Looking for something new for your team or students to taste? There’s a whole world of unique and rare fruits out there, just waiting for you to take a bite! They’re intriguing, delicious, and—in a few cases—grown right here in California.
Here’s a quick look at some of the fun options The FruitGuys often has on hand. If you’re looking for a bit of variety in your life, consider taking a bite on the wild side and ordering them by the case for your office or classrooms.
The exotic dragon fruit looks like a Dale Chihuly sculpture or something from another planet, but don’t worry, it’s from Earth! These oblate orbs with their lovely dragon-like scales are native to Mexico and Central America but are now widely grown in tropical regions around the world, including Vietnam, Thailand, Ecuador, and parts of the U.S. Dragon fruits grow on vining cactus plants that bloom at night, which is extra magical.
When it comes to eating dragon fruit, fear not the fiery reptilian exterior—underneath you’ll find sweet, mellow white flesh and a smattering of edible black seeds. Cut the fruit in half and scoop out the flesh with a spoon, or score it in both directions inside the peel and scoop out the cubes. Enjoy your antioxidant-rich treat alone or add it to yogurt or salads.
These high-fiber fruits are native to Central America and loaded with vitamin C—four times more than an orange! Even their leaves are good for you. Split open the yellow-green skin of an oval-shaped guava, and you’ll discover succulent white flesh. A heady, sweet aroma will drift through the air as you dig in.
You can slice your ripe guava like an apple and eat it out of hand—skin, seeds, and all. If you’re crafty in the kitchen, try this recipe for guayabate (guava paste).
Like dragon fruit, spiky Kiwano melons (also known as horned melons) look more like weapons than fruit. But slice them open, and you’ll discover a sweet and gooey green center reminiscent of their relative, the cucumber.
As KTCHNrebel Magazine so aptly puts it, the Kiwano’s jelly tastes “like an entire fruit cocktail in one, with flavors primarily similar to lime, melon, passion fruit, and banana.”
To eat it, slice the spiny fruit in half and spoon out the slippery green pulp inside. This funky fruit is rich in easy-to-absorb iron, vitamin C, and antioxidants, and can also be added to smoothies, salsas, and sauces. It grows in California but is native to Africa.
Kiwi berries look like miniature versions of regular-sized kiwis, but they’re fuzzless and best eaten whole, like a grape. They’re power pellets of vitamins and antioxidants, too. Eat them alone as a snack, slice them over yogurt or oatmeal, or add them to a salad. These sweet treats are native to Japan, Korea, northern China, and eastern Siberia, where they grow wild before making their way into gardens and orchards around the world.
Not sure if your kiwi berries are ripe? Look for fruits that are firm or give a bit to gentle pressure. Slightly wrinkled skin signals greater sweetness, but might also mean mushier flesh.
Not sure if your kiwi berries are ripe? Look for fruits that are firm or give a bit to gentle pressure. Slightly wrinkled skin signals greater sweetness, but might also mean mushier flesh.
Kumquats are the original sweet-tarts! The “sweet” is in the skin, and the “tart” is in the flesh and juice. To experience the full spectrum of flavor, eat your kumquats whole, like grapes. Try rubbing them gently between your hands before eating to release the sweet oil in their skin.
Don’t want to eat your kumquats by the handful? Try this recipe for kumquat chutney.
Just 5 or 6 kumquats will provide almost two-thirds of your daily recommended intake of vitamin C, helping protect cells from oxidative stress. These tiny natives of southeast China are also grown in California and other subtropical regions around the world.
Don’t want to eat your kumquats by the handful? Try this recipe for kumquat chutney.
Just 5 or 6 kumquats will provide almost two-thirds of your daily recommended intake of vitamin C, which helps prevent neurodegenerative diseases by removing free radicals. These tiny natives of southeast China and Malaysia are also grown in California.
The mandarinquat is a hybrid of the mandarin orange and the kumquat. Like kumquats, mandarinquats can be eaten whole, peel and all, but watch out for the seeds! Luckily, the sweet, tangy, fiber-rich flesh is well worth the bite.
Raw mandarinquats make a delicious snack out of hand, but they’re also delectable sliced and used in salads or paired with cheese. You can also cook these tasty tidbits into sauces, purees, and preserves, or bake their peels into fruity breakfast muffins.
This is an extremely rare fruit grown in southern California and is only available for a few months a year. The FruitGuys often sources mandarinquats from Ripe to You, a family farmer collective in Central California that specializes in unique citrus varieties.
Passion fruit is a vining plant native to Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina. It also grows in parts of the U.S., including Florida. To get the best possible flavor from your passion fruit, wait until it starts to emit a sweet fragrance and its dark purple skin gets so wrinkled that you’d consider it ready to compost. That’s the perfect time to split the fruit open and reveal its bright yellow center of juicy, jelly-like arils and edible black seeds.
You can think of passion fruit arils as a sweeter, slipperier version of pomegranate arils. They’re rich in vitamins A and C and are a good source of potassium and iron. The seeds are also high in dietary fiber and not to be missed, according to some passion fruit farmers. Use a spoon to scoop them out along with the sweet-tart jelly. You can eat passion fruit plain, add it to baked goods, or blend it into juice.
Pepino melons are another Dr. Seuss fruit, featuring an egg-like shape, yellow-green skin, and vibrant purple stripes! Pepinos originally hail from South America, and their Spanish name, Pepino Dulce, means “sweet cucumber.” Pepino melons are packed with antioxidants and beneficial plant compounds that may help reduce inflammation and support overall health.
Pepino melon skin is edible, though if you find it too tough, you can peel it away. Their taste is a mix of cantaloupe, honeydew melon, and a hint of vanilla custard. Slice the melons into salads as you would a cucumber, or eat them for dessert.
Pichuberries — also known as ground cherries or Cape gooseberries—are a member of the nightshade family, which includes tomatoes and potatoes. These small green or orange fruits grow wild in the mountains of Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia and are named after Machu Picchu in the Andes Mountains.
Pichuberries grow on vines wrapped in diaphanous husks, similar to tomatillos. Strip off the husks and enjoy their floral, pineapple-like flavor and abundance of crunchy seeds. There’s no need to spit the seeds out; treat them like you would the seeds in a raspberry or strawberry.
Pichuberries are rich in protein, antioxidants, and B vitamins. Eat their sweet-tart flesh raw, chop them into a salsa, or bake them into heavenly muffins.
Variegated pink lemons are what ordinary lemons would look like if you dropped them into the world of Dr. Suess. They’re a pink-fleshed Eureka lemon variety from California that develops flashy green and yellow stripes when ripe. Like ordinary lemons, these rare fruits can add bright acidity to rice or pasta dishes, roasted vegetables, and salad dressings.
Whether you’re intrigued by pink lemons or kiwi berries, these rare fruits are sure to add color and interest to your late-spring fruit assortment. Don’t miss the opportunity to try them.
If you thought dragon fruit and pink lemons were adventurous, there’s a whole world of even more curious fruits waiting just beyond the familiar. Here are a few rare finds that come with unforgettable flavors, stories, and cultural significance. We don’t typically add these fruits to our fruit mixes at The FruitGuys, but if you’re interested in a case for your office or school, we may be able to hunt them down for you—just put in a bulk fruit request.
Durian is the fruit world’s most polarizing celebrity. Roughly the size and shape of a football, this greenish-brown fruit is armored with sharp spikes that make it look more like medieval weaponry than dessert. Crack it open, though, and you’ll find soft, white, custard-like flesh that many people in Southeast Asia adore—and a famously strong aroma that has earned it a complicated reputation. Some compare the smell to aged cheese or rot, which is why it’s prohibited in many public transportation systems and hotels. You can love it or hate it, but there’s certainly no ignoring it.
Flavor-wise, ripe durian is surprisingly sweet, with notes that some describe as vanilla custard, almond, or caramelized banana. It’s high in fiber, packed with B vitamins, and naturally energy-dense due to its high sugar content. In Asia, locals enjoy it fresh or added to everything from ice cream and pancakes to puddings and candies. It even shows up in savory dishes and fermented sauces like tempoyak. Adventurous eaters can also snack on roasted durian seeds or find them ground into flour.
Whether you’re brave enough to try it fresh or prefer it tucked into a dessert, durian is one rare fruit experience you’ll never forget.
Jabuticaba is a grape-like fruit used for fresh snacking, wine, and preserves. Unlike most fruit trees, jabuticaba is cauliflorous, meaning its flowers and fruit grow directly from the trunk and large branches! This gives the trees a striking, almost magical appearance when they bloom.
Beneath its thick, dark purple skin—which has a slightly tannic, resinous bite—the fruit reveals a soft, white pulp with a flavor often compared to muscadine grapes. Jabuticaba is often eaten fresh in Brazil, where it’s celebrated at festivals and sold by street vendors during peak season, leaving sidewalks stained purple from discarded skins. Today, it’s a rare treat that fruit lovers are hoping to preserve, and it’s featured in Slow Food’s Ark of Taste for its cultural significance.
Rollinia is a large tropical fruit with a whimsical look. It’s heart-shaped or conical, with green skin that ripens to yellow, and covered in small, soft spikes. Inside, the flesh is bright white with a thick, gelatinous texture that feels almost creamy when you bite into it. Inedible, dark brown seeds are scattered throughout—so avoid them when you take a bite!
Part of the same plant family as soursop and cherimoya, rollinia is sometimes described as tasting like lemon meringue, thanks to its balance of tropical sweetness and tang. The fruit grows wild in the Amazon rainforest and has been a favorite there for centuries, but today, you can find it as far afield as Florida and Hawaii. It’s great as a fresh snack, and in Brazil, locals also ferment the pulp to make wine. While the fruit is still considered rare outside its native regions, it remains a beloved treat across parts of South America and beyond.
Join the Chief Banana newsletter for weekly fruit facts, workplace wellness ideas, and occasional offers.
"*" indicates required fields
By signing up, you agree to receive emails from The FruitGuys. You can unsubscribe anytime.
Keep exploring.
Browse by theme.
Get easy recurring deliveries for break rooms, micro markets, and more.
Get fruit news, snack tips, and office wellness insights in your inbox each week, fresh from the desk of our CEO (aka Chief Banana)!
"*" indicates required fields
