Granatapfel

Connoisseurs know that, unlike with a conventional apple, the beautiful exterior of a pomegranate is not what counts. The firm shell serves to protect the juicy, pressure-sensitive seeds with their bittersweet taste. The shell is usually reddish, light orange to yellowish or brownish in color and often blotchy. The tastiest fruits often look anything but beautiful from the outside.

The pomegranate, which enjoys the greatest popularity in the Orient, is the pseudo-berry fruit of the 5-8 m high, evergreen pomegranate tree. The yellow-brown to dark red fruit is as large as an apple and crowned with 6 hardened calyx lobe tips. Under the fruit's approximately 5 mm thick shell is the jelly-like pulp, which, divided into several compartments, contains countless seeds enveloped in a sweet-aromatic seed coat.

Origin

The pomegranate tree is native to the area from Western Asia to the Himalayas. It is cultivated in Afghanistan, Iran, Spain, Italy, Israel, the Canary Islands, Madeira, Cyprus and California. Pomegranates are constantly on the market in the second half of the year; from October to December from Spain, Turkey and Italy, from June to October from Israel and other Mediterranean countries. There are many varieties, but this is irrelevant for the trade.

Tips

Caution! The tannic acid contained in the fruit causes brownish stains on clothing that are difficult to remove.

Preparation

To use, cut the hard, inedible shell of the pomegranate several times from the calyx to the stem. Then pull off the segments to expose the inside of the fruit. However, you can also simply cut the fruit in half. The seeds impair the enjoyment somewhat; normally you chew them out. Of course, pomegranates can also be juiced; the resulting juice tastes pleasantly sweet to slightly tart. Juice and seed coats are also used in fruit salads, sundaes, pomegranate cream, etc. A special party gag is to pre-chill the pomegranate, then roll it on a hard surface until the juice loosens inside, then drill a small hole in it, insert a straw and drink it.