VEGETABLES AND FRUITS
Vegetables and fruits are among the healthiest of foods to eat. Per calorie they contain more vitamins and minerals than any other food group, with very little fat (olives, coconuts, and avocados excepted) and no cholesterol. Fruits and vegetables are excellent sources of carbohydrates, which are needed for energy. They contain a high amount of indigestible cellulose, a dietary fiber that improves digestion and enhances intestinal regularity. In addition, fruits and vegetables are loaded with live enzymes, which are catalysts involved in virtually every bodily function. The enzymes from fresh produce enhance digestion and the absorption of nutrients, thus enhancing the body’s own natural activities.
Conventional, Transitional, and Organic Produce
Today there are three types of produce available in grocery stores, differentiated by whether or not they were grown with agricultural chemicals. Because fruits and vegetables are among the most heavily sprayed of all food crops, the use of agrichemicals, especially the various pesticides, is a major health concern. A few grocery stores are now starting to label produce according to growing methods, thus enabling consumers to make informed, healthy food choices.
Conventionally grown produce is grown with chemical fertilizers and pesticides. At present, most of the produce sold in the United States is conventionally grown.
Transitionally grown produce is grown without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides but comes from land that has not yet been certified for organic production. Most third-party verification programs require that the land has not received chemical applications for three years in order to qualify for organic certification. Transitional crops are grown by farmers who are switching from chemical-based agriculture to organic farming. This is usually a tough period for farmers, who must learn an entirely new way of managing soil, crops, and pests. When you buy transitionally grown produce you support those farmers who are making a change to sustainable agriculture.
Organically grown produce is certified to have been grown without chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Certification is done by either independent organizations or state governments. While standards vary, the general rule for certification of crops as organically grown is that chemicals have not been applied to the field for three years. Because some agricultural chemicals linger in the soil, even certified organically grown crops can contain traces of some pesticides. In addition, some organic farms are situated near conventional farms and may receive “chemical drift” from aerial spraying or contaminated groundwater. Thus, organically grown fruits and vegetables cannot be considered “chemical free.”
Organic farmers use soil-enriching techniques such as crop rotation and the application of composted organic matter such as waste crops, manure, leaves, and mulch. Pest management is accomplished by planting crops in alternating rows and by the use of natural predators such as ladybugs, wasps, and microbes.
Freshness: What to Look For
When you walk into the produce section of a grocery store, look for loose produce. You should be able to pick up individual fruits and vegetables rather than having to examine them through a cellophane wrapper. Prewrapping produce makes it difficult to inspect and increases the cost of goods.
Fresh fruits and vegetables are crisp, firm, and fully hydrated. They should not appear bruised, wilted, rotten, shriveled, molded, sprouting, mushy, blackened, cracked, split, flabby, or yellowing. Any produce with these features should be avoided.
How to Select Ripe Avocados, Mangoes, Melons, Pineapples
Although most people can select a fresh green pepper or a ripe peach, they find it more difficult to pick ripe avocados, mangoes, melons, and pineapples. How do you know when they are ready for the table?
The Myth of the Farm Stand
In the summer months, people go out of their way to get to a local farm stand where fresh fruits and vegetables are displayed in wooden baskets and crates. They go there because the produce seems fresher, crisper, maybe even grown on the spot. Or so they think. While there are still some farm stands that sell produce actually grown by their owner/operators, the truth is that many farm stands sell fruits and vegetables obtained from exactly the same wholesalers who service supermarkets
The farm stand is an American tradition. A farmer’s family grows produce for market and erects a simple wooden stand to sell a small portion of the crops directly to individuals. The farmer makes a little extra money and feels a greater sense of pride than when he sells to a large packing house. But today many farm stands are owned by business people, not farmers. There’s nothing wrong with this, except that the implication is that what the farm stand sells is fresher or tastier than what is available in sterile supermarkets. Even farm stands that offer some crops grown by the owner may supplement their selection with other fruits and vegetables purchased from the local wholesaler. If you occasionally shop at a local farm stand, ask the owners whether they grow any of the food they sell. If they do, find out which items they grow and which they buy through a food wholesaler. You may choose to buy all your produce there, but atleast you will know exactly what you are getting.
What You Can Do to Reduce Your Pesticide Risk
Although produce is the most heavily pesticide treated of the major food groups, there are some things you can do to reduce your risk of exposure to pesticide residues on fresh fruits and vegetables.
Buy Organically Grown Produce Whenever Possible Make sure that your grocer knows where the produce comes from and that it is certified by a reputable organic-certification program.
Wash All Produce Although many pesticides enter fruits and vegetables and cannot be washed away, others remain on the surface and can be washed off. No matter where it comes from or how it’s grown, produce should be washed with water. Environmental groups and the Food and Drug Administration disagree on whether to use soapy water. My recommendation is that you not use soap on produce. You may wish to use a soft brush to scrub the outside of tough or fibrous fruits and vegetables.
Peel Produce By peeling fruits and vegetables you can eliminate surface residues of pesticides. The downside to this is that you also remove many of the valuable nutrients that are found in or under the peel.
Get Active! Don’t wait for someone else to clean up the food system. Buy organic when you can. Talk with your neighbors, friends, and grocer. Help to make more people aware of the risks of exposure to toxic pesticide residues in produce. Additionally, write your senators and congresspersons to tell them you want a safer food system with decreased use of agricultural chemicals.
Avocados should be firm but somewhat soft when you apply gentle pressure. Very soft avocados are either overripe or rotten. A strong, musty smell indicates an avocado too far gone.
Mangoes will be firm, but soft to pressure all around. Some not-yet-ripe mangoes smell sweet; however, a mango with a slightly fermented smell is overripe.
Melons
Canary melons should be deep yellow. Light or very bright yellow means that the melon is unripe. When a ripe canary melon is shaken, the seeds will rattle.
Cantaloupe skins should be more beige than green. The stem end should yield slightly to gentle pressure and should smell sweet.
Cranshaws have a flat end that should yield to gentle pressure. The skin should be yellow, and the melon should smell sweet. A green skin indicates unripe fruit.
Honeydews should smell sweet. Sometimes, however, you cannot smell a sweet honeydew. Unripe honeydews have a greenish-white smooth skin. As the melons ripen, the skin tends to yellow and gets stickier or tackier. If you shake a ripe honeydew, you can hear the seeds rattle.
Watermelon can be tested for ripeness in this way: Hold a watermelon in your arm like a baby. With one hand, tap the bottom of the melon. You will feel the melon vibrate or ring. A dull thud usually indicates an overripe melon. A deep, full ring indicates a watermelon at its peak.
Pineapple stems should be more pink than green and should smell sweet. The leaves of a ripe pineapple will pull out easily.
A CALENDAR OF SEASONAL PRODUCE
In-season fruits and vegetables should be your first choice whenever they are available. Out-of-season produce either has spent time in storage or is imported. In either case, the item will be less flavorful and/or more costly than when in season. Produce that can be found fresh all year long includes bananas, carrots, celery, coconuts, eggplants, garlic, ginger, kiwi, lemons, limes, cultivated mushrooms, onions, parsley, snow peas, pineapples, potatoes, radishes, scallions, sprouts, and watercress.
Has the Flavr-Savr tomato hit your supermarket yet? This product of biotechnology, which has genes that have been modified to retard spoilage and produce a supposedly superior flavor, was approved for distribution in the U.S. by the FDA in 1994 and in 1996 was approved for distribution in the U.K. as well.
Biotechnology is being used to “immunize” potatoes and other crops against disease and to improve the yields of third-world cash crops such as bananas, papayas, melons, and sweet potatoes. It’s even been suggested that coffee plants can be genetically engineered to produce naturally decaffeinated beans.
Genetic engineering is not without its problems, however. Recently a tomato that had been combined with a fish gene to prevent spoilage was found to cause allergies in people allergic to fish. Vegetarians also objected. And the Flavr-Savr itself has been a mixed blessing for its manufacturer, Calgene. The tomato has suffered from thin skin that easily bruised on the way to market and that contributed to fast decay. Consumers have been unimpressed by the average price of $2.00 per pound. Explaining a net loss of $16,104,000 in the second half of 1995, Calgene stated that “Most of the early Flavr-Savr tomato varieties that Calgene had available for production did not have acceptable yield and disease resistance performance. Consequently, Calgene plans to temporarily limit its tomato growing operations beginning in the Spring of 1996 until it is able to complete its development of Flavr-Savr varieties that have enhanced commercial agronomic qualities.”
Reading between the lines, one bioengineering analyst gives a more succinct summary of Calgene’s situation: “This tomato has brought them to their knees.”
January Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, cherimoyas, chicory, fennel, grapefruit, uglifruit, leeks, mandarin oranges.
February Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, celery root, cherimoyas, grapefruit, uglifruit, leeks, sweet oranges, shallots.
March Artichokes, asparagus, avocados, beets, broccoli, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, celery root, chicory, chives, fennel, grapefruit, uglifruit, greens, leeks, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, okra, Seville oranges, parsnips, peas, rhubarb, shallots, spinach.
April Artichokes, asparagus, avocados, beans, beets, broccoli, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, celery root, chicory, chili peppers, chives, cucumbers, leeks, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, okra, sweet oranges, papaya, peas, peppers, rhubarb, shallots, spinach, summer squash, turnips.
May Artichokes, asparagus, avocados, basil, beans, beets, berries, broccoli, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, chives, cucumber, figs, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, mangoes, okra, sweet oranges, papaya, peas, peppers, rhubarb, shallots, sorrel, spinach, summer squash, turnips.
June Apricots, arugula, basil, beans, beets, berries, cabbage, cherries, chili peppers, chives, cucumbers, leaf lettuce, mangoes, okra, papaya, peppers, plums, sorrel, summer squash, watermelons.
July Apricots, arugula, basil, beans, beets, berries, cherries, chili peppers, corn, cucumber, grapes, mangoes, melons, nectarines, okra, peaches, peppers, plums, sorrel, summer squash, tomatoes, watermelons.
August Apricots, arugula, basil, beans, berries, cherries, chili peppers, corn, cucumbers, figs, grapes, mangoes, melons, okra, peaches, peppers, plums, sorrel, summer squash, tomatoes, watermelons.
September Arugula, beans, beets, berries, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, corn, cucumbers, dates, figs, grapes, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, mangoes, melons, wild mushrooms, okra, pears, shallots, sorrel, summer squash, tomatoes, watermelons.
The Food and Drug Administration has registered several categories of waxes for topical use on apples, avocados, oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit, melons, peaches, pineapples, passion fruits, cucumbers, eggplants, peppers, pumpkins, rutabagas, squash, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, and other fruits and vegetables. The producepacking industry argues that waxes, which often contain chemical fungicides, are needed to reduce shrinkage from moisture loss and to inhibit the growth of molds and fungus. According to FDA regulations, retailers must label waxed produce. Few do, however, and the law is unenforced. The types of waxes currently in use on produce are these:
Carnauba Wax Obtained from the wax palm of Brazil, carnauba is the hardest of the natural waxes. It is used widely in floor waxes, polishes, and lubricants.
Paraffin A derivative of petroleum, paraffin is flammable and insoluble in water. It is used to make candles and for many industrial purposes.
Candelilla Obtained from a reed, candelilla is a natural wax that is common in furniture polishes.
Shellac Obtained from the bodies of the female scale insect Tachardia lacca, shellac is used as varnish, as a coating on wood and plaster, in electrical insulation, and in sealing wax.
Polyethylene A plastic synthesized from petroleum, polyethylene is manufactured in sheets and films. Its many commercial uses include unbreakable bottles, shower curtains, electrical insulation, pipes, and packaging materials.
Oleic Acid Obtained from vegetable oils, animal fats, or synthesized from petroleum, oleic acid is used in industrial lubricants.
Tallow Obtained from the tissues and fatty deposits of animals, especially cattle and sheep, tallow is used in floor waxes, soap, and candles and as a lubricant.
Waxes cannot be washed off produce. If you want to avoid eating waxes, peel any produce that is waxed.
October Apples, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, celery root, chicory, chili peppers, cranberries, cucumbers, dates, fennel, figs, grapes, kumquats, leeks, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, wild mushrooms, okra, peppers, persimmons, pomegranates, prickly pears, quince, shallots, spinach, starfruit, sweet potatoes, winter squash.
November Apples, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, celery root, chicory, cranberries, cucumbers, dates, fennel, grapes, greens, kumquats, leeks, head lettuce, leaf lettuce, wild mushrooms, mandarin oranges, sweet oranges, parsnips, pears, persimmons, pomegranates, prickly pears, quince, shallots, spinach, starfruit, sweet potatoes, winter squash.
December Apples, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, celery root, cherimoyas, chicory, cranberries, dates, fennel, grapefruit, greens, kumquats, leeks, wild mushrooms, mandarin oranges, sweet oranges, parsnips, pears, persimmons, pomegranates, prickly pears, quince, shallots, spinach, starfruit, sweet potatoes, winter squash.
UNCOMMON VEGETABLES AND FRUITS
Thanks to better transportation, greater variety in farming, and an expanded public appetite for interesting and unusual foods, there is a growing interest in uncommon vegetables and fruits. These produce items are not necessarily more or less sprayed with pesticides than more pedestrian fare. For while there is concern that some imported produce items may contain residues or illegal pesticides, domestic produce often contains residues of legal carcinogenic pesticides. Either way, residues are potentially harmful. This is why organic produce should always be your first choice.
Pesticide caveat noted, the uncommon vegetables and fruits listed here are new tastes and are therefore worth sampling. This is not a complete list of uncommon produce but a short list of readily available uncommon items.
Uncommon Vegetables to Know and Eat
Arugula A popular salad green in Spain, Italy, and France, arugula has dark green leaves, similar to those of the dandelion, and a pungent, hot flavor. This vegetable can make an ordinary salad special. Wash carefully to remove sand and grit, remove the root stem, and toss raw with salad greens.
Burdock Root Native to Siberia, burdock is a long (1 to 2 feet) slender root vegetable with an earthy flavor. Scrub burdock but do not peel it, as the majority of nutrients and flavor are in or near the skin. Burdock takes about twice as long to cook as carrots. Add it to soups or stews, or cook it with grains. Burdock is a hearty winter food.
Bok Choy Although it is mistakenly called Chinese cabbage, bok choy is in fact an entirely different vegetable. A cruciferous green, bok choy is related to the cauliflower, turnip, radish, and mustard green. A head of bok choy has pearly colored stalks with collardlike leaves. This Asian vegetable is a tasty addition to stir-fries.
Celery Root (Celeriac) Used extensively in Holland, Russia, Germany, France, and Scandinavia, celery root is a tough, knobby root that comes from a variety of celery grown for its root instead of its stalks. It resembles parsley and celery in flavor and can be cooked like carrots or turnips, used in soups and purées, or grated raw into salads.
Daikon Native to Asia, daikon is a foot-long white radish. It has a slightly hot taste that mixes well with salad greens. When cooked in soups or stews, it tastes slightly sweet. In Asia daikon is eaten shredded with sushi or sashimi, and pickled with other pungent vegetables and hot peppers.
Belgian Endive During the 1988 presidential race, Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis almost ruined the reputation of Belgian endive forever when he suggested that midwestern farmers in dire straits consider planting this vegetable as a cash crop. Belgian endive, perceived to be a “yuppie food,” seemed to be an elitist substitute for traditional, mainstream grain crops. Belgian endive is a member of the chicory family and looks like a cigar made from pale yellow leaves. Its bitter flavor is a good contrast to milder-flavored lettuce in a salad.
Chemicals in Popular Foods
According to the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Academy of Sciences, fifteen foods in the United States’ food chain today have the greatest estimated risk of causing cancer because of high levels of toxic residues of agricultural chemicals. These foods, in order of risk, are tomatoes, beef, potatoes, oranges, lettuce, apples, peaches, pork, wheat, soybeans, beans, carrots, chicken, corn, and grapes.
Escarole Another member of the chicory family, escarole has broad, coarse, flat leaves that are slightly bitter. Use it raw in salads or cook it briefly to mellow the bitter flavor.
Fennel A compact greenish-white bulb that can be eaten raw or cooked in casseroles, salads, soups, stews, stuffings, and sausages, fennel has a unique licorice flavor and is cool, sweet, and refreshing.
Jicama A light brown tuber grown in Mexico, jicama can be sautéed, boiled, or used raw in salads or dips. When raw, it has a crisp texture similar to that of an apple, with a somewhat sweet, refreshing flavor. It stays crisp when cooked. Peel the skin before use.
Jerusalem Artichoke A relative of the sunflower, Jerusalem artichokes do not resemble artichokes but are brown-skinned roots that can be cooked like potatoes. They can be sautéed, boiled, baked, simmered in soups, eaten raw or in salads, or used as a substitute for water chestnuts.
Shiitake Mushroom Originally from Asia, shiitake mushrooms have become popular in American cuisine. Shiitakes are large mushrooms with full flavor, herbaceous aroma, and meaty consistency. One or two shiitakes can impart a delicious flavor to soups, stews, and stir-fries.
Uncommon Fruits to Know and Eat
Asian Pear The more than one hundred varieties of Asian pears are also known as nashi, apple pears, or Oriental pears. Asian pears are lightly sweet, have a granular texture, and are mild in flavor. They are crunchy, juicy, and ready to eat even though they may seem overly hard when you squeeze them. The more fragrant the Asian pear, the more flavorful it will be. Asian pears are rather expensive, but most people find the taste worth the cost.
Blood Orange While very popular in Europe where they originate, blood oranges are still a novelty item in the United States. So named because their flesh can be scarlet or purple in color, blood oranges have a full-bodied citrus flavor with a raspberry aftertaste. A glass of blood orange juice looks like a glass of burgundy.
Carambola Known also as starfruit, carambola is a native of Asia, where it is widely cultivated. This glossy yellow fruit has a waxy-looking exterior and five longitudinal wings that form star shapes when sliced. Sometimes it is difficult to tell on purchase whether a carambola is sweet or sour, but either way it is delicious. Look for skin that is yellow, not green, and a fruity, floral fragrance that indicates ripeness. When fully ripe, a carambola tastes like a combination of plums, grapes, and apples.
Cherimoya Also called a custard apple, the cherimoya is native to South America and has a lizardlike leathery exterior. The flesh inside is smooth, silky, and exotically flavorful, like a combination of tropical fruits and vanilla custard.
Clementine This sweet, seedless mandarin orange is reputed to be an accidental hybrid discovered in Algiers about 1900. Thin-skinned and easy to peel, clementines are much more succulent than standard varieties of tangerines and have a pronounced tangy flavor. Clementines are so small and tasty that you can eat ten of them before you snap out of the hypnotic spell induced by this sweet citrus.
Durian Native to Southeast Asia, the durian is perhaps the most bizarre and enigmatic of all fruits. Although durians are not commonly available, you should know about them in the unlikely event you find one. The durian is about the size of a football, heavy, dense, and covered with sharp, hard spikes. If you are walking through a durian grove and one falls on your head, you will swiftly be relieved of your mortal fetters. Durians come into season briefly in May and are a highly coveted addicting substance to natives of Southeast Asia. Peace Corps volunteers stationed in Micronesia have been known to squander their entire month’s allowance on durians when they are available. If you are lucky, you may find a durian in a large urban Chinatown during about two weeks in May. Expect to pay a fortune for it—perhaps as much as $25.
The cause of all the fuss is the durian’s inner flesh. It is soft, creamy, and custardlike. The fragrance of a durian is overwhelming; it reeks of exotic tropical fruits, perfumes, onions, and rotting garbage. The taste is a creamy explosion of fruits and garbage. If you find one, buy it without hesitation, take it home, cut it open, and eat it. You may love the durian; you may not. But you will never forget the experience.
Feijoa A native of South America but cultivated in New Zealand, the feijoa, or pineapple guava, is an elongated, egg-shaped fruit with a granular, medium-soft flesh surrounding a seedy interior. The taste is tart and the scent perfumed. A feijoa can be eaten like an avocado, or cooked or puréed.
Kumquat Chinese in origin, the kumquat is about 1½ inches long. It is thought by many to be a member of the citrus family, which it is not. It looks like a small citrus fruit and tastes like an orange, but with the kumquat you eat the skin as well as the flesh. Eating a kumquat is an amazing gustatory experience. You put the entire fruit in your mouth and bite right through it. The first sensation is a face-puckering sourness that causes rivulets of saliva to gush liberally in your mouth. As you continue to chew, the initial shock of sourness is replaced by the sweetness of the rind, which comes on stronger the longer you chew. Eating a kumquat is not just a taste treat; it is an experience. It grabs you by the ankles, turns you upside down, and shakes the change out of your pockets. Since kumquats are eaten with the skin on, select organically grown kumquats when they are available, to avoid pesticide residues.
Mango A native of Southeast Asia, the mango has been cultivated for five thousand years. The skin of the mango is smooth and is red, yellow, or green in color. The red to yellow flesh is moist and custardlike (or fibrous), with a tropical peach flavor. In India, which is the largest producer of mangoes, these fruits are eaten plain, cooked in curries, in yogurt drinks, and as spicy mango pickle, a popular condiment. A ripe mango is somewhat soft, with a pleasant fruit scent.
Papaya Native to the tropics, papayas are green or yellow skinned. The small Hawaiian papaya (the kind most frequently available in grocery stores) is shaped like an avocado, but the larger varieties are melon-sized and can weigh up to 20 pounds each. The flesh of a papaya can be red, orange, or yellow and is sweet, light, and refreshing. The inside cavity is filled with small edible seeds. A ripe papaya will yield to gentle pressure.
Don’t Eat Citrus Peels!
Lemon peels and lime wedges add flavor to sparkling water, iced tea, and mixed drinks. Orange and lemon zests are often grated to use in dessert and other dishes. But unless you’re using strictly organically grown citrus, you are advised to skip using citrus peels altogether.
Citrus crops are liberally sprayed with a wide variety of potentially carcinogenic pesticides, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. These chemicals include acephate, benomyl, chlorobenzilate, dicofol, methomyl, ophenylphenol, and parathion. Even washing the skins of citrus thoroughly will not remove all the toxic chemicals. Either buy organic or get used to drinking your sparkling water straight up.
Persimmon Although the fruit is native to China, the word persimmon comes from the Algonquin Indians. Looking somewhat like a tomato with a lacquered orange skin, the persimmon has a mild flavor suggestive of pumpkin and plum. A ripe persimmon is a rich orange color, with no yellow. The fruit should feel very soft, as though liquid inside. Plan for a delicious but messy eating experience with a persimmon.
Plantain A staple starch in Asia, the Caribbean, and much of the Southern Hemisphere, the plantain is a green cooking banana. The light pink or yellow fruit of the plantain is fried, boiled, baked, and mashed into fritters and cakes. Plantains are versatile and delicious.
Pomegranate Believed to have originated in Persia, the pomegranate is the size of a small grapefruit, with a red, leathery skin. You do not eat a pomegranate quickly, as there is some work to do to get at the fruit. The interior contains tough, membranous compartments filled with arils, or seeds, surrounded by a succulent, scarlet-colored pulp. The taste of the pulp is sweet, sour, light, and refreshing. Look for large, heavy fruits.
Quince Another Persian fruit, the quince is similar in shape to a pear and must be cooked to be eaten. Quince has a distinctive musky, fruity perfume. The fruit contains a high amount of pectin, and so is used in jellies, jams, marmalades, and confections. Quince can be baked, stewed, or poached.
Uglifruit From Jamaica comes this strange citrus, which looks like a grapefruit with a green, loosefitting skin. Truly ugly, it is the shar-pei of citrus. Uglifruit is easy to peel and tastes like a cross between a grapefruit and a mandarin orange, with a mouth-watering acid sweetness.
DRIED FRUITS
Dried fruits are among the most popular items in natural food stores. Sweet and nutritious, with a rich, concentrated flavor, dried fruits are an excellent source of quick energy and make ideal snack foods, especially for children, who will often eat dried fruits in place of sugar-laden candies. Dried fruits store well and will last for months in airtight containers. These high-energy foods are perfect for snacking, picnics, camping, and backpacking.
Dried fruit costs far less than the same quantity of fresh fruit and thus is an excellent bargain. Nine pounds of fresh apples become 1 pound when dried. Six pounds of fresh apricots or 3 pounds of fresh plums (which become prunes) become 1 pound dried. Many types of dried fruits are available, but most of them are still conventionally grown with agricultural chemicals. Thus, dried fruits will contain pesticide residues, just like their fully hydrated counterparts. For this reason, you should purchase organically produced dried fruits whenever possible.
The Sulfur Dioxide Hazard
From a health standpoint, the biggest concern about dried fruit is whether or not it has been treated with sulfur dioxide, which keeps fruit moist and colorful. A sulfured apricot will be plump and bright orange, and an unsulfured apricot will be dry and brown. Over the past several years there has been growing concern about sulfur dioxide. This chemical compound can cause serious allergic reactions, particularly among asthmatics. In some rare cases, consuming sulfur dioxide has led to anaphylaxis, an extreme allergic reaction that can cause respiratory failure. In addition to its allergenic properties, sulfur dioxide destroys B vitamins in the body, can cause kidney malfunction, and is a suspected mutagen (a substance that causes genetic mutations, or abnormalities). Not good. As of 1987, federal law requires a label on all food products containing sulfur dioxide.
Drying Methods
Although most producers allow fruits to ripen to full maturity for maximum sugar content, size, and flavor, drying processes differ greatly between large commercial packers and smaller natural food producers. Large commercial outfits typically sun-dry or oven-dry fruit first, then soak and steam it at high temperatures in order to increase the weight and size. The fruit is then preserved. This process destroys many of the vitamins in the fruit. Smaller natural producers wash fruits and then dry them in the sun or in low-temperature dehydrators. The fruit is not steamed or preserved. This process yields a sweeter, firmer, darker, and tastier product.
In order for natural nutrients to be retained, drying should be accomplished quickly. Even though sun-drying is a natural process, it will destroy more of the vitamins in a fruit than the faster oven-drying method. The speed at which a fruit will dry depends on the amount of heat and ventilation. Fruits dry more quickly if they are on drying racks designed for fast evaporation. The trick in drying fruit is to achieve the right balance of heat, ventilation, and time.
Some producers dip or soak dried fruits in honey for extra sweetness and to lock in more moisture. Honey-dipped dried fruits will be labeled as such. Be on the lookout, however, for mislabeled sugardipped dried fruits. These impostors are usually fairly easy to detect. They have a super-sweet bite to them and granular sugar crystals on the outside. There is really no need to sweeten a dried fruit with either honey or sugar, because most dried fruits contain at least 25 percent naturally occurring sugars.
Rehydration
Dried fruits are dehydrated; the water has been evaporated out of them. Dried fruits will rehydrate, or reabsorb water, as they are digested. When you eat dried fruits, be sure to drink water or juice with them. Otherwise the fruits will absorb moisture from your digestive tract. The consumption of dried fruits without adequate fluid intake can lead to stomach cramps, bloating, and gas.
Commonly Available Dried Fruits
Following are some of the most widely available dried fruits:
Apples High in magnesium, iron, potassium, and pectin, dried apples enhance digestion. Apples are peeled, cored, and sliced and then placed in a dehydrator to dry.
Apricots Known as the “aristocrat of fruits,” apricots have a short harvest season and are among the most delectable of all fruits. They are a staple food in some parts of the world, including the legendary Himalayan kingdom of Hunza, north of Kashmir. The natives of Hunza, the Hunzakuts, are the longest-lived people in the world. Apricot oil is highly prized for its fineness and superb nutrient content. Dried apricots are rich in iron, phosphorous, calcium, and vitamin A.
Bananas A good dried banana is hard to find. Dried bananas come mostly in the form of chips, made from sliced green bananas, which are usually cooked in coconut oil and then dried. Banana chips aren’t sweet. However, there are plenty of sugarcoated chips on the market, and a few that are honey-sweetened. Much harder to find than chips are dried whole ripe bananas. These come mostly from Costa Rica or other Central American countries and are small, rubbery, sweet, and very tasty. Dried whole bananas, especially if they are organically grown, are well worth searching for. They are quite a treat. Bananas are particularly high in potassium.
Currants Smaller and darker than raisins, but similar in appearance, currants are sweet and high in iron. Dried currants are excellent in baked goods, especially muffins.
Cherries High in vitamins A and B1, iron, copper, and manganese, dried cherries are tangy and relatively hard to find. They are a reputed folk remedy for gout.
Coconuts This fruit has developed a bad reputation over the past few years because it contains a high concentration of saturated fat. Nonetheless, dried coconut is widely used in granolas, baked goods, and confections. Naturally dried coconut is not sweet; it has a nutlike flavor. Avoid sweetened dried coconut products that have been soaked in sugar solutions or corn syrup.
Dates Containing the highest natural sugar content of any fruit in the world, dates are also rich in vitamins A and B1, magnesium, and phosphorous. There exist more than four hundred known varieties, from small brown dates to super-fancy jumbo Medjools. The Date Festival in Indio, California, is an annual event at which the finest specimens of hundreds of date varieties are displayed and sampled.
Figs High in iron, calcium, phosphorus, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, niacin, and folic acid, figs are renowned for their sweetness and flavor. There are many varieties of figs, among the most popular of which are Turkish and mission figs. Figs have more iron than spinach. This, combined with their high folic acid content, makes them an excellent food for combating anemia. They also contain isatin, a natural laxative.
Peaches Dried peaches are high in vitamins A, B1, and C; magnesium; potassium; and iron. There are dozens of varieties, so you will find many different tastes among dried peaches.
Pears High in vitamin B1, magnesium, and potassium, dried pears have a grainy, leathery consistency. Despite the fact that they have a texture like iguana skin, they are very tasty.
Papayas Dried papaya that has not been sweetened has very little flavor. Most alleged honey-sweetened papaya is actually soaked in a sugar solution, although a few honest honey-sweetened papaya products are available. Dried papaya comes in long finger-shaped slices.
Pineapples The majority of dried pineapple comes from Taiwan and is saturated with refined white sugar. Authentic natural dried pineapple is sweetened with pineapple juice instead. The two are easy to tell apart. Sugar-sweetened pineapple is plump and firm, and coated with sugar crystals. Juice-sweetened pineapple is somewhat mottled and fibrous, with no crystals on the surface.
Raisins High in iron and minerals, raisins are the most popular of all the dried fruits. This is mainly due to their size and versatility, as they can be added to cereals, baked goods, breads, and other foods. Although almost all raisins are sun-dried, most are also fumigated with methyl bromide, which can depress the central nervous system. It is therefore wise to look for natural raisins that have not been fumigated.
These days organically grown raisins are plentiful. Most raisins are dried Thompson seedless grapes, but there are also monukka and muscat raisins, which are considerably more flavorful. Of all the foods in the world, raisins are the most cariogenic. That is, they are the No. 1 cavity-causing food, ahead of pure sugar and chocolate. This is due to their high sugar content and the fact that they are very sticky. The sugars in raisins adhere to the enamel of the teeth. When you eat raisins, be sure to brush your teeth afterward.
