Article from
Edible South Florida magazine
by Gretchen Schmidt, editor
Cooking With Fresh
Guava
Fig. 1
The
intoxicating fragrance of fresh red or pink guava makes it a good
choice for fruit salads, smoothies and refreshing drinks, but preparing
the fruit can be a challenge because of the small, hard seeds, which
“lie in obtrusive layers between the layers of flesh, like rows of
buckshot,” according to Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings in Cross Creek Cookery.
Look
for varieties that have fewer seeds. You can poach peeled fruits for 10
minutes, then pop out the seedy centers. Or peel, cut in half, and
scoop out the seeds with a spoon. For nectar and puree, chop and cook,
then press through a strainer. You can also pulse quickly in a food
processor to make a puree, then strain out seeds and pulp. (If you’re
eating ripe guava out of hand, just eat around the seeds.) Thai guava,
crunchy and white-fleshed, is usually eaten unripe and raw, julienned
and added to green papaya or mango salads. Both are excellent sources
of vitamin C.
Fig. 2
Guava Nectar
Mix nectar
with lemon or limeade for a refreshing fruit drink.
Ingredients:
Guavas, water, sugar or honey
Instructions:
Cut
off stem and blossom ends of ripe guava and slice. For every two quarts
of sliced fruit, add 2 cups of water and add to saucepan. Cover and
cook until soft, then press through a strainer to remove seeds. Add
water to thin mixture. Sweeten with sugar or honey to taste.
Guava Puree
Makes
about 2 cups
Add this puree to cocktails, smoothies, fruit salads,
yogurt or milkshakes.
Ingredients:
3 cups ripe guava pulp scooped from skin
½ cup honey
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lime juice
Instructions:
Combine
pulp, honey and water in saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower heat and
simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and mash
with a potato masher, or pulse on low speed in a blender or processor
just until pureed – seeds should be whole. Pour into sieve set over a
bowl and press through, using a wooden spoon or pestle. Discard seeds
and pulp. Stir in lime juice. Refrigerate airtight for a week.
Fresh Guava
Chutney
Makes
about 1 cup. Serve this with Indian breads or pappadum or as a
condiment with curries. Add more (or less) pepper for desired heat.
Ingredients:
½ lb. ripe guava, seeds removed, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 small jalapeño pepper, chopped coarsely
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon amchoor (dried mango powder)
Instructions:
Combine all ingredients in food processor and pulse until blended.
Guava Smoothie
Serves 2. Got ripe mango or papaya? Add it to the mix!
Ingredients:
1 cup peeled and seeded guava, cut into chunks
1 ripe banana
¼ cup sugar (or to taste)
Juice of one lime
2 cups milk
½ cup ice
Instructions:
Add all ingredients to blender and process until smooth.
Fresh Guava
Glazed Chicken
Recipe courtesy of Leila Werner.
Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 oz. triple sec
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
2 oz. unsalted butter
½ cup (about 2 large guavas) fresh guava, seeded and julienned
Instructions:
Season
flour to preference and lightly dredge chicken breasts. Heat oil on
medium heat in large skillet. Fry chicken breasts until golden brown on
both sides. When nearly cooked, drain oil from the pan and deglaze pan
with triple sec while chicken is still in the pan. The sugar in the
triple sec will thicken and glaze the chicken.
Turn heat down
and add minced garlic, ginger and guava pieces. Cook until you can
smell the garlic and ginger. Move chicken breasts to the side of the
pan and add butter, a tablespoon at a time, until melted. Baste chicken
with gravy.
Remove chicken to a platter and pour guava sauce over each breast.
Garnish with guava pieces.
Guava Cosmo
Ingredients:
2 oz vodka
½ oz Cointreau or Triple Sec
½ oz fresh lime juice
1 oz Redland guava puree
Instructions:
Combine ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain
into cocktail glass and garnish with lime wheel.
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Bibliography
Schmidt, Gretchen. "Cooking with Guavas." Edible South Florida,
3 Mar. 2018, ediblesouthflorida.ediblecommunities.com/eat/cooking-fresh-guava. Accessed
1 Apr. 2019.
Photographs
Fig. 1 Schmidt, Gretchen. "Cooking
with Guavas." 3 Mar. 2018, Edible
South Florida, ediblesouthflorida.ediblecommunities.com/eat/cooking-fresh-guava. Accessed
1 Apr. 2019.
Fig. 2 Schmidt, Gretchen. "Guava Nectar." 3
Mar. 2018, Edible
South Florida, ediblesouthflorida.ediblecommunities.com/recipes/guava-nectar.
Accessed 1 Apr. 2019.
Published 1 Apr. 2019 LR
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