Pineapple is a berry or a fruit? Description and useful properties of pineapple. How to choose the right pineapple?

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

Pineapple is a tropical plant, the belonging of which to one group or another is still debated. But no one can argue with the fact that it contains a large amount of vitamins and nutrients. And people's love for pineapple is simply limitless, this can be judged by the amount of product imported from abroad.

Where does pineapple come from?

It is believed that pineapple comes from sunny Brazil, as its wild thickets still grow in its open spaces. Juicy fruits became widely known after the travel of Christopher Columbus, who discovered them in Central America on the island of Guadeloupe. It happened in 1493. Since then, the pineapple has continued its solemn procession throughout all European countries.

The rare fruit was brought to unusually cold conditions and, oddly enough, bred in greenhouses. Indoors, pineapple was grown for serving at the royal and imperial tables. There is information that in the XVIII - XIX centuries, plants were grown in cold snowy Russia to meet the needs of the yard. Each fruit was worth its weight in gold.

Now pineapples are bred andcultivated in regions with a tropical and subtropical climate, such as Australia, North Africa, Hawaii and many others. Thanks to the excellent transport links, the fruits come to the table of buyers in abundance.

What does a pineapple look like?

Not everyone knows that pineapple is a perennial herb. Its growth reaches one meter, while the leaves are 80-90 centimeters long. They have thorns around the edges, which is an obstacle for manual harvesting.

The fruit is an inflorescence of a large number of small berries. The color of the pineapple is yellow or slightly brownish, at the time of flowering and depending on the variety, it can reach purple. The weight of the fetus can reach fifteen kilograms, and the smallest has only eight hundred grams. Plantations grow five of the most common and productive varieties.

Pineapple breeders have developed a type of pineapple with a smooth rind that is very easy to peel. The size of the fruits of this variety is not very large, and the weight is 800 grams.

Is pineapple a vegetable, fruit or berry?

Until now, since the discovery of the plant by Columbus, people have not stopped arguing about what a pineapple is. There are versions that this plant is cereal, since the structure of the stem resembles the usual cultures of this species. A group of people claim that pineapple is a vegetable. As evidence, the argument is given that it grows on the ground.

Really, I wonder if pineapple is a berry or a fruit? There is substantiated evidence for eachversions. At the time of growth and ripening, pineapple is a lot of small berries collected in one inflorescence. When the plant matures, they turn into one large fruit, reaching five kilograms. However, the question of whether pineapple is a berry or a fruit does not disappear. Because he has no bones. From this, many conclude that the fetus can be a fruit.

In all disputes on the topic, pineapple is a berry or a fruit, one thing remains unchanged, the plant is truly unique. It never ceases to amaze with new properties discovered by scientists.

What is a pineapple made of?

Pineapple is not just a tasty treat for children and adults. It has a lot of useful properties that are hidden in its composition. The juicy fruit consists of 86 percent water, 15 percent sucrose. It contains 0.7 percent citric and 50 percent ascorbic acids. All the most valuable vitamins, such as B1, B2, 12, PP and provitamin A, are present in abundance in every fruit.

In addition to the above components, pineapple contains many useful chemical elements. The pulp of the fetus is replete with iron and potassium, which are necessary for the quality work of the heart. And copper, zinc, calcium, manganese and iodine contribute to the overall strengthening and healing of the body. This plant is a storehouse of vitality and he alth.

Pineapple treatment

All components of the pineapple fruit are necessary for the organic functioning of the human body, so it must be included in the diet of a constantnutrition for both children and adults. In addition, using it in certain cases, you can avoid unpleasant pain.

For the proper functioning of the digestive system, it is necessary to drink one glass of pineapple juice with meals. This effective remedy is especially useful in case of abundant consumption of meat and fatty foods, which, under the influence of enzymes that make up the fruit, are digested faster. This helps to avoid indigestion.

Pineapple in dietetics

Pineapple is a great diet food. It can be used without restrictions by anyone who wants to get rid of excess weight. The calorie content of fresh pineapple is only 48 kilocalories per hundred grams of product. Calcium contained in the pulp of the fruit helps to remove excess fluid and get rid of extra pounds. Eating pineapple dessert, you can continue to lose weight, as digestion improves when it is consumed. The calorie content of fresh pineapple is a godsend for modern nutrition.

In Russia, since the 18th century, exotic overseas fruit has been eaten not only fresh, but also fermented for the winter in tubs, like cabbage. At the same time, the dish was considered delicacy and spicy.

How to grow pineapple at home?

Southern growers and planters can grow pineapples outdoors, as they have done for centuries to please customers. In a temperate climate, this is much more difficult to do, but nothing is real if you want.

You can grow a pineapple in a city apartment, creating suitable conditions for it. Since the fruit does not have seeds, it is planted in the form of a rosette or a cut of the top without pulp. This part of the fruit is placed in a pot filled with earth and charcoal. As a top layer, you can use humus mixed with sand.

In order for the plant to take root, it must be kept warm at a temperature of 27 degrees, while covering it with polyethylene. So in a humid warm environment, the sprout should be two months. After that, it is permissible to open it. The first lower shoots that have appeared must be dug in.

Pour over the pineapple with an acidic aqueous solution with lemon juice. It is necessary to replant the plant annually in large pots, while not forgetting to fertilize. With proper care, fruits can be obtained four years after planting.

How to determine the ripeness of the fruit?

Ripe pineapple is very tasty, juicy and fragrant, with various beneficial properties. But it is necessary to purchase and eat ripened fruits. The green fruit does not have the necessary qualities.

First of all, unripe pineapple is very sour, it will be difficult to eat, and subsequently cracks may form in the corners of the lips and in the mouth. This causes unpleasant pain.

Secondly, eating unripe pineapple can cause diarrhea, which will lead to dehydration.

To the question of how to choose a delicious pineapple, you can answer the following: you need to pay attention to the top feathers. If they are easyare pulled out, which means the fruit is ready to eat.

Buying pineapple

In order to purchase a really high-quality tropical fruit, you need to know how to choose a pineapple in a store. The following rules will help with this:

• An intact pineapple has no characteristic odor when carried at arm's length from the nose. Otherwise, the sellers clearly took advantage of the flavorings. And if you smell the fruit, bringing it to your face, and do not feel a subtle aroma, then this is a stale product that has been subjected to “water procedures”. It was just washed to remove mold and bad smell.
• When buying, you need to examine the pineapple well so as not to purchase a moldy product. It is dangerous to eat.
• The color of a ripe and tasty fruit should be yellow with a grayish tinge without any green blotches. Greens indicate an unripe fruit and should be avoided.
• The scales should be elastic. A soft fruit can be rotten on the inside, which will spoil the mood of the buyer, given the high cost of the product.
• The tips of the scales of a ripe pineapple are usually dry, otherwise it can be concluded that the storage conditions were not met, and this leads to damage to the fruit.
• The tail of a ripe pineapple should not sit tight and scroll. In this case, you can be sure of the ripeness of the product.

Knowing these subtleties, one can ask how to choose a pineapple in a store, remove it from the agenda and go shopping boldly. But it must be borne in mind that this exoticThrowing away goods is not very profitable, so sellers often use various tricks.

Canned pineapples

A compote of exotic fruits is considered a very popular delicacy among children. Canned pineapples are sold in tins of various sizes.

When buying such a product, you must first of all pay attention to the expiration date of the product, it should not exceed the permissible limits. You can usually find this kind of information on the lid.

You can't look inside, so you need to examine the outside of the jar. Dents and damage indicate poor-quality transportation. In such a case, the product contained in the package could be depressurized and become hazardous to he alth.

Swollen jars indicate a violation during preparation and storage. Most likely, the contents will be sour and fermented, that is, unfit for food. When buying canned pineapples, you need to be very careful not to harm your he alth.

Pineapple cooking

Since pineapple is a very he althy and tasty product, it is an ingredient in many savory and unusual dishes. Culinary delights based on fruit are quite diverse. It is included in salads, desserts and second courses.

Recipes with pineapple can be found in cookbooks. The housewives are offered a tasty and fragrant hot dish. It's called Chicken Stuffed Pineapple.

It will require one large fruit, chicken fillet, cheese and seasonings.

Pineapple must be cut lengthwise and the pulp cleaned out of it. Chopped chicken meat is fried in vegetable oil with the addition of s alt and curry. Before removing from heat, put pineapple slices in the pan and simmer for another three minutes. Grate hard cheese on a coarse grater.

The stuffing is laid out in pineapple baskets and sprinkled with cheese. Then this culinary preparation is placed on a baking sheet and baked for 15 minutes at a temperature of 200 degrees. It is better to eat the dish hot.

Pineapple recipes are very popular with kids. For little gourmets, you can prepare a fruit salad. You can put a banana, kiwi, apple, seedless grapes and tangerine in it. All fruits and berries are crushed, including pineapple, and mixed. Products are best taken in the same proportions. The resulting mixture is poured with yogurt, mixed and laid out in portions. The dish is prepared quickly and the children really like it.

Pineapple is a wonderful product that not only evokes pleasant emotions from consumption, but also produces a healing effect. This exotic fruit should be included in the diet of every person, as it will help to avoid many he alth problems.