SupplySide

Preserving Your Fruit Options

May 1, 2003 Allison Rittman Comments

Posted in Articles, Spreads, Jams / Jellies

Apple tarts. Caramelized bananas. Poached pears. These dishes commonly finish off a meal. But fruit is no longer bound to the dessert category, and has many other uses besides simply adding flavor.

From form to functionality, applications for fruits and the components contained within them abound. The components of fruits are very important in developing applications and formulations; acidity, sugar and pectin levels are three major factors to consider when using fruit.

What is a fruit? Botanically, fruits are categorized as the mature plant ovaries that house seed(s). This definition would include tomatoes and avocados, as well as cucumbers. Typically, consumers and manufacturers group fruits by their uses — sweet or savory. Therefore the fruits cucumber and tomato are relegated to the “vegetable” category, while strawberries and rhubarb, neither a true fruit, are classified as “fruits.” Strawberries, the only fruit with the seeds on the outside, actually originate from the base of the flower, not the ovary. Botanically classified as a vegetable, rhubarb is a leaf stalk, but it’s frequently paired with strawberries in fruit applications, though it might also show up as the star of the dish as in spiced rhubarb crumble.

Fruit applications are becoming more inventive and crossing over from the sweet category into savory realms. Some pairings are very traditional, such as applesauce served with potato pancakes or duck à la orange. Others, such as chicken-apple sausage, and raspberry-chipotle roast pork, address the consumer’s needs for unique and innovative dishes that deliver bold flavor. Fruit can contribute to eye appeal, too. Pomegranate seeds can add a splash of brilliant red color to salads and dried cranberries in a scone provide both eye appeal and a wonderful tart flavor.

New and “revived” fruits are also making an appearance. The tangelo, a cross between a mandarin orange and a grapefruit, currently is widely marketed. Tangelos are larger than tangerines, contain fewer seeds and have the desirable flavors of the tangerine. They can be used in place of an orange or grapefruit. Pummelo, also called Chinese grapefruit, is making a comeback. Its flavor falls somewhere between a grapefruit and an orange, without the bitterness. New hybrids, such as Plucots™ (apricot/plum), with mostly apricot flavors, but the juicy texture and slight tartness of a plum, and the rosy red Peacotum™ (peach/apricot/plum), featuring mostly peach/apricot notes in the pale flesh, and a red skin, are not far behind. These new hybrids are typically interchangeable with their genetic “parents” and can add new dimension to an old dish.

In the fruit bowl

First, consider the vast number of choices when determining which fruit to use in an application. Start with the basics: fresh, frozen, dried or canned? Fresh fruit has many advantages for providing true flavor impact, nutrients and beautiful color. On the other hand, fresh fruits also can be inconsistent in flavor, seasonal, difficult and costly to transport without damage, and carry a higher food-safety risk.

Dried fruits tend to be intense in flavor and easier to store, but are also higher in caloric content on a weight basis due to their low moisture content (and they can also be sugar infused and/or coated with oils to prevent sticking), can lose essential vitamins through heat exposure and may also discolor in the drying process. Additives can help alleviate some of these problems; processors treat light-colored dried fruit with sulfur dioxide to counter the browning effect. Canning can destroy or leach out some of the vitamins and minerals found in fresh fruits, and the fiber content is often reduced because, typically, canned fruits are peeled.

Frozen fruit comes in a variety of forms. Individually quick frozen (IQF) fruit does not contain added sugar, but block-frozen fruit may be added sugar-free, sugar-added or even packed in fruit juice. Pastes, purees and juices provide another possible choice. These give product designers alternatives to fit their specific formulation requirements for flavor, moisture, texture, sweetness, acidity, cost, etc. The type of fruit used will depend on the final application and the manufacturing parameters for the item. Fruit juice, for example, might be the perfect choice in a cream sauce for added sweetness and acidity, without the fiber and particulates. On the other hand, fresh fruit might be a better choice in applesauce, where texture and mouthfeel are very important.

Fruits generally are low in fat and protein but high in water content, carbohydrates, and certain minerals and vitamins. Even within a type of fruit, there may be different compounds present due to variety or growing conditions. For example, certain varieties of apples make a better choice for baking, such as those that hold their shape (Rome, Gala). Use full-flavored, bold apples for applesauce (Jonathon, Winesap). Other apple selections perform better in pies, when texture is key (Empire, Granny Smith, Braeburn). Still others are best for simply eating out of hand (Golden Delicious, Northern Spy).

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