Grapefruit

The Grapefruit is the largest citrus fruit and has a diameter of up to 30 centimeters. Their flesh is yellowish to pink or reddish and has a fine, characteristic sweet and sour taste with a tart and bitter undertone, similar to grapefruit, which is a cross between grapefruit and orange.

The grapefruit is a valuable citrus fruit due to its taste and its health-relevant secondary plant substances such as minerals and trace elements, enzymes and a number of important vitamins, especially vitamin C.

What you should know about grapefruit

The grapefruit is an evergreen tree of the tropics, which belongs to the diamond family. The round, oval or almost pear-shaped fruit of the same name is the largest citrus fruit with a diameter of up to 30 centimeters and a weight of up to 6 kilograms.

Characteristic is their thick skin (up to 1.5 cm) and the bitter taste of the separating skins that divide the individual fruit segments. The fruit is very similar to the grapefruit and is often confused with it, but it is a separate citrus fruit from which the grapefruit developed by crossing with a variety of orange. The origins of the grapefruit lie in the tropical regions of Southeast Asia. Due to its valuable ingredients, it is now cultivated in many tropical to subtropical regions right up to the still frost-free areas of temperate zones.

The main growing areas for export are the USA, Brazil and Israel. Depending on the variety, the pulp is yellowish to pink or even red. Varieties with dark pulp are usually sweeter in taste than the light-fleshed grapefruit. The main harvest time in the tropical and subtropical areas of the northern hemisphere is from December to June with slight shifts forwards or backwards depending on the weather.

Unlike the grapefruit, the grapefruit cannot simply be cut in half and spooned out of the peel because the skin separating it is very bitter.

However, the peel of the grapefruit comes off the pulp more easily and the individual fruit segments are more stable than with the grapefruit, so that the pulp can easily be detached and freed from the separating membranes. If grapefruits are offered outside of the main harvest season from November to July, we recommend checking their origin. It should then be a region south of the equator in which the main vegetation seasons are shifted by six months compared to those in the northern hemisphere.

Importance to health

Although the pulp of the grapefruit can taste very sweet, its nutritional value (calorific value) is about 46 kilocalories, even slightly below that of the grapefruit. The health value of grapefruit is not based on its primary nutritional content, because apart from 9 grams of sugar (carbohydrates) per 100 grams, proteins and fats are only present in traces.

The health significance of the grapefruit lies in its rich supply of secondary plant substances with health relevance. Their extraordinarily high content of vitamin C and some other essential vitamins from the vitamin B complex as well as vitamin E deserves special mention. In addition, grapefruits are valued as a supplier of metabolically relevant minerals - especially potassium - and trace elements. The particular health significance is less due to the metabolic effectiveness of individual substances than to the interaction of all ingredients.

They offer the body and its immune system help to help itself, because the body can choose from the substances it needs to be able to manufacture certain substances itself. The immune system then does not suffer from the fact that the required basic substances are not available and any necessary defense reactions therefore fail to materialize. A special health effect is caused by the breakdown product of the bitter substance naringenin it contains.

It leads to an inhibition of a certain enzyme in the liver, which, among other things, ensures the breakdown of certain toxins and drugs. In reality, the effectiveness of special drugs such as B. Statins (cholesterol lowering drugs) and beta blockers can be greatly increased and changed. The effects of drugs can also increase and delay their breakdown.

Ingredients & nutritional values

The nutritional value of grapefruit is - as stated above - surprisingly low at 46 kilocalories. It is therefore not the fruit that provides the quick energy boost during vigorous physical exercise or competitive sports.

On the contrary, the bitter substances contained stimulate the production of gastric juice and thus the digestion. As a result, nutrients and energy (sugar) are delivered more quickly from food, which in turn is associated with a feeling of satiety that sets in more quickly. The ingredients that have nothing to do with the nutritional value are therefore in the foreground of the grapefruit.

These are, based on 100 grams of pulp, vitamin C with 61 milligrams as well as some vitamins from the B complex, carotenoids as precursors to the formation of vitamin A and significant concentrations of vitamin E (270 micrograms). When it comes to minerals, the grapefruit primarily supplies potassium, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

Intolerances & allergies

In addition to the above-mentioned - sometimes dangerous - interactions of certain ingredients of grapefruit with many drugs, especially statins (lowering cholesterol), blood pressure lowerers and beta-blockers to stabilize the heart rhythm, there are in rare cases intolerance or allergic reactions due to the contained biogenic amines.

These are histamines that play an important role in inflammatory reactions. In addition, grapefruits also supply so-called histamine liberators, which induce the immune system to release histamines.

Shopping & kitchen tips

As with other citrus fruits, it is advisable to ensure that the grapefruit is organic in order to ensure that the fruits are not contaminated with pesticides and that the greatest possible variety of ingredients is available.

Since there is often no distinction between grapefruit and grapefruit, the appearance of the fruit should also correspond to the characteristic features of the grapefruit. Grapefruits are round to pear-shaped and flattened on the top and bottom. It is a ripening fruit that should not be stored in the refrigerator because it is sensitive to cold and quickly loses its aroma and taste at temperatures below 8 degrees.

The fruit ripens best at room temperature and stays fresh for about two weeks. The pulp is more stable than that of grapefruit and the 10 to 15 fruit segments can be more easily removed from the skin and the white, bitter-tasting segment skins removed. When raw, grapefruit can contribute to the healthy enrichment of many dishes.

Preparation tips

The grapefruit can very well contribute to the enrichment of an exotic fruit salad, but should not be mixed with other citrus fruits. Their sweet to slightly sour flavors unfold best in combination with bananas, berries, apples, pears and grapes. Chopped walnuts also go very well with it. Alternatively, the juice of the grapefruit can be used to flavor salad dressings and other dressings. Grapefruit juice can also develop its flavoring effect in cocktails or fruit punch.