Fruits of Martinique: full of vitamins!

The different fruits of Martinique

Le Corossol

From the soursop tree, which grows in Asia, America, Africa and Oceania, the soursop is a dark green ball bristling with spines.

Its size can go up to 25 cm and its weight is generally included between 1 and 3 kilos. Its flesh is white, tender, with seeds in its center. These are indigestible. The fruit is largely composed of water, and has a high vitamin C content.

The taste is both sweet and sour, which makes it an excellent ingredient for making juice or ice cream. It is also consumed fried, integrated in a paste, or used to make fritters. The soursop would have medicinal properties, it is used as a traditional remedy.

Pineapple

The pineapple is a plant native to South America that produces a fruit of the same name. This tropical plant produces fruit between fourteen and twenty months after planting. The name would come from the Amerindians who call it “nana nana”, which means “perfume of perfumes”.

The first European navigators mention it in their writings. In Guadeloupe, the Indians offered a slice of pineapple as a gift to sailors as a sign of welcome. Or they would hang pieces of it at the entrance of their hut as a sign of hospitality.

In Martinique, pineapple is produced inland, in Ajoupa Bouillon, or Morne Rouge for example, before being sold on the local markets.

West Indian apricot (peyi apricot)

Despite its name, this fruit originating from the West Indies has no relation with the apricot as we know it in France. The country apricot is a berry with bright orange flesh that has a tart taste similar to the common apricot. It is a fruit rich in fiber, vitamins and carotene, which is mainly eaten as is, or used for making fruit juices, fruit salads, ice cream and jams.

It is a fruit with many medicinal properties. The seeds are used as a remedy against lice, the bark is also used to extract the thorns in the foot, while the flowers are used to produce essential oils. The flesh promotes the healing of wounds.

The Sugar Cane

Emblematic of Martinique, sugar cane is intimately linked to the history of the island, as well as to the practice of slavery. It is a tropical plant that resembles a reed, and whose size can reach up to six meters. It is a crop that is abundantly practiced in Martinique.

It is the second most important crop on the island, just after banana. It is from sugar cane that the excellent and famous Martinique rum is produced.

The sugar cane farms, called “habitations”, were entirely turned towards the culture of this plant. There were many sugar factories in Martinique since the beginning of the European colonization, until the use of beet sugar.

Thanks to the sugar cane, sugar, alcohol and even bio fuel (bio ethanol) are produced. In Martinique, the production is mainly used to make rum which benefits from the AOC Rhum agricole de Martinique.

Nowadays there is only one sugar factory still in activity on the island, it is the Galion in the north of Martinique in the commune of Trinité. It is also possible to visit the “Maison de la Canne” in Trois-îlets. This museum, built in the walls of an old distillery, allows you to dive into the history of sugar cane since its introduction in Martinique.

The banana

It is the main production of Martinique, (ahead of sugar cane). It is estimated that 44% of bananas landed in French ports come from Martinique. This crop occupies 30% of the cultivated agricultural land, and thousands of Martiniqueans live directly from this production.

It is also to preserve this fruit from a parasite that the pesticide Chlordecone was used for decades until the 90s, causing soil contamination, and many cancers in the population.

Different varieties of bananas are produced in Martinique, from the classic “cavendish”, to the “Ti nain”, the fig banana, or the red banana.

There is also the “plantain” banana, which is salted and which was for centuries the basis of the diet of the populations kept under the yoke of slavery. This last one can be fried or eaten as a gratin. To learn more about the culture of this fruit in Martinique, you can visit the Banana Museum located in the town of Sainte Marie.

Coconut

The coconut tree, which is a member of the palm family, was introduced to the West Indies by the Spanish in the 16th century. Coconut trees are not only used to make beautiful pictures of postcards, they give this delicious fruit so characteristic of the tropics.

The coconut is appreciated for its pulp, as well as the water it contains. Dried grated coconut is used to make jam, flour, oil and milk. Coconut has a high nutritional value and a high content of potassium, copper, zinc, magnesium and iron. Coconut water is appreciated as a refreshing, slightly sweetened drink.

Cinnamon apple

Again, don’t let the name fool you, this tropical fruit has nothing to do with the apples found in France. The cinnamon apple is a very popular fruit in tropical regions.

Coming from the cinnamon apple tree, a tree that can reach five meters in height, the fruit (also called reach) has the size of an apple. It has a peculiar appearance, covered with thick, soft scales that look like scales.

But underneath this rough appearance is a soft white flesh, albeit a bit grainy. The cinnamon apple is used for making juice, and also appreciated for its flesh. This fruit is also rich in vitamins C and B6, magnesium and potassium.

Guava

The guava is a fruit of South America, its name would come from the Arawak Indian “gayaba” (which means fruit), and would have been introduced by them in the Caribbean islands. There is a large variety of guavas (more than a hundred) whose size can vary from simple to double. In Martinique, guava is consumed in different forms: in juice, jam, pastries, cocktails … The medicinal virtues are also present, thanks to a high vitamin C content. The leaves are used in decoction or infusion, especially to treat diarrhea. The Caribbean Indians already used the guava to treat stomach aches.

Mango

The mango tree is native to the forests of India where it still grows wild. The mango, its fruit, has a dark yellow flesh with a sweet taste and a stone in its center. Its taste is reminiscent of a peach, which is why it is called the “peach of the tropics”.

There are thousands of varieties of mangoes, only in Martinique we find a hundred. Let’s mention in bulk, the following varieties among the best known: mango Bassignac, mango thyme, mango flour, ti mang, zephyrin, mango Julie, apple liane.

The Bassignac mango is undoubtedly the best known, and most popular, of the Martinique stalls.

It is recognizable by its elongated shape, its black spots and its yellow color that turns green, then orange with maturation. The Bassignac mango has the property to keep for a long time, and to improve with age. It is even said that it gives off a rum scent with time. The Bassignac mango is emblematic of Martinique, you should not leave the island without having tasted it!

The Julie mango has a pale green color and a flattened shape, its flesh is the least fibrous and its taste is delicious.

In Martinique, the mango is eaten raw but is also used in the composition of many dishes of the Creole cuisine.

Maracuja, grenadilla, or passion fruit

It is a climbing plant native to South America, of which there are many varieties, several of which are present in Martinique. The tree grows in the form of vines, and its flowers give off a delicate perfume, these flowers are called “passion flowers”.

In Martinique, the following varieties are present: the barbadine, the apple-liana (the most common), and the calabash apple. The yellow fruit contains juicy flesh that is eaten raw. It is also used to make juice and jam. It is a fruit very rich in vitamins with antioxidant properties.

Papaya

Edible fruit of the pawpaw, the pawpaw is also called “melon of the tropics”, or “island fig”. The pawpaw is native to South America and was already cultivated by the Amerindians before the arrival of the Europeans.

We now find this tree in all tropical areas. The papaya resembles the palm tree The papaya is a berry that can measure up to 30 centimeters and contains many black seeds. Green in color, the papaya contains orange-yellow flesh when ripe.

Like other exotic fruits, papaya is rich in vitamins. Papaya can be eaten both raw and cooked.

Water apple

The water apple is the fruit of the Red Jambosier, also known as the love apple tree, or water apple tree. It is a tree that can grow up to 10 meters high and its fruit looks like small pears. The fruit has a thin shiny red skin and a crunchy and juicy flesh. In the center is a large stone that is not edible.

The water apple is also known for its medicinal virtues. Its consumption is known to facilitate digestion, reduce inflammation, protect against infections and stimulate circulation. In Martinique, the water apple is eaten raw. It is a fruit whose pulp is both juicy and crunchy and whose taste, very sweet, has refreshing properties.

Quenette

The quenette is the fruit of the quenettier, a tree native to South America that was introduced to the West Indies in the early 19th century. This tree with a large trunk can reach a height of 25 meters. Its fruit is close to the lychee and resembles the lime.

The quenettes grow in clusters, its round fruits have a thin rind that can be removed to suck the pulp. In the center there is one, or more, large stone which is consumed once roasted.

In Martinique, the quenette is eaten raw, in jam or in juice. It is customary to cook the whole fruit with sugar to serve as a base for a syrup served with rum.

The quenette is a fruit that has many medicinal virtues. Rich in fiber and vitamins, it helps to strengthen the immune system and lower cholesterol levels.

Currant country

The country currant, of its scientific name Hibiscus Sabdariffa, or also called Guinea sorrel is a plant native to Africa, whose cultivation has developed in South East Asia. It is in West Africa that the plant was introduced in the nineteenth century because the climate is particularly favorable to its culture.

It is from the flowers of this plant that we make bissap, a delicious drink particularly popular in this region of Africa. The name Bissap comes from Wolof, the most spoken language in Senegal.

Guinea sorrel is a plant that can grow up to three meters high, but on average reaches a height of around two meters. The purple flowers can reach eight centimeters in diameter. Within these flowers are hidden the fruits, capsules containing small seeds of a few millimeters.

The country currant is also known for its medicinal properties. Anti inflammatory, anti oxidant, anti fungal and anti parasitic it is a plant very much used in traditional African medicines. In Martinique, the currants are very used during the Christmas festivities, to make a delicious syrup, but also in punches.