Pineapple

Also known asAnanas comosus · Nanas · 菠萝 · 凤梨

Name: Pineapple (Ananas comosus).

Description

Pineapple is the edible fruit of a perennial plant in the family Bromeliaceae, native to tropical and subtropical America and long since carried to warm regions worldwide. Botanically, it is not a single fruit at all but a “multiple fruit”: a flower stalk bears dozens of individual purple flowers, and as they mature their fleshy bases fuse together around a central core into the one familiar spiky-skinned fruit. The earliest written accounts of pineapple come from Christopher Columbus and later Spanish chroniclers, who encountered it already being grown and eaten — and fermented into wine — by people in the West Indies.

Portuguese sailors were largely responsible for spreading pineapple around the world, introducing it to the South Atlantic island of Saint Helena shortly after 1502 and from there to Africa and, by around 1550, to India. By the close of the 16th century, cultivation had reached tropical regions across the globe, including islands of the South Pacific. Today the leading commercial growers include Costa Rica, Brazil, China, India, and Thailand.

Main nutrition value

Per 100g, raw pineapple:

Pineapple is an exceptional source of manganese — close to a full day's value in a single 100g serving — and also delivers a strong dose of vitamin C, along with smaller amounts of potassium and copper.

How best to be consumed

Pineapple is most often eaten fresh, cored and cut into rings, wedges, or chunks once the skin has been trimmed away; it also grills well, as the heat mellows its acidity and caramelizes its natural sugars. The fruit and stem contain bromelain, an enzyme that helps tenderize meat and is one reason pineapple works well in savory marinades. Canned pineapple is a convenient year-round alternative, though it typically comes packed in juice or syrup that adds extra sugar compared with the fresh fruit.

Overconsumption could cause…

Eating a lot of pineapple at once, especially underripe fruit, can cause a stinging or raw sensation in the mouth and tongue — a result of the bromelain enzyme acting on the mouth's soft tissue — along with mild digestive upset from its acidity and fiber. The fruit's acidity can also aggravate heartburn or mouth sores in people prone to them. These effects are uncommon with typical serving sizes and fade quickly once eating stops.

GroupsTropical FruitsLow fatLow sodiumRich in vitamin CFresh

Made intoDried PineapplePineapple Juice

Related foodsLonganMangoFeijoaLycheeSoursopGuava

U.S. Department of Agriculture, FoodData Central — Pineapple, raw, (FDC ID 2346398), 100g portion: https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2346398/nutrients Encyclopaedia Britannica — Pineapple: https://www.britannica.com/plant/pineapple