Article by media partner Cuisine Noir, the country’s first Black culinary lifestyle outlet since 2009 dedicated to connecting the African diaspora through food, drink and travel.
It’s name is unusual and it’s outer layer is a bit prickly. But one bite delivers a taste that’s been described as a little piece of heaven. Soursop, a fruit native to tropical America and the West Indies, has long been flying under the taste radar.
“It’s like if you know, you know. So if you didn’t grow up mainly in the Caribbean, or even Miami…a lot of people just wouldn’t know about it,” observes Jamaican-born blogger Ainseanlea Bonds about soursop, also called graviola, guyabano or guanábana.
Asia Bullock, aka Chef Asia, agrees, noting how the fruit’s rarity in regular grocery stores is part of soursop’s mystique. “It’s a Caribbean fruit so it could be found in a lot of the Caribbean markets or the independent mom and pop groceries,” she details about where to find the whole soursop fruit, as well as packaged soursop pulp, in the U.S.
As for why it’s worth the effort to score soursop, let’s begin with its taste. “The flavor is mild, but extremely distinct. The inside is very creamy. It’s almost reminiscent of a banana. But it has a very floral flavor, kind of like an orange or mango,” describes Bonds, who also likens the texture of soursop to that of a custard apple. “Most people don’t use it green, whether cooking or eating just because as the fruits ripens, it softens and then the sugars also are more potent, so you have more flavor that way.”
While soursop’s taste is intriguing, Bullock cautions that its plentiful seeds are toxic and should not be eaten. “They’re brownish seeds that I’ve picked out with a spoon or by hand to take them out,” shares the professional chef about working with the fresh fruit. Bonds adds, “When you get the soursop pulp, usually frozen, it never has seeds in it. Those are typically removed.”
Soursop Benefits
Beyond it’s taste, soursop benefits are also to be appreciated. Bonds, a nurse by profession, notes, “Everybody is about gut health and soursop is pretty high in both soluble and insoluble fibers. It also has enzymes which help to break down glucose. If you’re having it with a regular meal that has carbohydrates, it’s going to help to lower the glycemic index of those other foods so that your blood sugar isn’t being spiked as high. So the fiber and that enzyme alone [in soursop] helps to improve digestive health for a lot of people and manage blood sugar levels,” she shares.
“I never recommend that anyone use natural substances, fruits or supplements as a replacement for their medications. But you can always supplement when you speak with your doctor. And [there are] some studies that are promising, but it could potentially help to treat high blood pressure.”
“I think in terms of whole foods. It’s always something good to incorporate as part of your preventative care, not necessarily curative,” points out Bonds about utilizing soursop benefits in a diet. Lastly she shares, “Soursop is also very high in antioxidants and vitamin C; it has more vitamin C per serving than oranges and even cherries. So it’s really a powerhouse for vitamins and those other micronutrients that you need daily.”
By Jocelyn Amador
