much frut here as you can, whatever you can't find in the country where you are coming from. i'll describe some of the fruits that we have here, and perhaps some of which we share with other tropical countries, plus some traits and even the "format" (I chose that word capricously) in which you should eat them Colombian-style. Some of our landmarks...

1. LULO!!!!

I consider this one my very favorite, as it not only grows in a hostile plant full of thorns and has an almost-hostile texture to touch, but also has a very strong sour flavor, as if the fruit itself were warning you not to try it since the first encounter, persuading you not to succumb into its delicious flavour. Format: Juice (water or milk, but sugar is a must, even if it's a little bit. Also mousse... and ice-cream!!!! WOW!!!





2. MARACUYÁ (passion fruit):

Maracuyá is probably known to many people already, but I'd like to share the time my dear Bosnian friend was leaving Bogotá and opted for carrying several flavors of juice pulps to his country: guayaba (guava), maracuyá, lulo, mora... They sell them in very thick plastic bags, so he was confident he'd get them through. When I asked him what he'd do if the officers asked to check for illegal substances (because the pulp was pretty liquid), he said he had all figured out: if they asked him, he'd say suspiciously "no, la de guayaba no!" so they'd check and tear that bag, and leave the maracuyá one intact. Last thing I knew was that he posted a photo of his favorite maracuyá juice on his Facebook wall, form Bosnia.
Format: Juice (water or milk). Sugar is necessary, but if you prefer a little only, it's ok. My favorite is in mousse!!! and ice-cream, of course. Try the "helado casero de maracuyá con leche condensada"! mouthwatering!

3. CURUBA:

This one is one of the nicest flavors I've tasted. It's just a tiny bit sandy if you like, but it's always refreshing, with a little touch of bitterness, just enough to make you want a second glass of juice. If I ever go to a nice restaurant and want to have a nice glass of robust juice, curuba will be my first choice.
Format: juice (necessarily with milk). Also ice-cream, but the only one I know is the most recent addition to the menu of our famous restaurant called Crepes & Waffles.


4. GULUPA:

This one I recently discovered, and I was born and raised here!! its seeds are covered by a crystalized, juicy membrane that resembles that of Maracuyá or granadilla, but this one is a bit stonger yet sweeter than maracuyá.
Format: juice (water)




5. GRANADILLA:

This fruit is a bit controversial. Some people say you should just open it and swallow the shole membrane containing the seeds; others say you shoud put a bit in your mouth and spit the seeds, and others don0t even bother and just don't eat it because it's too much hassle. Whatever method you prefer, its taste is very soft and rather sweet.
Format: fresh.



6. MANGO:

There are about 200 varieties of mango, several of which are common in the different regions of colombia. I used to tell my friends in Sweden that when I was living in Cali, near the pacific ocean, I used to teach at a unversity, and there classes are usually interrupted by mangoes falling off the tree as they ripen. How cool is that?
Format: fresh, juice (water), ice-cream, desserts, with meals!
My favorite format? mango salad with avocado pear and shrimp!!

7. MANGOSTINO:

What's funny about this one is that I came to discover this fruit thanks to a Russian surfer in Cali. I had always seen it, but never tasted it. It's a bit hard to peel, but once you reach the white lobes, their texture and flavour are worth it... like eating cotton but with flavor and personality!
Format: fresh.





8. CHONTADURO:

This image shows exactly what I remember about street vendors in Cali. It's not about a sandy fruit that has little taste (to me) and which people eat with salt and honey (i still don't get that), but it's about the women who day after day gracefully decorate a silver tray with chontaduros all around, and organize more chontaduros almost geometrically perfectly, pffering their best smiles to pedestrians. In Halloween in Cali it's often common to see kids honoring these ladies with their chontaduro vendors costumes.
Format: fresh, with honey.





9. UCHUVA (physalis):

Uchuvas can adorn any gourmet dish because of their paper-looking wrapping that looks like an origami embellishment. The fruit itself is a bit bitter, a bit sweet, but my favorite format is in herb tea. I never see people making uchuva juice or ice-cream, but more and more chefs add this fruit to their secret recipies.
Format: fresh.





10. GUANABANA:

I don't like this one, I'm sorry (it's the only Colombian fruit I never, ever eat), but most of the Colombians I've met all my life love guanábana juice. Even the pronunciation of the word is tough! ha ha ha... The fruit is huge, and its outside protects its delicate contents. The internal part is soft and slippery. Sometimes you can see it with street vendors, and though I don't like it, I still have to include it, as many CSers have asked me what on earth that is.
Format: juice with milk or "merengón".

11. GUAMA:

This funny-looking fruit twists itself as a spíral. It is usually about 40 cm long, and as hard as it is outside, it is extemely soft inside. Little white cotton-like capsules protect a very hadr seed (that you are not supposed to eat!). I like the flavor, the look, and the fact that it's usually found in remote places of Colombia, which makes you miss eating it more.
Format: fresh.





12. MAMONCILLO:

I don't know any better way to spend two hours in a traffic jam eating a fruit that relaxes you as you exercise your jaw. Mamoncillos are tiny, so you buy a whole bunch. The translation of rhis fruit would be "little sucker", which is in no way offensive, but it refers to the long time it takes to put one in your mouth adn suck and suck until the sweet membrane is gone. Lot's of fun! I'd say this is a stress-relief emergency fruit.
Format: definitely fresh.





13.PITAHAYA:

Last but not least!!! and probably the most weird-looking yet exotic one: pitahaya!!!
Many of my CS friends have seen it, doubted it, tried it, and loved it! (in that order). Now, beware of its digestive powers and have only one... I recommend putting it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours before tasting it. All you need is a knife and a spoon, and get ready to bite its easy-to-break little seeds, and feel the freshness of a glass of water in a spoonful! You gotta love it!
Format: fresh and cold!



Final note: no, avocado, to us in Colombia, is not a fruit. It's a vegetable to us and we have it fresh with salt :P