They have now become an increasingly constant presence in the supermarket counter, while once they were consumed only on special occasions, such as Christmas or other holidays. These are exotic fruits: fruits from the tropical areas of the world, where delights with bizarre and particular colors and shapes are produced.
In fact, some exotic fruits are now at home also with us, such as pineapple and banana, which are now among the most known and consumed fruits in the world; others are known and bought by many people also in Europe, such as avocado, papaya, mango, litchis; others are gastronomic curiosities, which unfortunately often are only part of beautiful centerpieces, because the hosts do not know the taste, they do not know how to peel them, they do not know if it is appropriate to eat them raw or cooked.
Here we list some of the exotic fruits now present in all supermarkets, and often also at the greengrocer or at the local market, avoiding to mention those that everyone knows and consume habitually by now.
Avocado
Avocado is the berry produced by the American Persea, a small tree native to Central America, cultivated to produce the fruit also in Asia, Africa and Europe. Evergreen trees produce numerous pear-shaped fruits, depending on the variety of the plant these rare fruits can have green, brown, or even purple skin, smooth or covered with wrinkles and lumps. The maturity of the fruit is felt when the pulp is slightly yielding; an excessively hard fruit is still unripe, while if our avocado is mushy to the touch we can also throw it away.
It is eaten raw, in small pieces or smoothie; generally it is a fruit that is consumed with the addition of salt, as a base for sauces such as guacamole, or in salads. The pulp, greenish or yellowish in color, is creamy and contains a lot of oil.
To eat an avocado it is necessary to cut it on the side and, taking it with both hands, divide it in two, revealing the large central seed; at this point, if the fruit is very ripe, we can dig it with a spoon and use the blended pulp; if it is less ripe, we can peel it with a small knife and cut it into slices for a salad.
Avocado pulp tends to oxidize rapidly if left in the air, so it is generally used with citrus juice, which prevents oxidation. The mango is the fruit of the mangifera indica, an evergreen tree native to Asia, now also cultivated in Africa and South America.
