What is Dragon Fruit?

Dragon Fruit, also known as Pitaya is a tropical fruit that originated from southern Mexico and South & Central America. It grows on a climbing cactus called hylocereus, which can now be found in tropical regions around the world. At first glance a Dragon Fruit may look intimidating with it’s thick hot pink skin and green spikes! Don’t worry, these little guys won’t hurt you. In fact, they are mildly sweet and SUPER delicious. Some Dragon Fruits have a yellow skin and some have the hot pink skin as mentioned. Once you cut into this juicy fruit, it will reveal either a bright hot pink or white flesh with small black dot-like seeds. The seeds are meant to be eaten so dig in with a spoon!

Why Should You Eat Dragon Fruit?

Dragon fruit has a lot of health benefits. In a 6oz serving you can pack away 2g plant protein, 22g carbs, 12g sugar and 5g of fiber all for just 102 calories! You can also get lots of vitamin A + C, magnesium, iron and calcium from these colorful fruits. That being said, Dragon Fruit can strengthen your immune system and load you up on needed antioxidants including flavonoids, phenolic acid, and betacyanin. These powerful antioxidants help keep your body safe from free radicals which can cause cancer and premature aging.

Dragon Fruit is also naturally high in prebiotics, which are important for your gut. You may have heard of probiotics before. Well, prebiotics feed the probiotics, or healthy gut bacteria. This is extremely important to help your friendly gut bacteria fight off harmful bacteria that may cause viruses and diseases. It also aids in better digestion.

Dragon Fruit is high in vitamin A + C, magnesium, calcium, and iron!

It’s Time to Try Dragon Fruit!

Now that you have all the facts you’re ready to eat up! You can buy frozen Pitaya or Dragon Fruit and use it in smoothies or smoothie bowls. If you’d like to try it fresh, look for it at your local farmers market or in the fruit and produce section of your grocery. Get creative and add it to your salads or have it alone with a squeeze of lemon. However you decide to eat it, just enjoy it!