Taiwan Specialty Plant and Fruit: Gac (Momordica cochinchinensis) - Morphological Characteristics, Nutrients, and Can the Seeds Be Eaten?

The fruit from heaven - "Heaven Fruit" - its appearance gives no hint of heaven at all, yet it is a good friend to the eyes. People in Vietnam and South Asia call gac (Momordica cochinchinensis) the "fruit from heaven," and it is a treasure for young women to keep their skin rosy and radiant.

Heaven Fruit
The strangely shaped gac (Momordica cochinchinensis) is also commonly known in Taiwan, China as "spiny bitter gourd." When ripe, it is covered in red fruit. According to a research report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), gac contains many essential nutrients for the human body, including lycopene, carotene, zeaxanthin, cryptoxanthin, Q10, Omega-3, lutein, and more. Few fruits contain so many nutrients, which is why it is called the fruit from heaven.

Interior of Heaven Fruit
The gac of Taiwan, China belongs to a native species of the eastern mountain regions and has long been a traditional food ingredient of Indigenous peoples. Traditionally, Indigenous peoples only ate the green fruit, stewing it in soup like green papaya, and the leaves could be stir-fried. The reason they did not eat the ripe fruit is that it was formerly believed that gac becomes toxic after ripening and changing color. However, after research by the Taitung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, it was found that the ripe fruit turns orange-red, the flesh is extremely nutritious, and it contains many phytonutrients. The "aril" outer layer of the seed has a lycopene content 70 times that of tomatoes, and abroad it is even made into functional foods.

"Reminder"The seed, which is shaped like a soft-shelled turtle (as shown below), is mildly toxic and must not be eaten!

Heaven Fruit seeds
Although the green fruit can also be eaten, if you want to fully take in the nutrients of gac, the ripe fruit is better. So how should gac be prepared? It is no trouble. The Chenggong Township Farmers' Association in Taitung specifically asked culinary experts to develop recipes. Currently, the aril of gac has already been made into juice, cheese, bagels, and other common processed foods, allowing people to eat natural foods directly and replenish multiple nutrients at once, especially lutein, which is indispensable for today's avid users of 3C devices!

Would you like to taste the rare flavor of the fruit from heaven? Rich in lycopene and lutein, the Heaven Fruit is a fruit worth trying.