Fun With Food - dragon fruit

After my recent mooncake post Alan made a comment that I like to dissect food.  He is 100% correct.  I like to take things apart but I also do it so that you, my faithful blog readers can get a better idea of the food without being here to taste it with me.  I looked back through my blog and realized that I really haven't written too much about the food in Asia.  I am a little surprised at myself since so much of a culture is defined by food and meals...and also because I love good food.  So...I am righting that wrong starting now.  I am beginning a series titled 'fun with food' which will explore the different foods that are specific to Asia.  I hope you enjoy and if there are any foods you want me to blog about feel free to make a suggestion.

Dragon fruit

The first time I saw a dragon fruit was at the hotel breakfast buffet on my first trip to Singapore.  The interesting thing is that the part you eat looks nothing like the outside of it.  Which I guess is no different than a pineapple or cantaloupe.  I'm not sure why it is called dragon fruit but I suspect it has something to do with how scary it looks...like dragons.  Although, I do think it is sort of a pretty fruit.

To give you an idea of the size of a common dragon fruit here it is with a teaspoon...

So, how does one slay a dragon fruit?

Step 1 - cut into the dragon...

It is actually really easy to cut through despite the tough looking exterior. 

The inside reminds me of a kiwi.  There are edible seeds and a sort of mushy meaty bit.

Step 2 - take out the insides

You can just use a spoon around the edge of the shell to get the insides to pop out.

Step 3 - cut up the fruit and serve

The fun thing about the dragon fruit is that you can use the shell to serve the fruit.

So...how does it taste?  The consistency is certainly one similar to a kiwi.  It tastes a lot sweeter to me than a kiwi.  To me there is a mix of a citrus flavor and maybe an apple or pear.  I think it is tasty and worth eating again.