Dried Dragon Fruit: Story of the Cactus Conquering the World

While the agave cactus continues dominating the spirits’ niche of the market, it’s the fresh and the dried dragon fruit, which are holding the top positions in the exotic fruit selection.

The history of dragon fruit, also known as pitaya, also known as the strawberry pear is long and successful. Initially being an indigenous cactus in the Americas, the fruit is now being cultivated across various regions of the world, from Mexico and the U.S. to Thailand and other South-East Asia countries. And its popularity among consumers is undergoing a further sharp rise.

Naturally, dried dragon fruit (mostly produced in the form of chips) has already become a go-to snack for people, looking for a quick tasteful bite, yet not willing to put up with the junk food alternatives – a pretty common case for most dehydrated exotic fruit, like dried pineapple or mango, for instance. 

Major Dried Dragon Fruit Benefits 

Non-surprisingly, one of the key benefits of dehydrated dragon fruit chips isn’t just their delicious taste, which goes far beyond the mere sweetness, by the way, but a significant amount of various nutritional elements they contain. 

Namely, the dragon fruit dried variation is packed with antioxidants, including betacyanin and phenolic acid, which are known to help protect our body from premature aging and fight chronic diseases, like arthritis (per African Journal of Biotechnology (AJB)).

Its black seeds are a powerful source of omega-9 and omega-3 fatty acids, as well as natural oils, which have a proven positive impact on the state of our blood vessels (i.e. preventing their clogging).

In addition, dry dragon fruit is high in fiber, and more importantly, contains prebiotics, which stabilize and improve the growth dynamics of healthy bacteria in our intestines, hence helping to normalize the work of our immune system as a whole, and our digestive system in particular. 

It may even help decrease blood sugar levels, but it’s worth noting that the mere consumption of the fruit is in no way sufficient as a treatment against diabetes.

How to Select & Buy Dried Dragon Fruit

A primary aspect to pay attention to, while selecting dehydrated dragon fruit chips is to ensure they’re organically produced. Secondly, a better option is to opt for their non-sweetened version, instead of a sugar-coated one. 

In this respect, consider buying dried dragon fruit by KP Fruits, carefully grown on an organic farm in Thailand and manufactured without any use of preservatives or sulfur. 

Recipe of the Day: Dried Dragon Fruit Salad with Mixed Greens & Oranges

Ingredients:

• ¼ – ½ cup of dry dragon fruit chips
• 2 – 3 small-sized oranges
• 4 cups of mixed greens 
• ~150 – 170g of Feta (crumbled)
• Juice of one mid-sized blood orange
• ⅕ cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pinch of sea salt
• fresh cracked pepper – to taste

Instructions:

1. Peel the oranges and carefully slice their cross-sections.
2. Break dragon fruit dried chips into bite sizes.
3. Arrange orange slices and the dragon fruit in a serving bowl (shallow).  
4. Top them with mixed greens and crumbled Feta.
5. In a mixing bowl (small-sized), whisk together extra virgin olive oil with the blood orange juice until well blended, then drizzle the mix over the salad. 
6. Add salt and pepper. 
7. Gently toss the salad and proceed to serving.