Peru has a knack for introducing superfoods to the rest of the world. Its rich geography, which includes portions of the Andes Mountains and the Amazon rainforest, has already brought forth high-protein quinoa and açai berries.
The latest nutritional powerhouse to appear on global menus is lucuma, a fruit that grows at altitudes of about 9,000 feet. Long prized in Peru, it’s gaining traction in U.S. cities.
While it resembles a large, round, orange-fleshed avocado, lucuma has a pronounced caramel taste. It’s almost impossible to find fresh outside South America; unusually delicate, it starts to spoil soon after picking. But the fruit, esteemed by the Incas for purportedly enhancing fertility, is increasingly available powdered or frozen at American health-food stores; Walmart stocks it, too.
That’s because lucuma is high in beta carotene, iron, zinc, calcium, protein, and fibre. It also contains antioxidants and potassium, which are said to be good for your heart, immune system, and skin.
According to bloomberg.com, the powdered product, often promoted as a sweetener, is showing up as a booster on menus at such juice bars as Pure Green in New York and LA Press in Los Angeles.
