mauritius lychee, which is my personal favorite, fruits pretty much every year without fail. Like lychee and longan, it’s a tree-borne tropical fruit native to Southeast Asia, particularly the Malay-Indonesia region. They are both inedible and should be discarded. While they’re delicious on their own, they also make for wonderfully refreshing summer desserts. In traditional Chinese medicine, longan has been used to improve skin, heart health, and to promote calmness. They are also a decent source of potassium and phenolic acid, an antioxidant known to have antifungal, antiviral and antibacterial properties. Just about all the asians I know prefer Lychees over Longan. But I was intrigued. In taste and texture these are similar to a date. It is true that longan are easier to grow than lychee. If you’re of the legal drinking age, they also make for a refreshing, fruity take on a classic martini. Tell us about your experience in the comments! Blogger Tips: Thanksgiving Leftovers Like Cauliflower, Green Beans, Pumpkin, Carrots and Brussels! Get your favorite articles delivered right to your inbox! Rambutan is the largest of the three, with each fruit being about the size of a golfball. altough its a mater of taste, i think most people on this forum would say they prefer the taste of lychees to longans. Lychee is known to be sweet along with a taste like a combination between grape and pear. In terms of flavor and texture, lychee and longan are very comparable, but longan has been described as being jelly-like and more tart. It has a slightly sour, almost slightly "putrid" flavor that is off-putting to me. The fruit of the longan is similar to that of the lychee, but less aromatic in taste. It is most of the time eaten fresh, however, it could also be preserved by canning. I think the diamond river is one. also some varities fruit more than others. Lychee seems like a clear winner, has a wonderful perfumed aroma like rose water, nice flavor. Related to the litchi, it is used in many of the same ways, though smaller, less juicy, and not as white. The longan does not require the addition of sugar and retains flavour better than lychee … Usually, you can buy a single rambutan for less than a dollar. Supposedly I have read some people think they have a slight gardenia-like aroma, which I think must be barely detectable if it is there, but maybe that's only true of the best longan. Or, you can use them to top your tropical smoothie bowl . Moroccan Tagine “Couscous” [Vegan, Gluten-Free], Smoky Roasted Eggplant Dip with Bell Pepper and Walnut [Vegan]. The sun dried lychee is well known as lychee-nut and this was the only form in which lychees were available prior to about 1950. If you want, you can also pick up some fresh mint as a garnish. I believe they are growing the Kohala variety and I'm sure they do a lot of thinning to get the fruit to size up. In Cantonese, longan is called lùhng-ngáahn, which means “dragon’s eye.” When you crack open the fruit (and as you can see in the photo above), you’ll understand how they got that name. Since lychees, longan, and rambutan are so similar in taste and texture, you can apply the same, simple sorbet-making steps to all three fruits! For those that don’t have it, it’s a brilliant food app available for both Android and iPhone. Canned lychees are readily available. I actually like both, but of the two, I'd pick a longan anytime. The Food Monster app has over 8000+ recipes and 500 are free. A pack of three 20-ounce cans costs about $18. john- i think most of the people who have difficulty getting them to fruit live outside of florida or in northern florida. That’s exactly how I felt when I first learned about lychee, a tropical fruit from Southern China that has a hard, bumpy outer shell that holds a sweet, juicy, jelly-like fruit inside. personally, it is truly a mystery to me how lychees are not everyone's flat out favorite fruit and how mauritius are not everyone's favorite lychee variety. Now if we bring up the subject of Rambutan, Rambutan is probably my least favorite of the 3, although it ranks closely to below Longan. Biew Kiew vs Kohala Longan « Reply #27 on: June 19, 2012, 09:06:37 PM » I'm thinking about buying a longan tree and I'm undecided between Biew Kiew and Kohala. Longan Fruit vs. Lychee: Health Benefits, Nutrition Information, and Uses Medically reviewed by Natalie Butler, R.D., L.D. When selecting lychee, choose the reddest fruits you can find. Lychee trees are evergreen, can grow up to 100 feet tall, and they bear edible fruits. I enjoy both but like lychees much better myself, The longan reminds me of a really sweet honey dew melon. The sun dried lychee is well known as lychee-nut and this was the only form in which lychees were available prior to about 1950. If you’re an adventurous food person like I am, then we probably have one thing in common: when we learn about a food that we’ve never tried, we have to try it. After a few years of nurturing and fertilizing, the damn longan tree produced fruit whereas our lychee barely even produced an ovary. I love lychees, but I love longans more. — Written by Annette McDermott — … Longans are less picky then Lychees when it comes to fruiting. Like lychee, longan is a tropical fruit native to Southeast Asia that’s a member of the soapberry family. Please support us! You’re most likely to find longan Chinatown or Asian markets throughout summer. Seems like longan are more likely sold on the branch these days, but since they’re related fruits, the branches and leaves will look similar. It’s a great resource for anyone looking to cut out or reduce allergens like meat, dairy, soy, gluten, eggs, grains, and more find awesome recipes, cooking tips, articles, product recommendations and how-tos. Any Chinese folks out there who can give us an opinion or observation on this point? It is native to Southern China, but today, it’s cultivated throughout Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent. In taste and texture these are similar to a date. A 6-ounce bag costs about $20. Longans are also less susceptible to wind damage during new growth flush. Easy, right? Always remember to enjoy lychees in moderation! He cites the alleged fact that most Chinese fruit lovers prefer longan to lychee when push comes to shove. Rambutan can be found in Chinatown or Asian markets in the summer and should be refrigerated after purchase. The seeds should be discarded, as they are toxic. Like the litchi, longan trees can live and bear fruit for four hundred or so years. Now let’s try Quenepas out (Spanish Limes)! I am in the lychee tastes better camp, by a considerable margin. Canned lychees are readily available. That part is always discarded. harry- i have heard this 'Chinese people prefer longan" allegation before, but not sure if I heard it from you or from my local Chinese lychee distributor. For starters, you don’t eat the peel. Lead image source: Ekaterina Kondratova/Shutterstock. If you can’t find fresh longan near you, try these Dragon Herbs Longan Fruits. Longan is a good source of vitamin C, with 1/2 a cup providing 80 percent of your daily recommended intake. 158 41 0. longan. Lychee martinis have been hitting the scene for a few years now and remain a pretty popular beverage, but there is definitely more to the lychee than meets the eye. How do the taste of longans compare? 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