More Unusual Plants Continued...

Feijoas

These small green fruits are reminiscent of kiwis. They are egg-shaped, and the inner flesh can be scooped out and eaten along with the pulp and seeds. The texture is similar to a pear while the flavor is slightly citrusy and sweet. Feijoas are best enjoyed when soft and ripe.

Fiddleheads

Fiddleheads are the curled fronds of a young fern plant, which can be cut off and eaten. These oddly shaped veggies are commonly used in Northern France and Asia. They are known for having a grassy flavor and can only be found during the spring.

Gai Lan

Gai Lan is also known as Chinese broccoli. While it doesn’t have florets, the flavor is similar to broccoli, although Gai Lan is slightly more bitter. The green leaves and stalks are often stir-fried or boiled.

Guanabana

The guanabana, or soursop, is native to Central and South America but is currently grown in Asia. Large inedible seeds make its white pulp difficult to eat. It's worth eating if you like pineapples or strawberries, though, because the guanabana's flavor has been compared to those two fruits.

Jabuticaba

Jamuticaba are sort of like plum-sized grapes. They grow directly on tree trunks and branches. Jamuticaba are eaten fresh and also used to make liqueur and wines. The fruit is native to Latin America and is not commonly found far from there because of a short shelf life.

Kumquat

Kumquats are tiny, oval citrus fruits. They are more similar in size to berries than other members of the citron family. They also set themselves apart from other citrus fruits because the skin is eaten along with the center. The peel provides a sweet contrast to the tart, sour inner fruit.

Langsat

These Southeast Asian fruits are berry-sized but require peeling before they can be eaten. Peel away the thick, yellowish-brown exterior to find the sweet, clear fruit. Langsats are often said to taste like a combination between a grape and a grapefruit, while the texture is more like that of a grape.

Loquat

Loquats look similar to apricots, although they have seeds inside instead of pits. The yellow-orange skin is paired with white, yellow, or orange flesh. The texture is somewhat reminiscent of a melon but manages to be tangy, sweet, and juicy all at the same time. While these small tree-fruits are native to China, they can now be found around the world.

Lychee

These small tree fruits may look like raspberries with stems, but their hard outer shell isn't the part you want to eat. Peeling off the red and pink layer exposes a clear flesh that has a texture similar to grapes. Lychee are popular in Asia, their native growing place, but continue to become more common in other parts of the world.

Mangosteen

This mango relative was once illegal in the U.S. due to a specific breed of fruit fly that is associated with it. Once the ban was lifted, mangosteen prices skyrocketed at specialty stores. But now the fruit, while still a somewhat rare find in the U.S., can be purchased for a more reasonable rate. The dark purple fruit is extremely sweet once the outer layer is peeled away. To peel, simply score the outer part of the fruit and then break the rind into two pieces, revealing the sweet, edible interior.

Monstera Deliciosa

Monstera Deliciosa is a plant native to Central America. The green fruits are large and long. When the fruit is ripe it is known to have a particularly pleasant smell and a taste like a pineapple-banana hybrid. The edible flesh underneath the green scales is cut from the core and eaten raw.

Noni Fruit

This fruit is another strange looking specimen. A ripe noni fruit is a yellowish white color and the exterior is covered in brown circular spots. Although noni fruits are known for their health benefits, they smell bad and they don’t taste much better.

Paw Paw

Despite the fact that the paw paw isn't popular in the U.S., the fruit is actually native to North America. Paw paws have a yellow or bright orange flesh underneath their green skin. They also contain a number of large ovular brown seeds. The flesh is similar in both texture and flavor to a banana.

Dragon Fruit or Pitaya

The pitaya, or dragon fruit, has a bright pink or white center and is speckled with tiny black seeds. Interestingly, the dragon fruit doesn't have an intense flavor despite its bright coloring. It has been compared to a mild melon or kiwi.

Poha Berry

Orange poha berries are protected by green leaves, which grow down around the fruit, almost encapsulating the individual berries. They are described as sweet and tart and have a thin waxy skin. Poha berries originated in South America but have been cultivated for hundreds of years in England and South Africa. Although poha berries are not popular in most the states, the berries have become a staple fruit in Hawaii.

Purple Sweet Potato

Sweet potatoes can be found in a range of colors, but one of the rarer forms in the U.S. is the purple sweet potato. While sweet potatoes are not native to Japan, the light and darker purple varieties were first produced there. Now some farmers in the U.S. grow purple sweet potatoes, but the orange color is typically the only kind found at supermarkets.

Rollinia

Rollinia are mild, sweet, and slightly citrusy on the inside, but have a rather unappetizing appearance. The yellow fruit is covered in spikes, which turn dark brown when the fruit becomes ripe.