Guava, Guava

Native to Mexico and Central America, northern South America. Most likely naturally spreading (by means of ocean drifting) to parts of the Caribbean and some parts of North Africa, guavas are now cultivated and naturalized throughout the tropics, and due to growing demand they are also grown in some subtropical regions.

The spread of introduced guavas owes much to this fact, as animals will eat the fruit and disperse the seeds in their droppings.

Several species are grown commercially; Apple Guava ( P. guajava ) and its cultivars are those most commonly traded internationally.

Guavas are also of interest to home growers in temperate areas, being one of the very few tropical fruits that can be grown to fruiting size in pots indoors.

The outer skin may be rough, often with a bitter taste, or soft and sweet. Varying between species, the skin can be any thickness, is usually green before maturity, but becomes yellow, maroon, or green when ripe. Guava fruit generally have a pronounced and typical fragrance, similar to lemon rind but less sharp. Guava pulp may be sweet or sour, off-white to deep pink, with the seeds in the central pulp of variable number and hardness, again depending on species.

In Asia, fresh raw guava is often dipped in preserved prune powder or salt. Because of the skin's high level of pectin, boiled guava is also extensively used to make candies, preserves, jellies, jams, marmalades ( goiabada ), and also for juices and aguas frescas. Guava juice is very popular in Mexico, Colombia, Egypt and South Africa. Red guavas can be used as the base of salted products such as sauces, constituting a substitute for tomatoes, especially for those sensitive to the latter's acidity. In Asia, a tea is made from guava fruits and leaves.

A single Apple Guava ( P. guajava ) fruit contains over four times the amount of vitamin C as a single orange (over 200 mg per 100 g serving) and also has good levels of the dietary minerals, potassium, magnesium, and generally a broad, low-calorie profile of essential nutrients.

Healthaliciousness.com [1] extremely rich in antioxidants Guavas contain both carotenoids and polyphenols – the major classes of antioxidant pigments –, giving them relatively high dietary antioxidant value among plant foods Jimnez-Escrig et al.

Source: Wikipedia > Guava