This Popular Tropical Fruit Falls Flat In America, According To Reddit

Although one of the most consumed fruits in the United States are bananas, not all tropical fruit seems to hit home when it comes to taste. Over on Reddit, people have taken to complaining about foods that were a major letdown the first time that they tried them — and dragon fruit appears to have a bit of a reputation for missing the mark when eaten in America.

In a Reddit thread dedicated to disappointing foods, one poster said, "Dragonfruit. Looks cool, tastes like nothing. It's probably better in the tropics." In fact, several Redditors claimed to have had positive experiences with dragon fruit in other countries. "Had it in China and it was super lovely, totally tasteless in the States," confirmed a Redditor. Another agreed, "One hundred percent. It was like a completely different fruit in China."

While we swear by a squeeze of lime to bring out its flavor, others in the thread claimed to have enjoyed locally-grown dragon fruit. "The dragon fruit my friend grew in her backyard was delicious. Store-bought has zero flavor. She claims the ones in the store are picked too soon. You have to leave the fruit to ripen on the plant to get good flavor," said one Redditor. This got us thinking: Where is the dragon fruit in American grocery stores coming from? 

Although dragon fruit are native to Mexico, as well as Central and South America, the world's top exporter of the fruit is Vietnam. The majority of dragon fruit that is imported to the U.S. is also mainly from Vietnam, and is the white-fleshed variety (note that there are four main kinds of dragon fruit). The fruit can be naturally harvested about three times per year, but thanks to artificial lighting, big producers in Vietnam get almost 10 annually, making it available globally, year round.

Most of the fruit consumed in the U.S. is imported, and it has long been speculated that imported fruit may be picked less ripe in order to survive the long journey to the supermarket, that certain varieties are more durable than others, or that particular food safety treatments can impact flavor and even texture. We couldn't find evidence that this is the case for dragon fruit, but many who have complained about the fruit on Reddit seem to think this is the problem.

"Harvested way too early and they don't get sweeter after they are picked. Then they are often shipped from Southeast Asia to the U.S. or other Western countries, so they have to be picked early and are often quite old by the time you buy them," claimed one Redditor in a different thread. "Most exported fruit are either picked not ripe to not rot during transport, or [are] versions developed for durability and a long shelf life, rather than flavor or nutrition," added another. We may never know for sure why there seems to be so much lackluster dragon fruit in the U.S., but if you're still looking to get lucky and pick up a sweet, flavorful one, here's what to look for at the grocery store.