Jujube fruit

August 15, 2010  •  Category:

 

This is a fruit that is eaten in Lebanon when it is in season; its flesh is crunchy and its taste similar to an apple. It has been introduced in the US, mainly in California, but so far, is only known  by a few people.


It has 20 times the amount of Vitamin C of citrus fruits! Most of the amino acids and minerals required by the body!  Apparently it has been used in Chinese medicine for thousands of years.

I predict we will be seeing more of this fruit, known as ennabe in Lebanese and jujube or Chinese date in English.

Source for the benefits of jujube e-how.

Comments

36 Comments  •  Comments Feed

  1. fimère says:

    un fruit que je ne connais pas mais d’après ton explication il doit être très goûteux
    on apprend!!!!
    bonne journée

  2. Joanne says:

    I think NYC needs to invest in some of these pronto. They look tasty!

  3. elra says:

    Exotic fruit, I am not sure if I ever eaten this.

  4. elra says:

    p.s
    I made kibbeh using your recipe yesterday, it was delish! Thx for sharing the recipe.

  5. Katerina says:

    I know dates but I have never heard of this particular one. This is very useful to women, since it contains so much vitamin C.

  6. Nadege says:

    I have bought dried jujube from asian vendors at the open market but I have
    never tasted them fresh. I will look for them.

  7. Lazaro says:

    Thanks for introducing me to a new fruit. Beautiful photography!

  8. Christine @ Fresh says:

    I’ve enjoyed eating these jujube fruits, but never knew that they were so good for you. The next time I see these guys at the Asian markets, I’m picking up a whole bunch!

  9. Magdalena says:

    I do not know this fruit; as always, I wonder, how they taste; I always find out something new on your blog; I feel a bit ashamed because of my brief comments; not only because I suffer from lack of time, but I also suffer from my back lately more than usually, and I cannot spend too much time in front of the computer; anyway, I read your blog on regular basis and I enjoy it a lot!

  10. Eve@CheapEthnicEatz says:

    I have been developing a big curiosity for exotic fruits in the last months, this is a new one. Now I am dying to taste it. Any connection with the candies Jujube (the french word)?

  11. Oui, Chef says:

    Interesting…of course it will probably take decades for us to see these in the Northeast. You say they have the crunch of an apple, what do they taste like? – S

  12. deana says:

    I have never seen or heard of this fruit… can’t wait to give it a try!

  13. George-Athens/Greece says:

    Oh I haven’t seen those jujube fruits for ages – as a child with my “gang” we used to attack over a ladyneighbor’s fence to collect some of them either to eat or to use(especially the green ones) as ammunition in our marches towards our “enemies”…
    In Greek we call them ‘jee-jee-fa’ or ‘zee-zee-fa’…sounding almost similar with ‘ju-ju-be’…its scientific name however is officially above all: Zizuphus* jujuba (family Rhamnaceae).
    Does anyone here know any local special recipe (dish or dessert) with these fruits?

    * Zizuphus genus contains ~40 species, according to Brittanica!

  14. joudie's mood food says:

    Oh my Goodness Joumana, i have not had one of these for soooo long. As soon as i saw it i remembered the taste in my mouth. I am now going on a hunt in London to find them….. YUMM!

  15. Faith says:

    What an interesting fruit! It’s new to me and I’d love to be able to find it at the market here to give it a taste!

  16. T.W. Barritt says:

    They almost look like chestnuts. I’d love to try these.

  17. 12th Man says:

    going to fire off letters to Whole Foods and Sunflower Market demanding a little ennabe on the shelf!

  18. Doc says:

    I love the Turkish Teas as well. Are the popular in Lebanon as well? I also can’t wait to try the jujube fruit. I only heard about jujubes as a chewy candy growing up! Thanks for the education!

  19. Radhika says:

    I guess this is available in India too and I have tasted it.

  20. Soma says:

    Yesterday we got a grocery bad full of this fruit from a friends yard. We love it. I was not aware of the name as they call it Chinese Dates. It is delicious to the core.

  21. A Canadian Foodie says:

    I thought it tasted like a mix between an apple and a nut. I had one at The Ferry Building Market in San Fran last summer. I didn’t find it at all juicy – or flavourful… just a very interesting texture with a flavour so subtle that i couldn’t really discern it.
    🙂
    valerie

  22. Conor @ HoldtheBeef says:

    Ahhh, interesting. I had someone at my work trading list saying they had a lot of these fruit to sell from their tree, and now I know what they were talking about.

  23. Sheridan says:

    these grow outside of my in-laws house in Ain-Saade. I love these I wonder if I can find them around Los Angeles!

  24. OysterCulture says:

    Love jujube – it really needs to get the word out. I can find them easily in my neighborhood but then I’m near a Chinatown, so I have an advantage.

  25. JGraham says:

    My grandfather (native of Hasbaya) had several jujube trees in his yard in South Alabama dating back to the 50s, and now my parents have trees in their yard. There is nothing as quite as tasty as these!

  26. LWall says:

    These grow in my backyard, in New Mexico, and I can hardly find anyone to eat them. I like them, but my family is lukewarm on them. I just eat them mostly when I’m hanging laundry. I brought some to my favorite Chinese restaurant owner, and he was very excited. He says in China they are like apples are to us. My grandmother used to can them with pecans in a syrup made with brown sugar instead of white. The trees are taking over one side of my yard, and I have just let them. If anyone finds some fresh, you may want to try growing the seed. The variety I have seems to propagate from the seed, to produce a tree that makes fruit.

  27. Lisa says:

    They have these at my favorite supermarket in Qatar right now but no one could tell me what they were, only said ennab and that that was the English word (um, no.)! A google search led me to your site, which found months ago and love. At almost USD 11 a kilo I don’t think we’ll buy a bunch, but we are going to try them now that we know how to eat them. Thanks!

  28. Matots says:

    I Have it in my backyard,I dont pay attention till my sister told me,It’s a good fruit, and I try it , I love it…

  29. Dr. Barry S. Alpert says:

    After reading your post I finally started eating the big bag of jujubes I bought for $1 at Great Wall supermarket in Wash DC metro (branches within NYC, Boston, & Atlanta areas). I’ll recommend them for taste & health benefits.

  30. R W says:

    i wait Ennab season every year , its so good love it, i dry it and keep some for winter time.

  31. Val says:

    I bought these at the Riverside Kaiser Permanente farmers market. I’d never seen jujubes before.They are sweet, tart, delicious and crisp. They taste like an apple, grape, pear and nut combo. The flavor seemed to change as I chewed.

  32. paulina says:

    It will be expensive here in Nigeria even though it is beneficial

  33. paulina says:

    I said it would be expensive because it is not planted here

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