There are many good reasons why we should load our shopping carts with fruits and vegetables. The Mediterranean diet is packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants necessary to support our training efforts.
These days, the variety of vegetables available in local ethnic markets and even supermarkets has exploded. Believe it or not, there was a time when bananas were considered exotic. So you may have come across or heard of breadfruit, a curious item that looks a bit like a prehistoric dinosaur egg.
Recent research suggests that this fruit could be a nutritional goldmine and is worth adding to your regular diet.
What is breadfruit?
In the same botanical family as mulberry and jackfruit, this spiny oval fruit can grow to the size of a basketball and weighs close to a 5-pound dumbbell. It is very popular in a variety of tropical regions, including Southeast Asia, the Pacific islands, and the Caribbean, and is believed to have been brought to Hawaii by ancient Polynesian travelers.
However, due to its not-so-attractive name and an outer skin adorned with bumps and spikes, breadfruit has long suffered from an image problem. However, when cooked, many say that starchy meat tastes similar to freshly baked bread . Actually, the creamy white flesh of starch-rich breadfruit generally tastes more similar to a potato, although the more mature varieties will seem sweeter to your palate because the starch begins to turn into sugar.
Nutritional properties
There are good reasons why breadfruit remains a daily staple for millions of people – it has a diverse nutritional profile and is quite versatile in the kitchen. In fact, a recent study from the University of British Columbia determined that this fruit, at least in the form of flour, has all the necessary nutrition to be an important factor in a healthy and nutritionally balanced diet.
A 1-cup serving of breadfruit contains the following:
- 227 calories
- 2g protein
- 0.5 g of fat
- 0 g of saturated fat
- 60 g of carbohydrates
- 11g fiber
- 37 mg calcium
- 1 mg iron
- 1080 mg potassium
What benefits does it bring to health?
Breadfruit is a prominent source of dietary fiber and crushes items like potatoes (3 grams in a cup) and whole wheat pasta (6 grams per cooked cup) in this nutrition category. That makes it an especially useful food for the vast majority of people who do not reach their daily fiber intake; women should aim for 25 grams of fiber per day, while men should aim for 38 grams.
A large review by British researchers determined that a higher intake of dietary fiber is associated with a lower risk of heart disease; Better control over blood sugar and cholesterol levels are probably two big reasons for the heart health benefit. Plus, fiber makes you full , so you're less likely to overeat during the day.
Due to its abundant fiber content, the use of breadfruit flour in products like pasta and cereals could be a way for food manufacturers to lower the glycemic index of their products, which can be beneficial for those at risk or have diabetes.
Athletes may find that breadfruit is high in carbohydrates – a 1-cup serving of carrots has 12 grams of carbohydrates in comparison. That means it can be useful for athletes who want to load carbohydrates in the days leading up to a big workout, or who need to replenish spent carbohydrate stores after a great effort.
But because of its high fiber count, it may not be a good idea to focus only on breadfruit or the flour made from it for fear of gastrointestinal setback. This is especially true in the hours leading up to a race. For a happier gut, it is best to consume carbohydrates from both sources, which are higher and lower in fiber, and be sure to spread your fiber intake throughout the day.
One study, published in the aptly named Amino Acid, found that breadfruit is a high-quality protein source, as it contains all the essential amino acids, including leucine, isoleucine, and valine, the three branched-chain amino acids that are especially important in repairing and building lean body mass in response to training. Breadfruit protein has also been shown to be easier to digest than wheat protein.
Another nutritional highlight is the high amounts of potassium , with each cup offering about 30 percent of the daily requirement for this electrolyte. You know that calcium is good for your bones, but potassium also helps. In a British study, researchers found that a high potassium intake significantly reduced bone breakdown. Helping muscles to contract properly and maintaining proper fluid balance are other functions of potassium that cyclists should be interested in.
The breadfruit nutritional resume also includes good amounts of vitamin C , B vitamins , and magnesium.
How do you eat breadfruit?
Outside of Hawaii, finding breadfruit may be more of a mistake than a success, but if your town or city has a Caribbean shop, chances are you'll find something fun there. In cooking, it is generally used more like a vegetable than a fruit ; ripe ones are sweeter and can be eaten raw, while less ripe ones with a potato-like texture are cooked.
For the latter, cut, core and peel the breadfruit. Then boil it, steam it, or grill it just like you would a potato. It can be shredded, made into vegetarian fries, and used in soups, stews, and curries.
As the fruit ripens, the starches are converted to sugars and the fruit softens to a custard- like consistency. This sweet pulp can be served raw with scoops, spread on top of oatmeal, added to muffin batter, or mixed into puddings and smoothies.
