Pomegranates are native to Iran, Afghanistan and other countries. They were introduced to China via the Silk Road during the Han Dynasty. They have a cultivation history of more than 2,000 years.
Some people say: "Pomegranate has the reputation of 'Chinese divine fruit', so it must be very nutritious, right?"
In fact, most of the nutrients in pomegranate are average. In addition to the good hydration effect, only two nutrients are more prominent.
Dietary fiber: The insoluble dietary fiber content of pomegranate is 4.9g/100g, which is quite good among fruits and nearly 3 times that of apples. It can promote gastrointestinal mechanical movement, help defecation, prevent constipation, and promote intestinal health.
Mineral potassium: The potassium content of pomegranate is 231mg/100g, which is equivalent to the potassium content of banana, a potassium-supplementing fruit. Adequate potassium intake helps stabilize blood pressure, which is quite friendly for friends who need to control blood pressure.
In addition to the above two nutrients, pomegranate can also provide us with some antioxidant ingredients, including gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, protocatechuic acid, catechins and coumaric acid. Taking more phenolic substances can help us resist oxidation and inflammation, but don't expect eating it to beautify and fight cancer.
As for the vitamin C in pomegranates, the content is not very high. The data in the "Chinese Food Composition Table" shows that the vitamin C content in pomegranates is only 8mg/100g, which is the same as the vitamin C in bananas. Although it is nearly 3 times that of apples, it is far worse than oranges and kiwis! It is only about 1/8 of kiwis.
However, there are documents showing that the vitamin C content of Kashgar pomegranate pulp can reach 681.9mg/100g, and the vitamin C content of Hotan pomegranates and Shaanxi pomegranates is also around 600mg/100g. The vitamin C content of Heyin soft-seed pomegranates is also relatively high, at 408.5mg/100g. This may be due to differences between different varieties, and the data differences are large, which needs further verification.
Many pomegranates have seeds, and you have to spit out the seeds while eating. It's really troublesome! Don't worry, you can choose soft-seeded pomegranates. Soft-seeded pomegranates are popular because their seeds are soft and edible. In particular, Tunisian soft-seeded pomegranates are one of the most popular soft-seeded pomegranate varieties in the Chinese market. They were introduced to my country from Tunisia in 1986 and their price is 2 to 4 times that of ordinary pomegranate varieties.
There are many places where Tunisian soft-seeded pomegranates are produced in my country. Some researchers compared Tunisian soft-seeded pomegranates from 13 production areas and found that: Tunisian soft-seeded pomegranates from Jianshui, Yunnan have the highest soluble sugar content, the largest sugar-acid ratio, the sweetest taste, and the largest fruit. The single fruit weight can reach 880 grams; the soft-seeded pomegranates from Zhengzhou, Henan have the thinnest peel.
The sugar content of pomegranate is quite high, at 13.7%, which is slightly higher than the total sugar content of banana. Some varieties of pomegranate have even higher sugar content.
The sugar components of pomegranate fruit mainly include sucrose, glucose, fructose and sorbitol, among which glucose and fructose have the highest content, fructose content accounts for 9.18% to 50.67% of the total sugar, glucose content accounts for 43.84% to 48.36% of the total sugar, and sucrose and sorbitol are only a small amount.
Although the metabolism of fructose has little effect on blood sugar, the metabolism of glucose has a relatively large impact on blood sugar. It is best for people with high blood sugar and diabetes to eat less. If you like, you can eat 100 grams each in the morning and afternoon as a snack, and eat a few nuts at the same time, which will help stabilize blood sugar.
It should be noted that: don't drink pomegranate juice in a hurry to avoid blood sugar soaring. Data shows that the glycemic load (GL) of pomegranate juice is 21. GL>10 means that it has a greater impact on blood sugar.
Pomegranate is a delicious and nutritious fruit that can be eaten in a variety of ways. The following are some common ways to eat pomegranate:
1. Eat it raw:
This is the most common and simplest way to eat it.
After washing the pomegranate, you can use a fruit knife to cut open the top of the pomegranate, then gently cut along the white fascia inside the pomegranate, break out the pomegranate seeds and eat them.
In order to enjoy the pomegranate more conveniently, you can also peel out all the pomegranate seeds and put them on a plate to eat.
2. Pomegranate pudding:
Ingredients: one pomegranate, 60ml milk, 40ml whipped cream, 6g gelatin, appropriate amount of powdered sugar
Method: Put the pomegranate seeds into a food processor and crush them, pour them into a bowl and let them settle for a while, then pour out the pomegranate juice on top; put the milk, whipped cream and powdered sugar into a pot and heat them, add the softened gelatin, and stir until they melt; mix the cooked milk mixture with the pomegranate juice; pour the pink liquid into a cup and put it in the refrigerator for 4 hours; sprinkle with pomegranate seeds, and a pink pomegranate pudding is ready.
3. Make drinks:
Ingredients (-cup amount): 30 grams of pomegranate syrup (P38), appropriate amount of crushed ice, 70 grams of pomegranate seeds (frozen), 170 grams of Earl Grey tea
Preparation method:
Put the pomegranate syrup into a cup, and add crushed ice and pomegranate seeds alternately in a ratio of 2:3, and arrange them in several layers.
Pour Earl Grey tea and use the remaining pomegranate grains for decoration.
Ⅱ. Pomegranate and yellow peach juice:
Ingredients: half a yellow peach, two pomegranates, and appropriate amount of honey
Method: Put the pomegranate grains and yellow peaches into a food processor to make juice. If the dry and wet parts cannot be separated, you can filter them with a sieve; add appropriate amount of honey.
Ⅲ. Pomegranate juice:
Ingredients: 2 pomegranates, appropriate amount of honey
Method:
Peel and knead the fruit grains of two pomegranates and put them into a blender.
Add appropriate amount of water to cover the pomegranate grains.
Cover the lid and stir and crush. The longer you stir, the more broken it will be.
After the blender is finished, take it out and sift it with a coarse sieve and a fine sieve respectively, so that you can drink a relatively pure pomegranate juice.
Finally, add a small amount of honey to increase the sweetness, and the taste will be better.
4. Pomegranate wine:
You can use fresh pomegranates to make pomegranate wine. After washing the pomegranate seeds, put them in a glass bottle, add appropriate amount of rock sugar and white wine, seal and store for a period of time before drinking.
5. Pomegranate, apple and banana salad:
Ingredients: 1 pomegranate, 1 apple and 1 banana, appropriate amount of salad dressing.
Method:
Wash the pomegranate, peel it and take out the pulp inside;
Peel the apple and banana and cut them into small pieces;
Pour the pomegranate, apple and banana into a bowl, add appropriate amount of salad dressing and mix well.
6. Pomegranate and dried fruit soft bread:
Ingredients: about two pomegranates, 300g flour, 20g wheat germ powder, 4g salt, 4g yeast, 25g unsalted butter, 20g dried fruit glucose, walnut kernels, and cranberries
Method: Pour flour, wheat germ powder, salt, yeast, and pomegranate juice into a container and stir to make dough; then add butter and knead until a thin film can be pulled out; add raisins, walnut kernels, and cranberries and knead well and let it stand for a few minutes to rise; divide the dough into several portions and relax for about 15 minutes; after the dough relaxes, gently roll it flat and shape it, and wait for fermentation; after fermentation, make a knife mark, sprinkle high flour, and preheat the oven; select the upper and lower heating mode, and put the fermented dough into the oven.
