Individual berries merge around a central core to form the pineapple, a tropical fruit. It tastes great and has a lot of health benefits. Antioxidants, manganese, and vitamin C are abundant in this fruit. It also aids digestion and builds strong bones while boosting the immune system. They are cholesterol-free, sodium-free, and fat-free.
It is believed to have originated in the region between Paraguay and Southern Brazil. Southeast Asia is becoming one of the world’s biggest exporters. Pineapples come in about a hundred different types, all with varied shapes and sizes. Although the pineapples at your local grocery store or farmer’s market may appear to be the same, there is much more to them than meets the eye.
Hundreds of cultivars are grown in Hawaii, Costa Rica, the Philippines, Thailand, Brazil, and other countries. The sort of pineapple served in your grocery shop is likely to differ depending on where you live. Pineapples are a great treat no matter whatever variety they are, whether wrapped in chocolate, mixed in a smoothie, or cut up in a salad.
Cultivars and their distribution
Pineapple is grown extensively throughout Asia as well as South Central America. Brazil is the world’s leading pineapple grower, followed by Costa Rica, the Philippines, and Thailand. The fruit is available all year, albeit the sweetness of the fruit changes according to the weather. Pineapples are farmed primarily in the Eastern Cape and northern KwaZulu-Natal, with a smaller amount in Limpopo.
While South Africa has a thriving pineapple industry, Hawaii and Southeast Asia produce over a third of the world’s pineapples. Despite the substantial variation in the types within each class, the numerous pineapple cultivars are categorized into four primary classes in international trade.
The pineapple, scientifically known as Ananas Comosus, is a tropical plant with wonderful edible fruits. It’s a shallow-rooted plant that can reach a height of two to four feet. Since the 1820s, pineapple has been cultivated commercially in various tropical plantations and greenhouses. As a result, it is regarded as the third most important tropical fruit in terms of global output. They thrive in temperatures between 60- and 75-degrees Fahrenheit.
Pineapples with a hint of cayenne
Smooth Cayenne pineapples are probably what you’d get in an average American grocery store. They’re the most common pineapple kind grown in Hawaii, and they’re larger than most others, weighing four to ten pounds. They have unique yellow flesh that is quite delicious.
This largely Hawaiian-grown cultivar has a high sugar and acid content that makes it particularly appropriate for canning and shipping and is the type of pineapple you’re most likely to encounter in the non-wild — whether in the produce department or inside a juice box.
Smooth cayennes, despite their spicy moniker, are known for the natural sweetness of their golden interior – which they have plenty of, as this type of pineapple normally weighs between four and ten pounds.
Smooth cayennes come in a variety of flavors, including:
Hilo —This pineapple is called after a Big Island town, but it is one of the tiniest of the smooth cayenne variety. Growers still choose it because of the increased number of pups – plantlets that appear between the leaves of adult pineapples and can be replanted and are believed to produce fruit faster than a conventional pineapple seed.
St. Michael —Once again, titles can be deceiving, as this variety hails from Portugal’s Azores region, not the saintly-named Caribbean island. St. Michael pineapples are prized for their high acid-to-sugar ratios, making them one of the sweetest—and most distinctive-tasting—pineapples.
Finally, a name we can work with: Giant Kew. This pineapple heavyweight, which is most popular in India, is named from its enormous size, which may reach up to 22 pounds per fruit!
Pineapples from Spain, red
Red Spanish pineapples are orange-red in color and grown in the Caribbean, as their name suggests. It yields fruit with a bright yellow color and a flavor that is fragrant. They’re tough and fiber-rich, but they’re not as tender as other types.
Red Spanish pineapples are much smaller than their Smooth Cayenne counterparts, peaking at roughly four pounds and with pinkish-red pineapple buds on the vine.
Their fruit is pale yellow on the inside, fragrant, and fibrous. Their leaves are also very tough, with cultivars cultivated specifically for the textile industry in the Philippines.
Among the family’s notable members are:
Cabezon —Grown largely in Mexico, this cultivar is so large and robust that it’s usually separated from the plant with a machete. It has a yellowy-orange exterior and a bittersweet interior, unlike many other varieties.
Valera —An historic pineapple type that originated in Puerto Rico, Valera is extremely vivid, with purple-tipped green leaves, a yellow-orange peel, and white flesh inside.
Monte Oscuro —With broad, saw-toothed, and spiny leaves, huge, barrel-chested fruit, and deep-set yellow meat, the Monte Oscuro is perhaps the most threatening pineapple cultivar to date. Every rose – or pineapple, for that matter – must have its thorns.
Red from Singapore —These pineapples are very popular for canning because of their overall resilience to disease and pests. These pineapples are very attractive to look at, thanks to their red-striped leaves and reddish-golden meat.
Pineapple Queens
Queen pineapples are dark-yellow in color and have a small core. They are usually found in Australia and South Africa. The aroma and flavor of the Queen pineapple are good, but it does not can well. It’s preferable to consume them raw. Other types of pineapple are more susceptible to diseases and cold temperatures than queen pineapples.
“Though she is small, she is fearless!”
When Shakespeare wrote that statement, he didn’t have a pineapple in mind, but he might as well have. The pineapple queens are the tiniest of the lot, and some agronomists regard them as “dwarf” types.
However, despite their diminutive stature, they pack a powerful punch, thanks to a rich yellow flesh that is extremely delectable. Even so, with some kinds taste considerably better fresh than canned, you’re unlikely to see a Queen stray far from her reign.
The following are some of the most popular Queen Pineapple varieties:
Queen of the Natal — Natal Queen pineapples are mostly grown in Australia, South Africa, and Malaysia, and are considered one of the tastiest varieties available, despite the fact that they only weigh about 12 pounds per fruit.
MacGregor —With firmer flesh than its siblings, this Queen Pineapple variety is more robust, spreading broader, father, and quicker than nearly all the others. The most likely places to see it are Australia and South Africa.
Ripley —This cultivar, named after a sci-fi queen (if there ever was one), is perhaps just as strange: It has a distinctive pale-copper exterior, pale yellow flesh that is quite tasty, and red foliage. The plant, on the other hand, only sprouts on a periodic basis, making its fruiting timetable rather unpredictable.
Abacaxi
This class of pineapple, which bears some of the most delectable pineapple fruits, is as unusual to try as it is pleasant to eat, thanks to its delicate, soft, and juicy flesh. (After all, precious stuff is far more difficult to transport.)
Abacaxi pineapples are delicious and disease-resistant, making them a popular crop to raise. They can be anything from two and eleven pounds in weight. They’re tall and spiky, with flesh that’s virtually translucent. They’re tasty, but they’re a little too delicate for commercial use.
Those who are fortunate enough to try it, including anyone who has had the pleasure of eating it, are unlikely to forget the experience.
White Kauai is the stuff pineapple fantasies are made of, and this Hawaii-bred variety has it all. This pineapple’s fruit is white and soft, with almost no acidity, making it extremely tasty – so it’s a good thing the core is also edible
Sugarloaf — Like the White Kauai, Sugarloaf has a smooth, sweet interior with fragile white flesh. It’s less fibrous than other pineapple cousins, with a less woody core that’s also tasty to eat.
Black Antigua – This unusual cultivar is grown solely in Antigua, where it is renowned as the island’s hallmark fruit. It is regularly labeled as the world’s rarest pineapple. It’s a lovely cultivar with greenish-white skin, red striped leaves, and golden meat with low acid, high sugar, and a lot of flavor.
Montufar —This Abacaxi cultivar is predominantly grown in Guatemala and is one of the more colorful cultivars on the block. It has a greenish exterior with a bright yellow interior loaded with sweet and juicy flesh.
Pineapples from Pernambuco
Pineapples from Pernambuco are primarily farmed in Brazil. They have a mild flavor and are white, soft, and juicy. They’re yellow on the inside and out, with long, spiky leaves that stand out.
Pineapples from Mordilona
Mordilona pineapples are grown in Colombia and Venezuela’s northern Andes. They have a yellow to orange peel and are big, uneven, and cylindrical. The meat is delicious and cream-colored.
Sugarloaf from Kona
Smooth Cayenne pineapple is known as Kona Sugarloaf. It has a white flesh with a lot of sugar and no acidity. It’s sweet and wonderful in an odd way. One distinguishing trait of this pineapple is that the center is not woody, but rather delicate and entirely edible.
Brecheche
Brecheche pineapples are cylinder-shaped, tiny, and olive in color. There are no spikes on this plant. Brecheche has a yellow flesh that is fragrant and delicious, with a little core.
Singapore Red
Singapore Green leaves with a scarlet stripe at the end characterize red pineapples. The reddish, cylindrical, tiny fruits with golden-yellow flesh. They’re resistant to illness and pests, and they’re ideal for canning.
Panare
This pineapple is named after a Venezuelan Indian tribe that farmed it. The orange-colored fruit has a bottle form. The flesh is a bright yellow color with a little core and a mild fragrance.
It doesn’t matter which pineapple variety you choose; it’ll be great.
Health Advantages
Pineapples, which are commonly used as pizza toppings, are nutrient-dense cultivars that are high in enzymes and antioxidants. These fruits also provide numerous health benefits, including improved digestion, improved immunity, reduced risk of chronic diseases, and reduced oxidative stress. These are just a handful of the numerous reasons why pineapples are widely regarded as the world’s most popular fruit.
Final Words
So, if you dare, take a pineapple at its face value. But do so at the risk of missing out on a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get to know them from the inside out. The fruit is an herbaceous perennial with over a hundred different types and a maturation time of over three years. It has the ability to bear fruit three times during its lifetime. It also produces flowers in a variety of colors, including red, purple, and lavender.