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The Traveling Kiwi
Now that spring approaches, thoughts often turn to sun-ripened fruit, a cool, sweet juicy bite that delights as much as it refreshes. Kiwi, with its fuzzy brown peel and bright emerald flesh, is proving one can't judge a book by its cover, slowly but surely making its way onto modern menus in signature dishes and specialty cocktails. Its unique taste, sort of a hybrid of banana, strawberry and pineapple, is a welcome addition to today's ever-growing flavor profiles.
A late-comer on the international market, the kiwifruit, borne on woody, twining vines and shrubs, first made its appearance in northern and eastern China, where it was known as Yang Tao ("sunny peach") or Mihao Tao ("macaque peach"), but renamed several times. Once, for descriptive purposes by the Europeans ("Chinese gooseberry"), another for export marketing reasons in the 50's ("melonette"), and lastly, by the first batch of outside growers from New Zealand to "kiwifruit," named after their national symbol, a brown flightless bird, for mass appeal reasons alone. It's ironic that this is the name that stuck and eventually became adopted because it was such an irrelevent suggestion containing absolutely no actual ties to its origin. Since then, the fruit has traveled all over the world, now also grown widely in Europe and North America.
Although regarded as the "National Fruit" of the People's Republic of China, the country was never extremely interested in exploiting or even utilizing the fruit, regarding the kiwi solely as a tonic for growing children and for women after childbirth. This is truly a shame because of its staggering nutritional benefits. For example, one kiwi contains more vitamin C than an orange and just as much potassium as a banana, with additional healthy doses of fiber and beta-carotene, which can considerably decrease the chances of diabetes, colon cancer and cardiovascular disease. Some international studies have also shown health benefits to the respiratory tract, preventing asthma, wheezing and coughing, particularly in children.
It's also quite versatile in both sweet and savory applications. Its easiest and most simple preparation is just peeled, sliced and eaten, but it can also be a delicious addition to cheesecakes, tarts and
cereal, a surprising component in a chicken salad, or pureed and integrated into a refreshing cocktail. Perhaps one of the more interesting uses is that of a meat tenderizer, perfect for a short-term rub or marinade on a less tender cut of meat (after about 10 minutes the enzyme effect will be excessive). The same enzyme, however, makes raw kiwi unsuitable for use in desserts containing dairy or gelatin, breaking down those proteins, liquefying and in some instances, absorbing the ingredients. However, a quick bake or saute of the fruit can overcome this obstacle.
This mysterious, beautiful fruit is definitely an unsung hero of the season. Be sure to try a kiwi margarita at Yankee Pier before the season is over.
Eat fresh, eat local, always!
