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Sitaphal - The Epic Fruit By Mumtaz Khalid Ismail
More Links Varieties of Sitaphal Nutritive value of Sitaphal Preparation of Sitaphal
The epic Ramayana and its characters are part of Indian culture. A certain family of fruits has been honoured with the name of Sita, Rama, and Hanuman. Sitaphal belongs to the annona family of the shrubs. This is a native to South America and the West Indies but now it is grown in India. These are heart shaped or oval and can weigh up to 450 gms.
Sitaphal is known by many names such as ata, sharifa, seethaphalam, custard apple, and sugar apple. Sitaphal is the most famous of the annonas family of fruits. Botanical name for sitaphal is annona squamosa. The fruit is brown or green in colour with small yellowish eye like bulges. The fruit pulp is juicy and creamy. It has a typical buttery and delicate flavour. Fruit contains numerous brownish black seeds.
*Source: National Institute of Nutrition
Nutrients Per 100 gm Energy 104 kcal Protein 1.6 gm Fat 0.4 gm Carbohydrate 23.5 gm Fibre 3.1gm
Nutrients Per 100 gm Calcium 17mg Phosphorus 47 mg Iron 4.37 mg Vitamin C 37 mg
The fruit can be eaten as such or the pulp is often blended together with milk to make shakes, ice cream, and puddings. The fruit pulp is easy to digest and it can be eaten easily by all ages. Sitaphal pulp can be mixed with weaning food mixtures and fed to infants. In some part when the fruit is half ripe it is baked over a coal fire and eaten. The fruit pulp is also used to make fermented drinks. Alcohol extracted from sitaphal is known as anocorin. It is said to possess insecticidal properties and is thus used in various chemical preparations. A kind of oil is extracted from sitaphal seeds and this oil also possesses similar properties.
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Hanuman phal is also known as cherimoya. Hanuman phal is cultivated in large scale in India at Karnataka and Andhra. It is large in size and is very delicious and contains fewer seeds than sitaphal and has more buttery pulp.
Bullock's heart is the other name of ram phal. Bullock's heart is rarely cultivated in India. Sours sop or prickly custard apples are the largest of this group of fruits. They have dark green skin with thorny bristles covering its entire surface. It is often eaten as a vegetable in south East Asian islands. The pulp forms excellent jelly and is often preserved. Sitaphal is more common in this annona family.
