Fruits Categories and Classification

1. Fruits Categories and Classification

2. What are fruits • In botany, a fruit is the ripenedovary—together with seeds—of a flowering plant. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds • In cuisine, when discussing fruit as food, the term usually refers to those plant fruits that are sweet and fleshy. However, a great many common vegetables, as well as nuts and grains, are the fruit of that plant species.

3. MELONS • Large, juicy fruit with thick rinds and many seeds in the center. Include watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, casaba.

4. BERRIES • small juicy fruits with thin skins and lots of tiny pits – includes strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, grapes, cranberries and blackcurrants. Except for cranberries, all are highly perishable. Soften with freezing, but make very good jams, jellies and preserves.

5. CITRUS FRUIT • Thick, bitter outer rind with soft layer of pith. Flesh separates into segments of sections. Includes oranges, grapefruit, lemons, limes, tangerines etc.

6. POMES • Central, seed containing core, with many seeds and thick layer of fibrous flesh. Include apples, pears.

7. DRUPES • Outer skin covering a soft, fleshy fruit with a single, large seed, called a pit or stone. Include cherries, peaches, apricots and plums.

8. TROPICAL FRUITS • Grow in warm climates and are often considered exotic. Include pineapples, mangoes, papaya, kiwi, coconut, bananas, dragonfruit

9. Nutritional Value of Fruits • High in water content. Provide vitamins, minerals and fiber. Low in fat content. • Citrus fruits provide high amounts of Vitamin C and prevent scurvy • Orange fruits (melons, apricots, peaches) contain large quantities of beta carotene (Vitamin A) • Significant source of fiber • Contribute phytochemicals (antioxidants) for strong immune system

10. Available Forms of Fruit • Fresh – found in the produce section of the grocery store or farmer’s market. Highest in nutrients • Canned– watch for added sugars and syrups, also pick cans with NO dents or bulges • Frozen – can soften and destroy texture of fruit, can be sweetened or unsweetened • Dried – Most fruits are available in dried form. Can be packaged or sold loose. Watch for use of sulfur in processing, can cause allergies and mar flavor

11. Saucing or Poaching? • Cooking fruits such as apples in water breaks down the fibrous cell walls in the fruit and makes the fruit soft enough to mash or turn into sauce. • Adding sugar while cooking results in poaching which is cooking the fruit to retain it’s shape

12. Fruits you may not know cherimoya dragonfruit mangosteen Carambola (starfruit) Rambutan lychee