Garcinia: what kind of fruit is it and why is it useful?

Garcinia is a child of the tropics, so in Russia the plant can be seen only in greenhouses or in the homes of passionate florists.

What is the fruit

Garcinia fruits are not only quite edible, they are delicious and widely used in dishes prepared in the countries where this plant grows. The most famous representative of this fruit family is the purple mangosteen, slightly less popular are the red-orange candida and the golden tamarind.

What it looks like

Garcinia can be a shrub, but most often it is an evergreen tree of considerable height, reaching 15-20 meters - about the same height as a 5-7-story house. Its leaves have a dense structure. On the upper side they are lush green, on the lower - pale, even dull. The length of the leaf is about 25 cm, width - about 10 cm.

Garcinia blooms with fleshy cream or pinkish-green aromatic flowers. After flowering, the tree produces fruits similar to persimmons or small pumpkins, just as bright, shiny, and slightly flattened above and below. Each fruit is about 5 cm in size. Its rind color varies depending on the species, and there are at least 50 of them: Cambodian is green or pale yellow, Livingston is bright orange, Indian is purple.

Beneath the rind hides juicy tender flesh, which also comes in different colors - orange, golden, and white. The flesh is divided into four slices, each with small pips.

The taste of the fruit is juicy, refreshing, sour-sweet, the balance of acidity and sweetness depends on the species.

Where to grow

The evergreen garcinia tree grows in tropical climates where it is warm and moist. It is found in Asian countries - Thailand, Malaysia, India, in southern Africa, Australia and the Polynesian Islands. In the 20th century, the crop was introduced to southern Europe.

What is the usefulness of the garcinia fruit?

Both scientific medicine and folk healers note that the fruit of the plant has a rich set of healing qualities. First of all, it is anti-inflammatory and antiviral effects. So, thanks to their use increases the immunity, facilitates the course of seasonal diseases, reduces the number of complications after them.

Garcinia has a marked effect on the intestines, speeding up digestion, peristalsis, gently removes toxins and slag. Thanks to this there is a normalization of lipid metabolism, the proper and rapid breakdown of carbohydrates and fats, which helps those who want to lose weight to speed up this process.

The ability of the fruit of the plant to neutralize free radicals has been noted. It has been found that thanks to Garcinia, blood hemoglobin levels improve. Doctors believe that this fruit prevents the growth of neoplasms and the transformation of benign into malignant.

Garcinia fruits are also useful for the heart, maintaining its normal rhythm and stabilizing blood pressure, preventing coronary artery disease. For elderly people, they help slow down the deterioration of vision associated with age-related changes in the optic nerve, as well as support crepuscular vision.

For women, the fruit is useful not only as a treat, they can be used as a component of nourishing, rejuvenating masks, and for teenagers, as a remedy for age-related acne.

What harm can it do?

In the consumption of the fruit of this tropical fruit, the main thing is not to go overboard, because, as any unfamiliar product, garcinia can cause a negative reaction from the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, it is quite possible to be allergic to it. For the same reason, it is not recommended to eat Garcinia for children under 5 years old, pregnant and breastfeeding women, as there is a possibility of ingesting allergens in the body of the baby.

Garcinia is contraindicated to those who suffer from diabetes, as well as kidney disease and liver failure.

Because of the high content of ascorbic acid with the fruit should be careful of people who have been diagnosed with stomach ulcer or duodenal ulcer, gastritis with increased secretory function, colitis.

When depressed and nervous disorders, the tropical fruit can worsen the condition of the patient, and using Garcinia concomitantly with antidepressants and sedatives is undesirable.

If you overeat garcinia, nausea, stomach pain and diarrhea are possible. If such signs appear - stop using it.

How to eat garcinia properly

When fresh, the young garcinia fruits have soft skin. It is easy to cut off with a sharp knife. The main thing is not to crush the juicy middle. You have to cut the fruit in half, and take out the pulp with a dessert or teaspoon.

You can eat just the raw pulp or cut it into pieces and add ice cubes to it. This is how the fruit is served in many restaurants and cafes in the homeland of Garcinia - in Asia.

Garcinia is great with watermelon, papaya, pineapple, grapes and melon, making it a frequent ingredient in fruit salads or refreshing drinks.

What can be made with garcinia

Garcinia peels are used to season herbs which are dried either by drying in the open air with plenty of ventilation or in an electric dryer and then ground in a coffee mill. This seasoning goes well with fish dishes, meat, rice, salads, beans, and potatoes.

Garcinia pulp has a light sourish-fresh flavor. In Asian countries, it is often used in cooking.

Salad with seafood

You need to chop half a chili pepper in thin rings (be sure to remove the seeds). In the same way - in rings - chop half of the shallot. Mix the onions and chilies in a bowl.

Prepare the sauce, for which a medium garcinia peel, purée with a blender, add 20-30 ml of white wine, salt and boil a bit to thicken - you should get 50 g of sauce. You can replace it with a simpler sauce: add 2 tablespoons of lime juice to the juice of a garcinia. Pour the sauce into the chili and shallot mixture, set aside to allow the mass to infuse.

Further preparation:

1. Prepare 10 king prawns: defrost, boil for no longer than two minutes, remove shell and remove esophagus.
2. Boil 100g of chicken breast, cut into cubes.
3. Dice 100g of fresh pineapple.
4. Halve 3-4 cherry tomatoes.
5. Tear the leaves from three sprigs of mint.
6. In a salad bowl, mix shrimp with chopped chicken fillets, pineapple, cherry tomatoes, mint leaves and dress with dressing.

Fruit salad

For a tropical salad, take a garcinia fruit and four other fruits of any kind, the main thing is that they have different flavors. Choose from papaya, kiwi, pineapple, watermelon, any citrus, pitahaya, banana, pomegranate, apple.

Process:

1. Cut the fruit into pieces, fill with 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in half with sugar syrup, prepared in advance (100 g of sugar boil with 100 ml of water until completely dissolved and strain).
2. For flavor, aroma and beauty add 2-3 mint leaves.

Garcinia jam

It is impossible to make jam from this fruit, since its flesh is so tender that it loses its shape when heated. But the jam turns out great!

Cooking process:

1. Peel the fruit, remove the pips, cut the pulp, mix with sugar and set aside to allow the juice to release. For 1 kg of pulp you need 0.5 kg of sugar (preferably brown sugar).
2. Boil the jam on low heat with continuous stirring. As soon as it starts to thicken, add a teaspoon of cinnamon.

Jelly

Cooking Process:

1. Dissolve gelatin (tablespoonful) in half a cup of freshly squeezed tangerine juice.
2. Peel six medium-sized garcinia fruits and purée with a blender.
3. Stir the puree with the juice in which the gelatin has swollen, and put on a low heat. While stirring, add honey, its amount is determined by taste - whoever likes it. Those who like sour can do without honey. Bring the jelly mass to a homogeneous form.
4. Remove from the stove, pour into silicone forms, and place in the refrigerator. Sprinkle the jelly over the melted chocolate before serving.

Cottage Cheese Dessert

Preparation process:

1. Dilute in a small amount of water 30 g of gelatin, leave to swell.
2. Mix 600g of yoghurt (dairy, no fruit filling) with 200g of curd mixture, add 0.5 teaspoon of vanilla, pour in the gelatine, beat the whole mass with a blender, pour it into moulds (halfway up, not the top) and leave in the fridge.
3. While the mass is hardening, peel the garcinia and rub it through a sieve, or purée it with a blender. You can add honey for sweetness.
4. On the first layer of yogurt and curd mass spread the garcinia puree with honey and another layer of yogurt - now to the top of the mold. Sprinkle grated chocolate on top.

Garcinia Nectar

Option 1: mix the garcinia juice, apple juice and watermelon juice equally.

Option 2: mix the garcinia and pomegranate juices equally, add puree made from a banana to taste.

Variant 2: mix juices of kiwi, pitahaya, watermelon, garcinia in a ratio of 2:2:2:1.

Use in folk medicine

Garcinia has the ability to improve metabolism and digestion, stimulate the intestines, have a laxative effect, reduce appetite and burn fat, so it is used as a tool for weight loss. In this case, thanks to the fact that the plant is a source of vitamins and natural minerals, in the process of losing weight the human body is saturated with these useful substances.

Tea for weight loss
Cut into small pieces the dried fruit of Garcinia, take a teaspoon of pieces and pour a glass of boiling water over them. You can also add dried leaves of the plant. Infuse the tea for 10-15 minutes. Since the drink itself has an unsaturated taste, it is good to add spices (ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, lemon, orange) or dried fruit to improve it.

Drink the tea both warm and cold, half an hour or an hour before meals. The main thing - do not forget that the best effect is achieved with the necessary rules of a balanced diet and sports activities.

How to grow

Because Garcinia grows in the tropics, it's important to create a suitable temperature regime for it at home.

Before planting, the seeds of the plant should be held for 30 minutes in a weak, pale pink solution of manganese. For the soil, mix half garden soil with compost - such soil is closest in composition to the rich crumbly soil of rainforests. Cover the pot with the planted seeds with polyethylene film, moisten the soil infrequently - as it dries.

The plants take a long time to germinate, perhaps the first shoots will not appear until 4-6 months after planting. After that, remove the foil, and the little garcinia daily spraying.

In a large pot in a permanent place transplanted better in the spring, when it is warm and a lot of sun. The larger the plant, the larger the container required. For a tree about 1,2-1,5 m you need a pot of about 20 liters, it is better if it will be heavier - made of ceramic, not plastic. At the bottom you need a drainage hole.

At the bottom of the pot to put 2-3 cm of gravel or expanded clay, and then pour the soil mixture, in which to plant the tree. Put it near a sunny window and water weekly, using at least 3-4 liters of standing water. Between waterings, spray the foliage to keep the humidity close to tropical.

In the nature Garcinia grows to a huge size, in conditions of the house or apartment you can form a tree not more than 2 m high, regularly pruning sharply growing young branches.

Garcinia is affected by pests very rarely, but likes to fertilize with organic fertilizers and nitrogen. Feeding is best in spring and summer, when the period of active growth begins. In autumn and winter, give the plant a period of relative rest.

In summer, the tree should be taken to fresh air - a balcony or terrace, protected from sharp gusts of wind and draughts. At the first forecasts of a drop in temperature, the plant should be brought into warmth.

Facts about the fruit

1. Under natural conditions, the garcinia actively grows throughout the year and bestows fruit twice a year.
2. The wood is very attractive, it is studded with beautiful brown veins, it is almost rot-proof, heavy and dense. The trunks of old trees, no longer suitable for fruiting, are used to make furniture, doors, hoops on barrels.
3. Garcinia has resins that contain a brownish-yellow component called xanthone, which makes it into dyes.

Photo of garcinia fruit