Botanical Name: Nephelium lappaceum
Family: Sapindaceae
Kingdom: Plantae
Order: Sapindales
Genus: Nephelium
Species: N. lappaceum
Synonyms: Nephelium glabrum Cambess. Nephelium obovatum Ridely. Nephelium sufferugineum Radlk.
Common Names: Rambutan. Hairy Lychee
(The name “rambutan” is derived from the Malay word rambut meaning “hair”, a reference to the numerous hairy protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix -an. Similarly, in Vietnam, it is called chôm chôm (meaning “messy hair”)
Habitat : The rambutan is native to the Indonesian region, and other regions of tropical Southeast Asia. It is closely related to several other edible tropical fruits including the lychee, longan, and mamoncillo.
Description:
Rambutan tree is an evergreen tree growing to a height of 12–20 m. The leaves are alternate, 10–30 cm long, pinnate, with three to 11 leaflets, each leaflet 5–15 cm wide and 3–10 cm broad, with an entire margin. The flowers are small, 2.5–5 mm, apetalous, discoidal, and borne in erect terminal panicles 15–30 cm wide.
Rambutan trees can be male (producing only staminate flowers and, hence, produce no fruit), female (producing flowers that are only functionally female), or hermaphroditic (producing flowers that are female with a small percentage of male flowers).
The fruit is a round to oval single-seeded berry, 3–6 cm (rarely to 8 cm) long and 3–4 cm broad, borne in a loose pendant cluster of 10–20 together. The leathery skin is reddish (rarely orange or yellow), and covered with fleshy pliable spines, hence the name, which means ‘hairs’. Furthermore, the spines (also known as spinterns) contribute to the transpiration of the fruit and can lead to affecting fruit quality.
The fruit flesh, which is actually the aril, is translucent, whitish or very pale pink, with a sweet, mildly acidic flavor very reminiscent of grapes.
The single seed is glossy brown, 1–1.3 cm, with a white basal scar. Soft and containing equal portions of saturated and unsaturated fats,[8] the seeds may be cooked and eaten. The peeled fruits can be eaten raw, or cooked and eaten: first, the grape-like fleshy aril, then the nutty seed, with no waste.
Health Benefits:
Neutricianal Value: Rambutan fruit contains diverse nutrients but in modest amounts, with only manganese having moderate content at 16 percent of the Daily Value per 100 g consumed (right table; note data are for canned fruit in syrup, not as raw which may have different nutrient contents)
As an unpigmented fruit flesh, rambutan does not contain significant polyphenol content, but its colorful rind displays diverse phenolic acids, such as syringic, coumaric, gallic, caffeic, and ellagic acids having antioxidant activity in vitro.[19][20] Rambutan seeds contain equal proportions of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids, where arachidic (34%) and oleic (42%) acids, respectively, are highest in fat content.
The pleasant fragrance of rambutan fruit derives from numerous volatile organic compounds, including beta-damascenone, vanillin, phenylacetic acid, and cinnamic acid
Rambutan has a very high B3, amounting to 1352 mg. At 1950s, vitamin B3 is used to heart attack prevention therapy and lower cholesterol levels. Men should consume 15-19 mg per day, Women about of 15-18 mg per day, while for children 9-13mg daily.
As the fruit has good amount of Vitamin B3 & vitamin C it has thousands of health benefits that we get by eating this.
Disclaimer : The information presented herein is intended for educational purposes only. Individual results may vary, and before using any supplement, it is always advisable to consult with your own health care provider.
Resources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rambutan
https://pfaf.org/user/DatabaseSearhResult.aspx
https://drhealthbenefits.com/food-bevarages/fruits/health-benefits-of-rambutan