List of fruits
Here are
lists of all the fruits considered edible in some
cuisine. Note that many
true fruits are considered to be
vegetables in the
culinary sense (for example, the
tomato), and hence do not appear in this article. There exist also many fruits that are edible but for various reasons have not become popular.
Temperate fruits
Fruits of temperate climates are almost universally borne on trees or woody shrubs or lianas. They will not grow adequately in the tropics, as they need a period of cold (a chilling requirement) each year before they will flower. The apple, pear, cherry, and plum are the most widely grown and eaten, owing to their adaptability. Many other fruits are important regionally but do not figure prominently in commerce. Many sorts of small fruit on this list are gathered from the wild, just as they were in Neolithic times.
Rosaceae family
\nThe Family Rosaceae dominates the temperate fruits, both in numbers and in importance. The pome fruits, stone fruits, brambles, strawberry, and rosehip are fruits of plants in Rosaceae.
The pome fruits:
- Apple and crabapple (Malus spp.)\n* Chokeberry also called cooking apple (Aronia spp.)\n* Hawthorn (Crataegus spp.)\n* Juneberry or saskatoon (Amelanchier spp.)\n* Loquat (Eryobotrya japonica)\n* Medlar (Mespilus germanica)\n* Pomegranate (Punica granatum)\n* Pear, European and Asian species (Pyrus spp.)\n* Quince (Cydonia oblonga and Chaenomeles spp.)\n* Rowan (Sorbus spp.)\n* Service tree (Sorbus domestica), the fruit known as sorb or sorb apple\n* Rose hip, the fruitlike base of roses (Rosa spp.); used mostly for jams and herbal tea
The stone fruits, drupes of
genus Prunus:
- Apricot (Prunus armeniaca)\n* Cherry, sweet, sour, and wild species (Prunus avium, P. cerasus, and others)\n* Plum, of which there are several domestic and wild species; dried plums are called prunes\n* Peach (of the normal and white variety) and its variant the nectarine (Prunus persica)\n* Hybrids of the preceding species, such as the pluot
Berries
In non-technical usage, berry means any small fruit that can be eaten whole and lacks objectionable seeds. The bramble fruits, compound fruits of genus Rubus, are some of the most popular pseudo-berries:
The true berries are dominated by the
family Ericaceae, many of which are hardy in the subarctic:
Other berries not in the Rosaceae or Ericaceae:\n* Barberry (
Berberis; Berberidaceae)\n*
Currant (
Ribes spp.;
Grossulariaceae), red, black, and white types\n*
Elderberry (
Sambucus;
Caprifoliaceae)\n*
Gooseberry (
Ribes spp.;
Grossulariaceae)\n*
Honeysuckle: the berries of
some species (called
honeyberries) are edible, others are poisonous (
Lonicera spp.;
Caprifoliaceae)\n*
Nannyberry or sheepberry (
Viburnum spp.;
Caprifoliaceae)\n* Sea-buckthorn (
Hippophae rhamnoides;
Elaeagnaceae)\n* Wolfberry (
Lycium barbarum,
Lycium spp.;
Solanaceae)\n*
Crowberry (
Empetrum spp.; Empetraceae)\n*
Mulberry (
Morus spp.; Moracaceae)
Fruits of Asian origin
\nSome fruits native to Asia that were not common elsewhere until the
20th century:\n* Goumi\n*
Kiwi fruit or Chinese gooseberry (
Actinidia spp.;
Actinidiaceae)\n*
Persimmon (
Diospyros kaki;
Ebenaceae)
Fruits of American origin
\nSome other tree fruits native to North America that are eaten in a small way:\n* Buffaloberry (
Shepherdia argenta;
Elaeagnaceae), which grows wild in the prairies of
Canada\n* American
grape: North American species (e.g.,
Vitis labrusca;
Vitaceae) and American-European hybrids are grown where
Vitis vinifera is not hardy and are used as rootstocks\n*
Pawpaw (
Asimina triloba;
Annonaceae), not to be confused with
Carica papaya, which is called pawpaw in some English dialects)\n* American
persimmon (
Diospyros virginiana;
Ebenaceae)
Cacti
\nSeveral cacti yield edible fruits, which are important traditional foods for some
Native American peoples:\n*
Prickly pear (
Opuntia spp.)\n*
Saguaro (
Carnegiea gigantea)\n*
Pitaya\n* numerous other species of cacti
Melons
\nSome exceptions to the statement that temperate fruits grow on woody perennials are:\n* Melon (
Cucumis melo):
cantaloupe and other
muskmelons,
honeydew\n* Sunberry or wonderberry (
Solanum spp.)\n*
Watermelon (
Citrullus vulgaris)
Accessory fruits
The accessory fruits, seed organs which are not botanically berries at all::\n* Strawberry (
Fragaria spp.)
Vegetables
A few vegetables are sometimes colloquially, but incorrectly, termed as "fruit" in the kitchen:\n* Angelica\n*
Rhubarb: stems used in pies and
country wine
Mediterranean and subtropical fruits
\nFruits in this category are not hardy to extreme cold, as the preceding temperate fruits are, yet tolerate some frost and may have a modest chilling requirement. Notable among these are natives of the Mediterranean:
In the important genus
Citrus (
Rutaceae), some members are tropical, tolerating no frost. All common species of commerce are somewhat hardy:
- Citron (Citrus medica)\n* Grapefruit and its predecesor the pommelo (also known as the shaddock) (Citrus paradisi)\n* Key Lime (Citrus aurantifolia)\n* Kumquat (Fortunella spp.)\n* Lemon (Citrus limon)\n* Lime (Citrus aurantifolia x medica) (an important hybrid of the Key Lime and the Citron)\n* Mandarin (Citrus reticulata), clementine (Citrus reticulata var. Clementine), tangelo (Citrus tangelo), tangerine, and similar \n* Orange, of which there are sweet (Citrus sinensis) and sour (Citrus aurantium) species\n* Ugli fruit, a hybrid
Other subtropical fruits:
Tropical fruits
Tropical fruit grow on plants of all habitats. The only characteristic that they share is an intolerance of frost.
- Akee (Blighia sapida)\n* Banana and its starchy variant the plantain (Musacea spp.)\n* Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis)\n* Burmese grape (Baccaurea sapida)\n* CamuCamu (Myrciaria dubia)\n* Carambola (Averrhoa carambola), also called star fruit\n* Cempedak (Artocarpus champeden)\n* Cherimoya (Annona cherimola)\n* Coconut (Cocos spp.)\n* Custard apple (Annona reticulata)\n* Dragonfruit (Hylocereus spp.), also called pitaya\n* Durian (Durio spp.)\n* Guarana (Paullinia cupana)\n* Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus), also called nangka\n* Keppel fruit (Stelechocarpus burakol)\n* Langsat (Lansium domesticum), also called longkong or duku\n* Mabolo, (Diospyros discolor) also known as a velvet persimmon\n* Mamey sapote (Pouteria sapota)\n* Mamoncillo (Melicoccus bijugatus), also known as quenepa or genip\n* Mango (Mangifera indica)\n* Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana)\n* Marang (Artocarpus odoratissima), a breadfruit relative\n* Papaya (Carica papaya)\n* Peanut butter fruit (Bunchosia argentea)\n* Pineapple (Ananas comosus)\n* Poha (Physalis peruviana)\n* Rambutan (Nephelium lappaceum)\n* Rose apple (Eugenia/Syzygium aquem), also called Malay apple\n* Salak (Salacca edulis), also called snakefruit\n* Sapodilla (Achras/Manilkara zapota), also called chiku, sapadilla, snake fruit, sawo\n* Soursop (Annona muricata), also called Guanabana\n* Sugar apple (Annona squamosa)\n* Tamarind (Tamarindus indica)
Nonedible fruit
See also
\n* Tutti frutti
\n*
\n\nsimple:List of fruit
