The best thing about traveling has to be the food you get to try. Usually, this involves some carefully prepared dishes, local restaurants, and a lot of calories; however, one thing we always forget about is the fruit! Around the world, there are plenty of fruits that you probably haven’t even heard of. Check out this list of 6 exotic fruits around the world, and make sure you try some of them next time you travel.
1. Rambutan
Rambutan originally comes from Malaysia, but you can find it in many countries in South-East Asia. Rambut means hair in Malay and you will recognize this fruit by the fact that it is covered in red hairs. On the inside it is delicious and juicy, so you can eat it raw or in a salad.
2. Lucuma
Lucuma is a very sweet type of fruit you can find in Peru. Due to its texture, it is rarely seated raw; however, you can add it to almost anything you can imagine including cakes, pie, ice cream, and even coffee. Lucuma cannot be found anywhere in the world, so we recommend booking a flight to Peru if you want to try this one. Be careful when it comes to price – Lucuma is not extremely expensive, but there are some places that overcharge this specialty.
3. Pacay (Ice Cream Bean)
Pacay, which is also known as Guama or as Ice Cream Bean, can also be found in South America. This fruit looks like a bean except it has a cotton candy texture on the inside that melts in your mouth. It is also a lot sweeter than most beans are.
4. Chayote
Chayote is a type of melon that can be found in Mexico. There are so many ways you can eat this fruit – raw, cooked, in salads, and even marinated in lemon. Even though the skin looks like it needs to be removed before you start eating, you actually don’t. You can just eat the whole thing and it is delicious.
5. Durian
Some time ago there was a Youtube challenge in which you needed to open up this fruit. ‘But what kind of a challenge is that?’ you might be wondering. Well, the challenge lies in the fact that this fruit has a very potent odor that makes you not want to come near it. There are even certain restaurants and hotels that forbid their guests from bringing in this fruit because of the horrible smell. However, once you ignore the smell, and you manage to open it up (you need to break it open, similarly to a coconut), you will be able to enjoy the delicious taste of Durian. This fruit can also be quite pricey, so make sure you get a good deal.
6. Buddha’s Hand
In China and India, you might come across Buddha’s Hand, which is a type of citrus fruit that looks like a big lemon-skinned hand. Although it tastes great, Buddha’s Hand is also used as decoration, as well as in perfumes due to its strong scent.
