We’ve all heard about the unique fauna and flora in Papua. Who hasn’t heard of the beautiful birds of paradise? Or the bountiful matoa? The Papuan red fruit is perhaps less commonly known. It is also known as kuansu to the natives of Papua Province, Indonesia, and marita to Papua New Guinea people.
How Papuan Red Fruit Looks Like
The red fruit trees can grow up to sixteen meters in height, clustered together in groups of twelve to thirty, and start producing fruits at around one to five years old. It belongs to the pandan family, and the plant itself looks like a pandan plant, only much larger and taller.
Kuansu itself is red in color, typically cylindrical. It can grow up to over a meter in length and fifteen centimeters in diameter and weigh around two to three kilograms. There are many cultivars of the plant, but the long red variant is especially memorable as the fruit grows long and gets up to over seven kilograms in weight.
Natives often use the memorable long red variant as medicine.
Serving The Fruit
You can eat the fruit fresh. Simply discard the seeds, and you’ll get a delicious treat. However, red fruit is also suitable for other applications, such as cooking and juicing.
One way to cook kuansu is by dicing it up and grilling. Some locals may also prefer boiling. However, one way to serve up a red fruit delicacy is by cooking it in an earthen oven. The fruit is also a crucial part of stone-burning ceremonies, served up during the festivities.
Aside from the flesh, the red layers stuck to the seeds can also be taken and processed into oil, while the leftover is taken to be used as a sauce. Locals often store the oil and the sauce near a fire to keep it from growing worse. Both the oil and the sauce are used in day-to-day mealtimes, as they act as a seasoning to the food locals eat.
Health Benefits
Not only is this fruit delicious to eat, but natives also believe it offers many health benefits. As it turns out, it has many benefits to give.
The Papua red fruit’s benefits have been studied by researchers. The fruit is rich in carotene, beta-carotene, and tocopherol. The high content of carotene and beta-carotene makes it excellent for your eyes. It helps maintain vision health and prevent blindness.
High tocopherol content also helps with high blood pressure and stroke, gout, and diabetes. Tocopherol can help thin blood and allow it to pass through the circulatory system easier, which promotes better blood circulation.
This especially helps with high blood pressure as it can cause blood clots which could make the blood circulation less smooth than ideal.
Aside from that, the fruit is also rich in antioxidants. It can help boost the immune system and prevent sickness as well as maintain good health. Moreover, it also helps prevent the growth of cancer cells.
Getting Red Fruit
Unfortunately, getting red fruit may not be an easy task. As it is endemic to Papua Province and Papua New Guinea, people in other parts of the world may not be able to eat the fruit fresh.
However, it’s still possible to enjoy the health benefits of this fruit. Efforts to push small businesses to thrive have allowed Papuans to sell products made of Papuan red fruit nationally with the help of social media and online marketplaces. People have also started to learn about the fruit’s many benefits. It helps increase sales of products made of fruit. Rising interest in the fruit also raises interest in Papua.
