Dragonfruit

Pitaya fruit, pitahaya fruit, commonly known as the dragon fruit, is a fruit from Central America, South America, and Asia. It has a light sweet taste, a distinctive shape and color, and a texture close to a kiwi. In addition to being tasty and refreshing, it contains a lot of water and other important minerals and nutrients.^[1]

Dragon fruit

Fruits on a plant

Flower

Pitaya usually refers to fruit of the genus Stenocereus, while pitahaya or dragon fruit refers to fruit of the genus Selenicereus (formerly Hylocereus), both in the family Cactaceae.^[2] The common name in English – dragon fruit – derives from the leather-like skin and scaly spikes on the fruit exterior. Depending on the variety, pitaya fruits may have sweet- or sour-tasting flesh that can be red, white, or yellow in color.

Occurrence

It is also known as “pitaya” if it comes from the very closely related Stenographers genus. The actual dragon fruit is the fruit of the cactus genus Hylocereus.^[3] Occuring in Mexico, South America, as well as Central America. It is possible it was introduced to Southeast Asian nations through Vietnam, alongside trade with the French during the 1800s. Cambodia, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam, and the Philippines, where it still holds as an important part of their diet.^[source?]

As of 2024, the countries where most of these are grown commercially for their fruit are Nicaragua, the People's Republic of China, Vietnam, and Israel.

Yellow Pitaya

The yellow dragon fruit has yellow skin and has white flesh. It has the highest sugar content among dragon fruits.^[4] In Chinese, it is called giraffe family and is commonly found in Hong Kong. The ripe ones are really sweet like sugar.

Gallery

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  Pitaya "tree"
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  Plantation in Naozhou Island
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  Flowering, at night
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  Yellow S. megalanthus
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  Red S. costaricensis
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  Jus buah naga, purple pitaya juice, Indonesia
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  Red, yellow and white fruits
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  Dress for a folk dance called Flor de Pitahaya "Pitahaya Flower" from Baja California Sur displayed at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City
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  Dissected pitaya