Rambutan

Description

Country of Origin: Thailand 🇹🇭
Class / Cat: 1 (Premium Quality)
Average Weight: 32 grams

Introduction

Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum) is a fruit native to Southeast Asia. It is a golf-ball-sized fruit and it has a hairy red and green shell. They are related to other tropical fruits such as lychee, longan, manincillo, and pulasan but all these are different species.

 
History

Rambutan is believed to have originated from Southeast Asia, specifically Indonesia. From there it managed to spread in many different areas such as other parts of Asia, Africa, Central America, and Oceania. Its wide distribution was achieved thanks to Arab traders back in the 13th century. Also during the 19th century the Dutch started to introduce it in some of their colonies. 

 
Regions

It is mostly produced in humid and tropical parts of Southeast Asia. Additionally, it is cultured in tropical parts of Africa, southern Mexico, Puerto Rico, Honduras, India, Caribbean Islands, Panama and Sri Lanka to name a few.

 
Flavours & Texture

The fruit flesh has a sweet and mild acidic flavour which resembles the taste of grapes. Its flesh is soft, creamy and a little chewy. 

Preparation

In order to eat a Rambutan, peel off the skin and remove the grape-like flesh. In addition you should remove the seed as it is inedible. You can have it raw, in a salad or in smoothies.

Nutritional Value

Rambutan has a very good nutritional value as it is a good source of Vitamin C, is rich in fibre, and contains a high concentration of iron.