Adventure! Mystery! Dragon Fruit!

Who could resist? Sylvia had an appointment close to China Town and after we had taken care of business, it was either go home or seek adventure. We had no way of knowing that our decision would lead us to this unearthly discovery. OK, OK…. we were in search of something new, and this being New York, you can pretty much bet that if you want an adventure, all you need to do is put one foot in front of the other and go!

These were on fruit stands everywhere. By the time we had explored the Chinese market underneath the Manhattan Bridge, enjoyed soup dumplings at Joe’s Shanghai Restaurant (our server was very happy to demonstrate the proper eating method… that is after we survived the agony of watching our table mates consume massive quantities before our order arrived), and discovered a beautiful shop dedicated to chopsticks (I have already placed my Christmas request), we were on a roll. So far everything had been delightful the thrill of adventure made passing over these rare looking fruits impossible.

Actually, after a bit of research, it turns out that Dragon Fruit is not all that rare. You probably won’t find it at your local supermarket, and because it’s tropical you certainly won’t find it at the Farmer’s Market (I do feel a bit sheepish about buying a ‘passport required’ food, but we were in discovery mode!). It turns out that South America, Asia, Australia and Hawaii all produce pitaya. The fruit of a cactus plant, this pink and green one is called Sweet Pitaya. According to a Dragon Fruit web site, these beautiful fruits require bats to successfully pollinate. The flowers necessary for pollination bloom at night, and bats are the night shift! This is possibly the first time the thought of bees needing to sleep has even occurred to me.

Our impulse purchase was similar to Kiwi and mild. I enjoyed my half, Sylvia wasn’t so keen, but did not find it objectionable either. Her half is in the fridge cooling down… we are going to see if it’s more appealing chilled. The reward for being adventurous is eating a fruit that is full of fiber, antioxidants and vitamins. Low in calories too!

End of the day assessment? All in all a successful adventure and another food mystery solved!