LYCHEE

Common Name: Lychee
Vernacular Name:  Litchi
Botanical Name: Litchi chinensis
Specimens From: China
Specimens Weight: 18 gm (average weight per fruit)

Lychee, a native fruit to Southern China, can also be found in many countries in Asia. It is quite a well-known fruit as it is widely available worldwide.

There are several cultivars of lychee. The skin is usually ranging from red to pink and some with green tint. It will turn dark brown after refrigerated. The skin is rough but thin and so it tears easily when pressed with your fingernails. Lychee is usually very juicy and it tends to leak all over your fingers when prised.

The thick flesh is white to slight pinkish or grayish with a brown glossy, hard seed, which should not be eaten. There are seedless lychees too but are not common. Some lychees are very sweet and some with a sweet and sour taste. The poorer and cheaper quality is acidic. It is high in Vitamin C. Slightly similar to its smaller cousin and lesser well-known, the longan(click to compare) but lychee is sweeter and bigger.

For those who prefer peeled and pitted, canned lychees in heavy syrup can be easily found in Asia and major supermarts. There are also dried lychees available in some places.

Lychee Juice

If you prefer to drink, you may make your own lychee juice. Pure and sweet on its own with nothing added.


Fruit: Lychee ; Litchi chinensis ; Sapindaceae.

Other fruits in the same family: Fijian Longan, Pulasan, Longan, Rambutan.


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