Equator Gringos

August 10, 2007

The Fruit in Ecuador

Filed under: Ecuador, South America, exotic fruit, tropical fruit — lstollin @ 6:41 pm

The fruit here is incredible, ranging from everyday tropical stuff like normal bananas and mangos, quotidian temperate options such as strawberries, blackberries, and apples, to things you’ve heard of but don’t usually eat like passionfruit and then beyond that, to things I’ve never heard of much less seen or tasted before. Everything in the picture below is at the supermarket – no need to go to the fruit stand or specialty markets.

Now it’s time for your quiz:

In this picture, can you spot the banana, apples, oranges, and mango? Cantaloupe? Good! How about the tuna ( ly pear fruit – Texans should recognize this one)? Still going strong? Now we’re gonna get exotic on you – purple banana. OK, that was way too easy — how about Sweet cucumber (hint – in plastic)? Tree tomato (hint – there are 3 in picture)? Chirimoya (custard apple, if that helps!)? Here come some whose names I can’t find in English. Babaco (2 in picture, not yet ripe), granadilla (just one), uvilla (many many many). Finally, the bumpy yellow one front and center in the big bowl has a name I can’t remember (Update: it’s called Pitahaya, related to Asia’s red dragon-fruit, and grows on a vining cactus!). All of these we’ve tried so far have been keepers except the sweet cucumber, which was nothing to blog home about.

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