Kiwifruit

There's nothing on earth like kiwifruit. Brown and fuzzy on the outside, green and zesty on the inside – kiwifruit is a festival of flavor for those adventurous enough to try it. One sweet/tart taste of kiwifruit, and most first-time tasters become lifetime fans!

The flavor of a kiwi fruit is all kiwi fruit: sweet-tart with hints of citrus, strawberry, pineapple, and melon. You have probably tasted nothing like the kiwi fruit.

The kiwi fruit was known as yang tao when introduced to New Zealand as that is what it was called in China, but people in New Zealand thought the flavor was like that of a gooseberry. The fruit was known in New Zealand as the Chinese gooseberry but politics got in the way and an Auckland man came up with the kiwifruit name which took very quickly and it became the industry-wide name.

New Zealanders do not take kindly to the fruit being referred to as a kiwi, preferring kiwifruit.The kiwi is a small flightless bird native to New Zealand, a term New Zealanders often use in reference to themselves.

This plant originated in China where it was prized. The ruling khans of southern China called the kiwi yang tao. When the British arrived in China in the early 19th century, they renamed this fruit the “Chinese gooseberry”–even though it is no relation to a gooseberry.

The yang tao gradually made its way around the world where it was introduced to New Zealand in 1906 and thus became a major commercial crop there in the 1960s.

Even the best specimens of kiwifruit perfection can be ruined when they're not properly stored, so follow these simple storage and ripening tips to get every ounce of pleasure from your purchase!

Storage Tips

Kiwifruit may be a lot of things – fuzzy, funny-looking, delicious, delightful – but “delicate” they're not. They'll keep for several days at room temperature and up to four weeks in your refrigerator. (They can even be held in commercial storage for over 10 months ... but don't try that at home!)

If your kiwifruit's a little firm and you're getting anxious to eat it, try this: Place it in a vented plastic bag with an apple or a banana and leave it out on the counter for a day or two. It should ripen right up!