How To Eat A Star Fruit

Star fruit is a tropical fruit grown in different regions of the world; especially in Asian countries with sunny and humid climates. The fruit didn't get its name because of being star-shaped, rather, when sliced crosswise, it forms a star pattern, which is how it got its name. It is also known by the name of carambola.

The color of the skin of the fruit changes during their growth; young ones are green while the one that is completely ripe is yellow. Starfruit is delicious and is known to have different medicinal properties, and the credit for this goes to its nutritional content.

Taste of Star Fruit

This exotic tropical fruit doesn't have a distinct taste. When it completely ripens, you can find it to be sweet, but not completely, rather, with a hint of sourness. Each bite is crunchy, juicy and you get a hint of almost everything; apple, pear, and citrus. If the star fruit tastes different, is tangy and sour, then it has not reached the peak ripenness.

Nutrients in Star Fruit

A 100-gram of ripe star fruit has the following nutrients:

• about 7 grams of carbohydrates
• about 1 gram of protein
• about 0.3 gram of fat
• majority of content, about 92.6 grams, water
• vitamin C, magnesium, potassium and sodium

It's easy to prepare the star fruit. The step-by-step process to enjoy this effortless fruit is given below:

Clean The Star Fruit

The fruit you purchased from the store, clean it before eating. Rinse it with cold water and trim damaged spots. 

Cut Edges

The first step to prepare the star fruit is trimming the edges, as this part is a little tougher and is not as enjoyable as the rest of the fruit.

Cut out both edges of the fruit, using a knife. Now, the fruit is free from the unwanted hard bits and you are sure to have a smooth eating experience.

Peel

Peeling the thin skin of star fruit is not entirely important, but to enjoy the flavor of the flesh solely, you can get it off. If left intact, the waxy skin might interfere with the delicious flavors of the fruit.
You can use the blade of your knife to get rid of all the green skin, it's okay if you keep the orange-edged part of the fruit.

Overall, to embrace the full experience, peel off the non-orange parts only.

Cut Into Slices

The real fun is in slicing the star fruit. The signature star-shaped pattern of the fruit can be obtained only when you cut the fruit crosswise. This cutting technique will reveal beautiful, star-like shapes of the fruit with five points. These appealing and delicious slices can now be enjoyed.

The thickness of the slices can be customized depending on how you want to use the fruit. If you want to enjoy it directly, cut the fruit into moderate slices so you can enjoy the juices and crunchiness. However, in recipes such as the ones in which the star shape is used for decoration, thin slices are perfect.

The star fruit that is at the peak of ripeness can only provide the best flavor and texture. So, the techniques to choose this fruit do matter.

Start from the look, if the skin color is bright yellow with hints of orange, it's a clear sign that the fruit is sweet and ready to eat. However, green fruit means they are still not ripe and will likely be more sour than sweet.

Other than the color, it's also important to choose a plump fruit that has no dents or bruises and appears smooth. If the skin appears wrinkled or has any form of damage then that won't be a suitable choice.

A ripe and juicy star fruit also is firm, and on pressing at the surface, it should have a little give. This means it’s ripe and juicy. The ones that are hard are not ready to eat.

The smell of the fruit also matters. The sweet aroma of the fruit itself, especially near the stem, is a good sign that the fruit is sweet and ready to enjoy.

The refreshing flavors of star fruit can be utilized in many recipes. Some common ones where this tropical fruit shine are listed below: 

Drinks

This star-shaped fruit can be star of many drinks. There are many star fruit drink recipes that can be a perfect summer drink, the ones full of vitamin C.

Refreshing Star Fruit Juice

This juice is perfect for the summer and becomes ready with minimal ingredients. The two main ingredients used for the preparation of star fruit juice is the fruit itself and ginger.

1. To prepare this refreshing drink, clean both the ingredients, peel them and turn them into pieces-in sizes your juicer can handle.
2. Add the chopped star fruit and ginger into the juicer. If you don't have one, blender will also be fine for the preparation.
3. For the flavors, add sugar and lime juice to the drink before serving.

Apple and Star Fruit Juice

The star fruit is great when juiced by itself but some combinations are also hard to resist. One such combination is that of the apple and the star fruit. A simple recipe to follow below:

1. The apple and star fruit should be in the ratio of 1:2. Clean, peel and cut them into chunks.
2. In the juicer/ blender add the fruit chunks, honey and oranges. Lime juice can also be used instead of the oranges.
3. The juice can be then served after straining. 

Passion Fruit and Star Fruit Juice

This juice is full of tropical sweetness. The pairing of two tropical fruits in this recipe makes it a special one, so you can make this recipe a part of gatherings or any special occasion.

1. Take the chopped star fruit and pulp of the passion fruit. The pulp if frozen gives the best results.
2. Add the fruits, ginger and honey and blend them until smooth.
3. Take a juice glass, fill it with ice and serve the juice over it. 

Salads

The natural crisp of star fruit makes it a great addition in salads. Thin slices of this fruit can turn any salad sweet, that with a hint of sour.

Tropical Fruit Salad

We will use head butter lettuce, star fruit, celery, any other salad greens, onions and parsley for this. For dressing, you need macadamia nuts or any other candied nuts and citrus dressing. Once you have gathered the ingredients follow the steps mentioned below:

1. Separate leaves from the head butter lettuce, and cut all the greens into bite-sized pieces. The star fruit can be cut into star-shaped pieces or even chunks. Slice onions and chop the parsley.
2. Now, gather all the prepared salad ingredients in a bowl and add the dressing and nuts of your choice.
3. Toss everything well and serve.

For dressing: Lemon juice, salt and any oil will do for the dressing. Mix it well.

For candied nuts: To prepare candied nuts of your own, toast nuts in oil until golden and then add any natural sweetener of your choice. Stir the whole mix for a few minutes, making sure it doesn't burn. Once the nuts are done, remove them from heat and then sprinkle some salt on it.

Mix Fruits Salad Recipe

The recipe combines different fruits: star fruit, oranges and banana. To make the salad refreshing, lime juice is also added to it.

1. The star fruit should be sliced and seeded and orange and should be peeled and sliced.
2. After the ingredients are ready, put them in a bowl and add lime juice over it.
3. Toss and serve.

Other Dressings That Pair Up Well

There are some dressings that can give perfect flavors when used in star fruit salad. The ones you must give a try include:

• Honey Balsamic Dressing
• Raspberry Vinaigrette

Garnish

Star fruit can make a unique and attractive garnish, when sliced thinly. You can also make flower using the slices and present it on the edge of the plates. The garnsihing idea, using the star fruit is great for cocktails, desserts, soups or even seafoods.

In Baking

Star fruit also does good in baking, as its tangy flavor adds a fresh note on the baked items. The sugars of this exotic fruit also adds on the flavor of the baked products, once they get caramelized on high heat.

Some recipes utilizing star fruit, the ones that must be tried are as follows:

Upside Down Cake

1. The first step for the cake preparation is mixing the dry ingredients of the recipe; flour and sugar.
2. Create a mix of butter, sugar and eggs, beat them until a smooth mix is formed.
3. In a bowl, mix butter, brown sugar and passion fruit juice. Also pour in the slices of the star fruit. The mix thus formed is poured into the baking pan, make sure that it covers the entire pan.
4. Now, it's time to blend in the flour-mix to the butter mix. Complete the batter by adding vanilla extract.
5. As the batter making process finishes, transfer it to the baking pan.
6. Bake the cake until cooked and serve warm.

Star Fruit Chips

1. For making star fruit chips, it's important to cut the fruit into extremely thin choices so that they turn crispy.
2. Next, the thin slices is transferred to the warm mix of sugar, water and ginger. The whole mix is then simmered until the sugar mix thickens.
3. Let the star fruit slices then sit for half an hour.
4. Transfer the sugar coated slices to the breaking tray and then bake it. Once the slices are dry and crisp, they are done!
5. You can sprinkle spices or salt for extra flavor and enjoy the crispy chips. You can store the excess in an airtight container for later use. 

Star Fruit Tart

1. Prepare star fruit-sugar mixture by combining star apples, brown sugar, and cornstarch on melted butter. The mixture should be cooked for a few minutes.
2. Take the pie crust and then spread lemon curd on it.
3. Following this, spread the fruit-sugar mixture.
4. Once everything is spread evenly, prepare the tart for baking; fold the sides and tuck them in.
5. The final step is baking; bake the tart until the crust is golden brown.

If you have brought excess star fruit from the market and are not sure how to store them, ways listed below may be helpful to guide you:

Refrigerate

This method is appropriate when you want to store star fruit for some days. Just take a plastic bag or airtight container and store the fruit in the fridge to prevent it's drying out in the open air. 

Freezing

For storing the star fruits longer, for more than six months, put them directly into the freezer. The best way to freeze the star fruit is by slicing them, spreading pieces in a single layer on a baking sheet and then allowing the slices to freeze.

Afterwards, once the freezing is done, transfer the slices to a freezer-safe bag or container and store.

Prepare Starfruit Preserves

If you love to store fruits preparing preserves, then preparing one from star fruit might be a fantastic way to enjoy the fruit year-round. The simple steps to prepare the preserve is detailed here:

1. Prepare the carambolas, wash, peel, and cut them into slices. You can also remove the seeds on each slice if you want. For this, you can use tip of your fingers or tip of the knife.
2. The thin slices of the fruit are then cooked with sugar, water, and lemon or lime juice.
3. The mixture should be simmered in a low heat, with occasional stirs to prevent burning.
4. Once the mixture begins to thicken, and is of desired consistency, store the preserve on clean and sterile jars.

The preserve thus prepared can be stored in the refrigerator for months. You can use the preserve in toasts, as a filling for baking and also to drizzle over desserts. Wherever used, it delivers the sweet and tangy flavor to the dishes.