On Food and Cooking

(Barry) #1

Ripe breadfruit is sweet and soft, even
semiliquid, and made into desserts.


Lychee Lychees are subtropical Asian tree
fruits (from Litchi chinensis) the size of a
small plum, with a dry, loose skin and a large
seed. The edible portion is its fleshy seed
covering, or aril, which is pale white, sweet,
and distinctively floral due to the presence of
a number of terpenes (rose oxide, linalool,
geraniol; Gewürztraminer grapes and wine
share many of the same notes). Lychees with
small, undeveloped seeds are called “chicken-
tongue” fruit and are prized because there’s
more flesh than seed. Lychees don’t improve
in flavor once taken from the tree. A common
problem with lychees is a brown discoloration
of the flesh due to drying out or chilling
injury. They’re best held at cool room
temperatures in a loose plastic bag. When
cooked, fresh lychees sometimes develop a
pink undertone as phenolic aggregates are

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