Exot is prohibited in certain diseases. Diabetes mellitus is in question, when sugars with excessive use can provoke an attack. With hyperfunction of the thyroid gland, its use is highly undesirable and even dangerous. It is forbidden for obesity. In this state, the diet is not based on exotic fruits: nutritionists create a thoughtful and balanced diet for the main food components.

It is not difficult to find a southern product in the winter season in any supermarkets. The price for it "does not bite", so it is quite affordable for the middle strata of the population. And if in its raw form it does not cause much enthusiasm, then it can be boiled, baked or added to salads. Jam, fruit drinks, compotes have a rather pleasant taste. It is not necessary to eat it fresh; after heat treatment, feijoa does not lose its beneficial properties.

The southern plant, which arrived from across the sea, is not a panacea for all ills. But its regular consumption eliminates many negative processes that occur in the body. This does not mean that eating a few berries will suddenly make you feel completely healthy, but in combination with other healthy fruits, you will have the opportunity to lead a more active lifestyle.

Click point number 5 - how to choose a ripe fruit, quickly peel and cook deliciously.

Quick article navigation:

A bit of botany and geography

The word itself is of Portuguese origin. This is the popular name for the flowering shrub acca sellowiana from the myrtle family. It grows up to 7 meters in height, and its homeland is South America. Neither the Indians nor the conquerors had a high opinion of the plant, so some samples came to Europe only by the 19th century. Mostly people were attracted by lush flowers with a large number of stamens.

The flowers of the plant can be eaten. They taste like cotton candy with a fruity aroma.

The shrub combines capriciousness and endurance. Shade, drought, salt in the soil, frost, strong wind, lack of insect pollinators. The plant can survive all these troubles, but refuses to bear fruit. Entire bush gardens can be found in its native soils of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, as well as in California and New Zealand.

In Russia, bizarre flora grows in the Crimea and the North Caucasus. But most of all sales come from fruits from the South Caucasus - Abkhazia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. The harvest season is short: usually it is autumn and the very beginning of winter.

Photo of feijoa on a tree Photo of feijoa flowers

As with watermelon, banana and kiwi, from a botanical point of view, it is more correct to call feijoa a berry. But tradition is tradition: everything larger than a gooseberry is considered a fruit by the people - we will adhere to it too.

Ripe fruits are close to the size of a large chicken egg. The diameter of handsome men is 5-6 cm, the average weight is 50 grams. They do not need to be plucked - they fall from the bush themselves. Alas, the exotic retains its presentation for a very short time. Ripe fruits do not tolerate shaking, quickly overripe and begin to rot.

You rarely see our heroes in supermarkets. The product has taken root more in bazaars and markets.

Chemical composition and calorie content

For 100 grams of feijoa:

• Calories - 49 - 2%
• Proteins - 1.2 g
• Fats - 0.8 g
• Carbohydrates - 10.6 g
• Dietary fiber - no

Vitamins:

• C - 20.3 mg - 34%
• B9 - 38 mg - 10%

Minerals:

• Iodine - from 70 mcg - from 45%
• Potassium - 155 mg - 4%
• Manganese - 0.1 mg - 4%

USDA data. The percentage value is the proportion of the daily value (DN) of an adult with a balanced diet of 2000 kcal. Only significant nutrients are indicated: from 4% DV.

Health Benefits

It may seem that a considerable price is based on a special benefit to the body. In fact, the main reasons for the high cost of green babies in our latitudes are the perishable nature and the difficulty in achieving yields. The usefulness of the heroes, of course, is, but it is very limited.

Judge for yourself what vitamins are in feijoa by looking at the chemical composition above.

With the exception of vitamins C and B9, 100 grams of our heroes do not contain a large concentration of nutrients. The product does not shine with calories, proteins, fats, carbohydrates and does not contain dietary fiber. Minerals are present in small amounts.

The only trump card of the curiosity is the high content of iodine:

• from 70 to 250 micrograms per 100 grams, and the daily human need for iodine is only 150-300 micrograms.

But the lack of iodine will help to saturate and ordinary iodized salt. , as well as a complete overview of iodine for human health.

And it is even more profitable to introduce seaweed (kelp) into the diet - the champion in iodine content. Or drink seaweed in an additive if you don’t like the taste or are afraid of Chinese fakes.

Not in the exotic and a large number. Those that are available are concentrated in the skin, not in the pulp.

place in healthy eating

We can use the product in the short ripening season with mediocre health effects. Desirable enhance the benefits of a competent combination with other gifts of nature.

1. To support immunity, it is better to accompany the heroes of the review with products with vitamins A, E, zinc and selenium. Salads with chicken, fish, ham, eggs, nuts, and greens are a smart choice for a complete array of antioxidants.
2. Feijoa can be eaten by pregnant women as a source of folic acid for the full development of the child's nervous system.
3. For a change in weight loss, you can include a curiosity in salads and drinks on proper nutrition or in extended stages of protein diets. It has no special “fat-burning” properties, just as there is no abundance of fiber necessary for high-quality cleansing.
4. It is permissible to try in a modern low-carbohydrate diet for diabetes mellitus - at the stage of remission under glucose control 1.5 hours after eating.

Myths and contraindications

So far, no significant cases of intolerance have been identified. Whether this is due to their hypoallergenic nature, or simply due to the banal lack of data for statistics, we will leave it to you to judge.

For ourselves, we are wary of any new products, especially in the nutrition of children. The unshakable rule daily allergy test. We eat a small piece and observe the early signs of an allergic reaction, as well as general well-being for 24 hours. Early signs include sore throat, burning sensation in the mouth, difficulty breathing, swelling of the face and larynx, urticaria on the skin. To remote - gastric and intestinal dyspepsia (heartburn, nausea, flatulence, stool disorder).

"Miracle! Green babies enhance male potency!

This is the most common myth from experienced bazaar traders. Advertising mantra like to replicate and on the Internet. However, we did not find scientific confirmation of this property. Manganese can serve as a distant basis for such a statement, but it contains no more than 4% of DN per 100 grams (2 pieces of medium size).

• If you seriously care about the reproductive health of your men, and help them stay slim and physically active.

How to choose and store

We note right away that sellers in the markets often offer these fruits, even when they are completely unsuitable for food. This is due to the perishable nature of the product and the desire to at least return the money invested in the product.

Just a month from falling off the bush- the optimal shelf life of the curiosity. Often this period of time is not enough to collect a delicacy, prepare it for shipment, bring it to Moscow or St. Petersburg, and at the same time maintain its original maturity.

How to choose a ripe feijoa?

1. Press on it with your thumb. The ripened fruit gives in to pressure a little, but does not seem soft. Avoid fruits with dents. They will start to rot very soon (or are already rotting). A bad sign is also scuffs and roughness.
2. The pulp looks translucent. A dense white color on the cut is a sign of immaturity.
3. Pay attention to the skin. It has a bright light green color. Let's say a whitish coating that is easy to wipe off with a finger.

What is the taste of ripe pulp?

It looks like jelly and resembles strawberries and kiwis at the same time. Connoisseurs say: barely noticeable notes of pineapple are a special charm of curiosity.

What distinguishes an overripe fruit? Prominent softness. Do not buy such fruits. They are unpleasant in taste.

What distinguishes the immature? Excessive hardness. It is this product that is often present on the market. In an effort to maximize the period when fruits are suitable for sale, suppliers pluck them from the bushes while still green.

How to speed up ripening at home?

Leave fruits in the kitchen in one paper bag with bananas. However, connoisseurs believe that immature beauties are never destined to be compared in taste with the initially ripe counterparts.

Three storage rules

1. Be sure to store in the refrigerator.
2. Try to eat within 2-3 days of purchase.
3. You can also freeze in the freezer. The blank will be edible for up to 8 months.

How to eat

Feijoa can be eaten in different ways - with and without peel. Contrary to popular misconception, the outer skin is quite edible. But it has a specific taste, so it has not won many fans.

We offer you a choice of two ways to get to the juicy pulp.

1. Cut in half and scrape out the flesh with a sharp teaspoon. This is how the gift of nature is eaten in Latin America.
2. Arm yourself with a knife or peeler and carefully remove the green skin. An important point: if you are not going to immediately eat the peeled fruit, put it in a bowl of water and lemon juice. Otherwise, the flesh will quickly turn brown under the influence of atmospheric oxygen.

Our Favorite Recipes

For our taste, this exotic is not suitable for baking. But our heroes can easily make friends with ice cream, fruit salad and smoothies. Fruits are rich in pectins - natural jelly-forming agents - and are useful for jelly. When mixed with 1.5-2 liters of any liquid from 1 kilogram of fruit pulp, up to 3 kilograms of jelly-like mass is obtained.

On a note!

The heroes of the review go well with citrus, kiwi and sweet soft pear.

Try a simple salad where there is a lot of fiber and healthy nutrients. One large boiled beet, 4-5 fruits, a generous harvest of nuts. Cutting and dressing - to taste. We like it with sour cream, and with honey mustard sauce, and even homemade yogurt with moderately fat milk fits perfectly into the dish. A good addition would be peeled tangerine or orange slices.

One of the best smoothies of the end of autumn also easy to prepare. Half, 2 ripe kiwis, 3 feijoas, a quarter of a sweet apple and a glass of fermented milk drink. Fresh kefir with "live bacteria" is the best choice.

Delights the taste buds and beautiful vitamin puree, where a lot of dietary fiber and nutrients for immunity. Together with kiwi, sweet pear and sour cream, puree the curiosity in a blender.

You can pour the resulting mass on cottage cheese, pieces of chicken, other fruits and vegetables, thicken with psyllium, and eat it like raw jam, and also use it to make jelly on agar-agar or gelatin.

A curious sauce will turn out when combined with onions. Decorate with them meals with cape and fish. 3 fruits, medium head of onion, 1 tablespoon of sugar or honey (without a slide), salt, black pepper, a little mustard to taste.

Jams and preserves are also made from the fruits. Although with such desserts it is worth remembering the potential health hazards. Both vitamins are destroyed when heated, and sugar weighs down the menu with “empty calories”.

The lesser evil is a simple grinding with granulated sugar without heating, adding lemon and orange.

Not everyone knows that fruits can be used to make tinctures and alcoholic cocktails. With crushed ice and tequila in a blender, you get a rare textured drink.

Due to the sufficient sugar content, the fruits are also suitable for home brewing. Such spirits are popular among South American Indians, but the rarity of raw materials makes them expensive for Russia.

Share in the comments what ideas our review has debunked, and what knowledge about feijoa has confirmed. Useful properties and contraindications, recipes, how to choose, clean and cook - we have described the main thing about an exotic fruit. It is worth trying the product in the desire to diversify the menu, but without deceptive hopes for super-health effects.

Thank you for the article (1)

Feijoa is native to South America - Brazil (where it was first discovered), Uruguay. And its distribution around the world began only in the twentieth century. Attempts to study the properties of Akka Sellova were made back in the USSR. However, due to the specific growing conditions, neither the plant itself nor its fruits have become widespread in these latitudes. Therefore, the contraindications of feijoa, along with its beneficial properties, have so far been derived only theoretically, based on the fact that medicine already knows about its composition.

What is in the composition of fruits, peel and leaves

The feijoa fruit is a tough, bitter-sour rind that encloses a very sweet, jelly-like pulp with seeds. From the point of view of biological classification, this is not even a fruit, but a berry, which is why it is so juicy. In the homeland of feijoa, eating its peel is not accepted - only the contents, with an ordinary spoon. For some, the taste of feijoa resembles strawberries, for others - kiwi with pineapple. Since feijoa has not received wide distribution in the national cuisine, the following should be remembered when choosing its berries.

• Peel. It should be green in feijoa (the whole range of shades - from the color of young grass to olive), elastic and shiny, without spots. But inside there should be a soft “filling”.
• Consistency. Firm flesh is a sign that the berry is still green.
• White pulp. This is a 100% sign that this is an unripe (2/3 ripe) fruit. This happens often in the modern world - because of the peculiarities of modern logistics and sales tactics. Because of them, fruits, especially exotic ones, we almost always eat semi-green or ripe in stock.
• translucent pulp. This is how a ripe feijoa should look like.
• brownish flesh. The appearance of a strong yellow or brown hue in the pulp of a feijoa indicates that it is already overripe and ready to ferment.

In any case, feijoa berries are a delicious, but also a truly sweet dessert, dangerous for diabetics, because their glucose content is very high - comparable to mangoes. Feijoa berries grown on the sea coast are saturated with iodine, although their "land" "relatives" may contain three times less than "seaside" ones.

So, from a medical point of view, this tall shrub (or stunted tree - whichever suits you) is most valuable for its ability to accumulate iodine from the soil and help with its deficiency. At the same time, the benefits of feijoa in preventing diseases of the thyroid gland (thyroid gland) directly depend on the place of its growth, which must be checked with the seller each time when buying berries. The rest of the chemical composition of feijoa is similar to most berries - in particular, due to the content they contain:

• food acids- folic (vitamin B9), ascorbic (vitamin C), nicotinic (vitamin B3), apple, lemon;
• vitamins - four more representatives of group B (B1, B2, B5 and B6) contained in the pulp itself, as well as vitamins E, A and some others in the leaves and peel;
• macro- and microelements- iodine, sodium, magnesium, potassium, calcium, zinc. Feijoa berries also contain copper, manganese, phosphorus and iron, which makes them a good (because easily digestible) alternative to the now fashionable multivitamin complexes from the pharmacy;
• vegetable fats- in the form of essential oils, giving the feijoa pulp a strawberry-pineapple flavor.

The rind of Akka Feijoa berries also contains anthocyanins, natural coloring compounds. They give the parts of the plant in which they are contained shades of color from scarlet to purple. Anthocyanins are powerful natural antioxidants, and are used as indicated by scientific medicine and cosmetology. There are many of them in the leaves of the plant. By the way, its leaves, along with the peel, are also rich in tannins, which give them a bitter-tart taste and serve as natural antibiotics, since they are moderately poisonous.

Useful properties and contraindications of feijoa

The presence of these components in various parts of feijoa determines its ability to alleviate the course of diseases.

• lower the temperature. And fight other signs of a cold, since the organic acids in the berries have antipyretic, anti-inflammatory properties. This also applies to vitamin C.
• Relieve joint pain. Since their antiseptic effect affects not only the sore throat, but also the course of osteochondrosis, arthrosis and arthritis (with the exception of gouty).
• Sanitize the digestive tract. With dysbacteriosis, indigestion of unclear etiology, low acidity of the stomach, since all the same acids and tannins disinfect the cavity of the digestive organs when digesting feijoa pulp.
• improve digestion. Due to the stimulating effect of tannins and anthocyanins on the intestines and liver along with the gallbladder.
• Reduce blood pressure. Because all food acids have the properties of light anticoagulants. Plus, their presence in the blood allows you to reduce the intensity of inflammation in different parts of the vascular network (with atherosclerosis, they are always available) and slightly expand the lumen of the vessel.

In addition, the fruits can:

• replace seafood- if the purchased feijoa berries grew no further than 20 km from the sea coast, one can hope that their kilogram contains almost the full daily dose of iodine;
• replace multivitamins- or rather, preparations of minerals and trace elements, since a number of directly vitamins in feijoa berries are far from complete;
• prevent anemia- due to the presence of iron in a relatively well-absorbed form (unlike the same apples).

What ailments does it help?

The medicinal properties of feijoa are appropriate for kidney diseases, excluding those caused by oxalate or urate stones / sand in them. Both types of stones are formed due to metabolic disorders in the body of oxalic (oxalates) or urinary (urates - a sign of gout) acids. In such cases, the metabolism of other acids also suffers, although not so much. This means that taking foods rich in any of the substances from this series is fraught with increased kidney problems instead of solving them.

Feijoa is one of the few fruits that are allowed to be taken with pancreatitis (not during an exacerbation), because the B vitamins it contains can improve the condition and behavior of the pancreas.

The use of feijoa leaves for cough, judging by the reviews, is as effective as the use of berries. Feijoa leaves and peel are rich in tannins and antioxidants. But the experience of their use in folk medicine is not too great, and the reason for this is not only the relatively low prevalence of feijoa in our climatic zone.

On the other hand, many other plants, including those from our latitudes, have similar properties. Moreover, their action is better studied and much more pronounced. For example, the same anthocyanins are most not found in feijoa peel, but in black currants, black grapes, red peppers, blueberries, mulberries, and tomatoes. Tannins are also especially rich not in its leaves, but in oak bark - from where their name came from. Therefore, most often, not leaf preparations are used as their saturated extract, but feijoa essential oil - a concentrate of tannins, antioxidants and minerals, which is good for acne and other minor skin problems.

There is an indication for the use of feijoa as a supplement to the diet during pregnancy, since feijoa is rich in both iodine (the mother's thyroid hormones regulate the growth rate of the fetus), and iron, without which hematopoiesis is impossible, and calcium, potassium, magnesium, which are responsible for the development of the heart. - the vascular system of the baby.

When it can hurt

At the same time, food acids, as light antibiotics and antiseptics, whose ability to reduce and even eliminate inflammation in many tissues of the body have been scientifically proven, create both the main benefit and harm of feijoa. The problem is that they all provoke acute immune reactions - hence the prevalence of allergies to fruits rich in them with berries, including citrus fruits, strawberries, and currants. The main side effect of eating feijoa is also allergy. In any case, if we are talking about its berries saturated with organic acids. In addition to allergies, other conditions are contraindications to the use of feijoa.

• Diabetes . Due to the excess content of glucose in them, albeit along with fructose.
• Excess weight . Due to the high calorie content of feijoa berries. Eating fruits instead of chocolate bars, of course, favorably reflects on any figure, but only under the condition of other serious restrictions on carbohydrates. And losing weight simply by introducing feijoa into the diet is impossible.
• Complications of atherosclerosis. Starting with hypertensive crises, and further, to ischemia, heart attack and stroke. The use of feijoa berries in food normalizes blood pressure due to natural antiseptics, antioxidants and some trace elements (magnesium, potassium). But all of them can have a pronounced therapeutic effect only up to a certain point - while the heart and blood vessels are relatively healthy and there is only a slight age-related deterioration in their work. And then, due to their treatment with feijoa at home, you can only lose precious time, risking not just health, but life.
• Hyperacid gastritis. Especially if the high acidity of gastric juice is combined with an ulcer. Feijoa is a sweet and sour fruit. So adding a fair portion of acids from it to the one that is already in excess in the stomach will only lead to increased aching pains from below under the ribs (in the lower parts of the esophagus burned with acid), heartburn, deepening erosions, if any.
• Gout and oxalaturia. The second disease is oxalic acid intolerance.

Methods of storage, preparation and use

To the question of how to use feijoa for therapeutic purposes, we can say that the easiest way is to eat its flesh fresh, with honey, adding a teaspoon of natural flower or buckwheat honey to the pulp of two fruits.

Feijoas have a short shelf life - only about a week on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator. But as for how to prepare feijoa for the winter, then, firstly, this is not always necessary, since the first batches of its berries just arrive on the counter in November-December. Secondly, the abundance of food acids (strong natural preservatives) allows you to even simply mix its pulp with sugar in equal proportions, arrange it in sterile jars and close it with plastic lids. That is, in the same way as blackcurrants are closed.

Making jam from feijoa is more difficult: here you need to be able to knead sugar syrup, because in case of an error, the jam will become compote (there is too much liquid in the pulp of ripe feijoa). In addition, such a recipe is less preferable, since heat treatment will destroy the lion's share of acids and other vitamins in its composition. You can also freeze feijoa, but the most watery part of the pulp will have to be sacrificed.

There is even a liqueur based on peeled and diced feijoa berries, infused with 40% alcohol or cognac. Moreover, many believe in its medicinal properties, although in reality alcohol destroys the basis of the therapeutic effect of feijoa - food acids in its composition. In other words, only some mineral compounds remain in such a liquor, and it cures a cold only to the extent that the heating of all body tissues caused by alcohol can help from it.

Even brewing tea from feijoa leaves to treat something seems like a smarter solution, even though they contain almost no food acids. In general, connoisseurs of the remedy often brew its peel, but the addition of dried feijoa leaves makes the drink more aromatic and stronger, since they smell more like myrtle than strawberries.

tea drink

You will need:

• a teaspoon of dried feijoa leaves;
• a teaspoon of dried peel of feijoa berries;
• natural honey;
• a glass of boiling water.

Cooking

1. Grind the leaves and skin, put them in a brewing cup and stir.
2. Pour the raw material with boiling water, mix again and cover with a lid.
3. Leave for fifteen minutes, then add honey to taste and stir it until completely dissolved.

If you take a tablespoon of both ingredients for the same volume of water and brew them in a thermos, leaving for half an hour, you get a good remedy for nephritis of various etiologies, except for nephrolithiasis (kidney stones and sand). And this tea should be drunk twice a day, morning and evening, after meals, for two weeks. Then you can take a week break and repeat the course.

Paste from thyroiditis

You will need:

• two to four feijoa berries with skin;
• a tablespoon of sugar / honey;
• meat grinder, blender or food processor.

Cooking

1. Wash the feijoa berries, cut off the stalks from the ends and pass through a meat grinder (or chop in a blender).
2. Add sugar or honey, beat thoroughly until completely dissolved.

You need to use the remedy according to the scheme of a week of admission for a week of break, for a month, a tablespoon, before meals, three times a day. It is not worth preparing such a paste for the future, as it will lie even in the refrigerator for no more than a week.

Livka

You will need:

• half a liter of vodka, moonshine or cognac 40%;
• three ripe or overripe feijoa berries;
• 150 g of sugar;
• 100 ml filtered water;
• glassware with a volume of at least a liter with a tight lid.

Cooking

1. Wash the feijoa berries and cut off the skin from them. Cut the pulp into large cubes.
2. Dissolve sugar in water, place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce flame to low and simmer for five minutes, skimming off foam with a slotted spoon.
3. Fold the chopped berries in a clean bowl, carefully pour the sugar solution in water so that the glass does not burst.
4. After the mixture has cooled, add moonshine / vodka / cognac, shake all the contents and close the lid.
5. Infuse the drink for two weeks in a warm and dark place, taking it out and stirring it once a day.
6. At the end of the infusion time, remove the plant components and filter the residue through three-fold gauze several times, until completely transparent.

The medicinal properties of feijoa in the composition of the resulting liqueur will be greatly narrowed compared to the fresh "original". In addition, it has a weak bouquet, but in general it is not bad - especially as a homemade alcoholic drink. It can be sweetened or “reinforced” with another alcohol of the same quality, adding the components necessary for the ideal taste after the base has been infused. Store the liqueur on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator, no more than a year.