Ever visit the grocery store and find some weird fruit that you don’t know what it’s called, how to tell if it’s ripe, or what it might taste like? Add those three concerns together without being able to read the label on the shelf and BAM! You get 红肉火龙果 (Hóng ròu huǒlóng guǒ) or Red Dragon Fruit sitting in your shopping cart.
Dragon fruit, also known as pitaya, is the flowering fruit of cacti and originated in the Americas. Why it’s more popular in Asian countries and not in the good ole USA I have no clue, especially since this fruit is delicious, having a water content similar to watermelon, edible black seeds, and just a hint of sweetness. In a blender, this fruit would be a great addition for a smoothy any time day or night.
While I’m not sure how edible the outside skin of the dragon fruit is, cutting the fruit into pieces is easy to do with a sharp knife. Place it on its side and cut off the small “tips”. Cut the large body of the fruit in half and you’ll see the delicious “meat” of the fruit.
Turn those flat ends upside-down and cut each half along the its width producing four equally sized quarters. For each quarter, take the blade of the knife and slide it along the inside of the fruit between the meat and the skin. The blade should move quickly and without resistance through the fruit. Cut the fruit into pieces and enjoy right away or within the next couple of days.
I’ve seen this fruit in almost every grocery store or fruit stand in Suzhou and it seems to be available year round. Next time I’ll be looking for the white variety, which might be called 白肉火龙果(Báiròu huǒlóng guǒ); I’ve eaten it before and it is just a delicious!