One of the things Hawaii is famous for is its pineapple production. Pineapple is a delicious fruit and is known worldwide for its sweet taste. The fruit was first called “anana,” a Caribbean word for “excellent fruit.” Hawaiians called it “halakahiki,” which means “foreign fruit.”
The Fruit’s Origins
The pineapple, believed to have its origins in Paraguay or Brazil, was loaded on trade ships and taken to distant places like China, India, Australia, and Mexico in the 15th and 16th centuries. It is believed that the pineapple first arrived on the Big Island of Hawaii in 1527.
A ripe pineapple is one that has green leaves and a firm body. A large pineapple doesn’t mean that it is riper or better tasting. Also, the color of the outer shell doesn’t indicate the state of ripeness, for even a pineapple that is green outside can be ripe inside.
A pineapple won’t become sweeter or riper after being picked. Therefore, it is best to eat a pineapple as soon as possible after its purchase. If you plan to store it for a few days, it is best to keep it in the refrigerator to preserve its freshness.
A pineapple is ripe if one of its top leaves can easily be pulled out.
Hawaiian pineapple plantations produce almost a third of the world’s crop and supply about 60 percent of canned pineapple products.
Pineapple Fried rice
Fried rice is a wonderful way to use leftover cooked rice as well as any leftover meat. You may cook the rice ahead and simply reheat and place in pineapple shells when guests arrive. You may substitute canned pineapple for a simpler family version at home.
Das
3 bowl cooked rice
1 whole pineapple
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 piece chicken breast
200gm shrimps
1/2 bowl slice button mushrooms
1/2 bowl frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 onion
2 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
Salt or to taste
Dash of sesame oil
Dash of pepper
Garnishing
Slice red chillies
Coriander leaves
1/ Shelled and deveined the shrimp. Season with 1 tbsp soya sauce and dash of pepper, keep aside.
2/ Cut the pineapple in half lengthwise and remove the fruit from the middle. Cut out the eyes and core. Set the pineapple shell aside. Dice the pineapple fruit. Dry the diced pineapple with paper towels.
3/ To cook the chicken breasts, in a medium saucepan, bring 2 cups water with 1 tsp salt to a boil and cook the chicken for about 15 minutes. Cut the cooked chicken into 1/2-inch diced pieces.
4/ Heat a wok until very hot. Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and tilt the wok to coat the sides. Add the eggs. Cook and stir until the eggs are thickened throughout but still moist. Remove the eggs from the wok and set aside.
5/ Reheat the wok until very hot. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and tilt to coat the sides of the wok. Add the garlic and onion and stir-fry until slightly brown.
6/ Add the prawns, button mushroom and stir fry for one minute. Add frozen vegetables, 1 tsp salt and stir fry until prawns is cooked. Remove from heat and keep aside.
7/ Wash and dry the wok, heat up the wok and add 1 tbsp oil. Pour in the cooked rice and stir fry for 2 minutes. If you cannot stir-fry fast enough, reduce the heat so the rice will not burn.
8/ Stir in the soy sauce and continue stirring until the rice is mixed well with the soy sauce.
9/ Stir in the shrimp, chicken, eggs and add 1 tsp of salt or to taste.
10/ Stir-fry for 2 minutes, or until the entire mixture is well mixed. Stir in the pineapple cubes, sesame oil, pepper and mixed well.
11/ Rinse the pineapple shell with boiling water; dry with paper towels.
And now for dessert..... Dragon Fruit combo
Dragon fruits, are native to Mexico, Central America, and South America. Currently, they are also cultivated in East Asian and Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Thailand,Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Indonesia and more recently Bangladesh. They are also found in Okinawa, Hawaii, Israel, northern Australia, southern China and in Cyprus. The fruit was probably introduced by Europeans who brought it from the New World.
The dragon fruit
The Pitaya is more commonly referred to as the dragon fruit. It is an extremely beautiful fruit that has dazzling flowers and an intense shape and color. The dragon fruit is usually a dark red color, although some types of this fruit are pink or yellow. The skin of the dragon fruit is a thin rind. The skin is usually covered in scales, and the center of the fruit is made up of a red or white, sweet tasting pulp.
And now for dessert.......Dragon Fruit Combo
Ingredients
1 dragon fruit
1 ripe mango
1 pomegranate fruit
150gm cooked chick peas
1 small bunch snow pea sprouts
Lettuce
For fruit dressing
3 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp honey
1 tsp Nu Stevia Vanilla or vanilla extract
1 tsp Nu Stevia prebiotic blend or 1 tsp sugar
Dash of pepper
1/ Mix all the dressing ingredients together and chill in the fridge.
2/ Serve with dragon fruit combo.
Health Benefits of Dragon Fruit
Dragon Fruit Cholesterol
Keeping a heart healthy low cholesterol diet? Don't worry about your cholesterol. Dragon fruit cholesterol is not an issue. Dragon fruit is both low in cholesterol and has little to no unhealthy cholesterol producing fats (certain fats which are metabolized to cholesterol contribute to increased cholesterol levels more than even cholesterol itself in food sources of cholesterol).
Dragon Fruit Vitamin C
The amount of vitamin C in dragon fruit is high, and because the dragon fruit is a natural fruit providing you with a rich balance of nutrients coming along with the vitamin C, you absorb the Vitamin C in dragon fruit efficiently when you eat dragon fruit as part of your fruit healthy diet.
Dragon Fruit Antioxidants
Eat dragon fruit as a good natural source of anti-oxidants which help to prevent the dangers of free radicals which can cause cancer and other undesirable health detriments.The number, quantity, and variety of antioxidants in real foods like dragon fruit is completely unmatched by any food supplement or pills - even those claiming to have 'antioxidant' health benefits. Nothing compares to the rich array of nutrients and antioxidants in a real natural food like the dragon fruit.
Dragon Fruit Fiber
Dietary fiber is an important nutrition factor for everyone from young to old, and the best way to get dietary fiber is to eat fruits and vegetables including fruits like the dragon fruit. As you might expect, like many fruits, dragon fruit has lots of dietary fiber with almost 1g of fiber per 100g of the fresh dragon fruit. The health benefits of dragon fruit fiber are just one other example of the reason that eating natural sources of nutrients is superior to getting them from pills and supplements.
Have a fabulous week ahead.
Amelia