Guava Fruit Uses: Tips For Eating And Cooking With Guavas

Guava fruit is an extremely versatile food. It has a rich history as a medicinal, tanning agent, dye, and wood source. Guava fruit uses run the gamut from sweet to savory applications. There are numerous guava benefits nutritionally, with its high Vitamin C content as well as loads of lycopene and powerful antioxidant properties. Whether you are a cook that uses the fruit or simply like it around for the medicinal benefits, cooking with guava can add tropical dimension to recipes while enhancing your health.

Cooking With Guava

Guava trees are commonly cultivated in South and Central Americas, as well as India, Spain, and several South Pacific islands. It is not certain from whence it came, but many scholars believe it might have been introduced by explorers to certain regions and distributed by animals and birds in others. The trees have a short bearing season but can be prolific with the fruit. This leaves the gardener wondering what to do with guavas? Rather than waste the fruit, look outside the usual uses as jellies, juice, and pastries and add some zing to meat, sauces, and cocktails, then move on to topical and medicinal uses for guava fruit. You have a bumper crop of guavas and have already made some preserves, frozen some prepared fruit, and made guava daiquiris. Now what to do with guavas? Cooking other recipes seems to make sense, since the fruit is ready and in season but you are sick of all the usual applications for the fruit. Savory recipes using guavas have become a hit on the culinary scene. Try mixing guava with items like garlic, onions, sweet or hot peppers, and exotic spices. A sweet and savory chutney pairs well with Indian, Asian, or Caribbean recipes. Grilled meats lend themselves to a guava glaze or sauce with a smoky, sweet finish that appeals to all parts of the palate. Fresh guava incorporated into a salsa is an easy way to make a memorable snack and just needs some corn chips to finish the recipe. Even veggies benefit from a tangy salad dressing featuring guava, garlic, shallot, white balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, and your favorite oil. Cooking with guava is an excellent way to excite the taste buds while enhancing nutritive health.

Other Uses for Guava Fruit

A natural and inexpensive beauty routine can feature guava fruit. Their antioxidant properties diminish free radicals and balance skin when used topically. Make your own facial with crushed guava flesh and an egg yolk. Spread over complexion and rinse off in ten minutes. This will leave skin refreshed, diminish dark spots, and under eye circles while tightening skin. Crushed leaves mixed with water may also help combat acne and blemishes when used topically. Uses for guava encompass more than skin care. Using guava as part of a weight loss regimen can help keep you feeling full and may help regulate metabolism. Topical guava benefits may include wound healing capabilities, anti-itching properties, and possibly even hair restoration. Once you have exhausted your culinary and beauty applications for the fruit, there are other guava fruit uses that will enhance your wellbeing and health. The roots, bark, and leaves have been traditionally used to combat dysentery, gastroenteritis, and even diarrhea. Leaves, deconcocted, have the ability to assist with toothache cessation when gargled. Guavas have a high amount of folic acid, making them a perfect food during pregnancy. The high fiber treats constipation, while the low glycemic index makes the fruit a diabetic friendly option. Some studies seem to indicate that the fruit can also help combat some cancers and heart disease, enhance eyesight, and increase the immune system, among other potential benefits. So grab a guava and eat it fresh or in your favorite recipe, reaping all the benefits along the way.