Açai is truly a remarkable fruit. Growing atop elegant palm trees in the lushest parts of the Amazon rainforest, the açai fruit looks a lot like a blueberry. But, should you go to the Amazon one day, make sure you don?t pop one in your mouth and bite on it - you may break a tooth! Because, far from being a fleshy berry, the açai fruit is a hard, wooden seed covered by a very thin skin.
While açai?s seed isn?t edible (it?s used as fertilizer, fuel and to make beaded jewelry), açai?s thin skin is a nutritional marvel, combining the best of berries and nuts: At the micronutrient level it is packed with powerful antioxidants called anthocyanins. And at the macronutrient level it boasts a virtually perfect composition: plenty of heart-healthy omega fatty acids, a good amount of dietary fiber, some protein and practically no sugars! Pretty amazing, isn?t it?
What?s more, the fruit?s pulp is consumed in the form of a thick purée (see ?the food?) that has a delightfully creamy texture and combines notes of dark chocolate with that of wild berries. So açai doesn?t only offer unparalleled nutrition but is also delicious to the palate: truly the best of both worlds!