Guava, Usage : Sweet

Guava

Psidium guajawa

Guava is a tropical fruit that is like the shape of pear, with green rind and pinkish or white flesh and small seeds. Guava fruit, usually 4 to 12 cm long, are round or oval depending on the species. The outer skin may be rough, often with a bitter taste, or soft and sweet. Varying between species, the skin can be any thickness, is usually green before maturity, but becomes yellow, maroon, or green when ripe. Guava fruit generally have a pronounced and typical fragrance. Guava pulp may be sweet or sour, off-white to deep pink, with the seeds in the central pulp of variable number and hardness, again depending on species.

Guava has multiple uses, apart from eaten raw with skin and seed, the fruit is also often prepared as a dessert. Guavas are often marketed as "superfruits", being rich in vitamins A and C, It contains vitamin � C, 2 to 5 times more than fresh orange juice. Because of the skins high level of pectin, boiled guava is also extensively used to make candies, preserves, jellies, jams, marmalades (goiabada), and also for juices and aguas frescas. Guava leaves are used in folk medicine as a remedy for diarrhea and, as well as the bark, for their supposed antimicrobial properties and as an astringent. Guava leaves or bark are used in traditional treatments against diabetes