Tropical Fruit of the Day: Lychee

Most of the tropical fruit I encounter in Indonesia is unfamiliar to the average North American.  However, the fresh fruit I purchased today, the lychee, is fairly well-known to consumers of exotic iced teas and cocktails and to diners scouring the menu for dessert at Chinese restaurants. 

But the lychee consumed in North America is packed in cloyingly sweet syrup and comes from a can. I love it anyway.

Today was the first day since I arrived that fresh lychee was available in my compound's supermarket.  Purchased some immediately.  It is, of course, less sweet than canned lychee, but infinitely more subtle and refreshing. Love at first taste. Even more than before, lychee is one of my favorite tropical fruit treats, preferable in my opinion to rambutan, longan, and all other lychee relatives.



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