uncommon fruits and veggies

The pitaya, or dragon fruit, has a bright pink or white center and is speckled with tiny black seeds.Interestingly, the dragon fruit does nothave an intense flavor despite its bright coloring.It has been compared to a mild melon or kiwi.

Orange poha berries are protected by green leaves, which grow down around the fruit, almost encapsulating the individual berries.They are described as sweet and tart and have a thin waxy skin.Poha berries originated in South America but have been cultivated for hundreds of years in England and South Africa.Although poha berries are not popular in most the states, the berries have become a staple fruit in Hawaii.

Sweet potatoes can be found in a range of colors, but one of the rarer forms in the U.S.is the purple sweet potato.While sweet potatoes are not native to Japan, the light and darker purple varieties were first produced there.Now some farmers in the U.S.grow purple sweet potatoes, but the orange color is typically the only kind found at supermarkets.

When looking at a rambutan for the first time, it tough to imagine that it is edible.The red outer layer is covered in hair that is actually a layer of flexible thorns.Ripe rambutans are sweet and are reminiscent of lychee fruits.

Rollinia are mild, sweet, and slightly citrusy on the inside, but have a rather unappetizing appearance.The yellow fruit is covered in spikes, which turn dark brown when the fruit becomes ripe.

The romanescu looks like a lime green cauliflower gone very, very wrong.However, this vegetable, which hails from Italy, tastes exactly like your average cauliflower and can be substituted for the plainer looking veggie in most recipes.

Rose apples are bell shaped fruits that can be eaten much like regular apples.They are crispy and crunchy, like your typical apple, but they taste and smell like roses.Rose apples are now popular in Asia although they are native to the East Indies.The fruits spoil quickly so they are not typically sold in supermarkets.

Salak, or snake fruit, as they are also called, are native to Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei.The small individual fruits are covered in a scaly skin that looks disturbingly similar to a snake.Once peeled, the inner lobes are sweet and acidic and their texture is similar to an apple.

Salisfy is a tan colored root vegetable that looks like a parsnip.When peeled and cooked the veggie is thought to taste like an artichoke.

The flavor of a particular santol (some are extremely sour, while others are sweet) depends on which part of the fruit is consumed.Sometimes the outer orange part of the fruit underneath the skin is eaten and in other cases it the inner white pulp.Typically the pulp is thought to be the sour part of the fruit.Today the santol is enjoyed in countries such as India, Indonesia, and the Philippines.