Fruit ~ Food Pairing

Some fruit, such as aubergine/eggplant, avocado, chillies, courgettes/zucchini, cucumber, okra, olives, bell peppers, pumpkin, squash and tomatoes, are mainly used as vegetables so, if that is what you are looking for, they are listed here as …

Fruit Treated as Vegetables

  Pomes

 These are fruit that have a “core” of several small seeds. I didn’t know they were called pomes – did you?

Apples – pork, bacon, ham, horseradish, sage, cinnamon, lemon, onion, cheese – particularly Cheddar, blackberries, cranberries and other berries, nuts, celery, squash and cabbage.

Pears – apples, ginger, walnuts, honey, chocolate and blue cheese.

Quince – honey, vanilla, warm spices such as nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and clove, almonds, apples and pears.

     Berries

These all go with cream, ice cream, other fruits, meringues, cereals, sugar, brandy and sunshine. Furthermore ….

Blackberries – apples but also with vanilla, cream, white chocolate and game. Here are some blackberry recipes you might like.

Blueberries – lemon, peaches and nectarines, sour cream, cinnamon and vanilla plus all the flavours normally associated with soft summer fruits.

Cranberries – orange, port, soft and cream cheeses, chicken, turkey, duck, goose, cured meats and pâtés, pumpkin, squash and apples.

Raspberries – white chocolate, cream, yogurt, peaches and other soft summer fruits, almonds, hazelnuts and vanilla.

Strawberries – black pepper, balsamic vinegar, orange, rhubarb, other soft summer fruits, cream, sugar and chocolate, especially white.

Grapes – blue cheese in particular and cheese generally, other fruits, honey, balsamic vinegar, chicken, pork and white fish.

Gooseberries – elderflower and good with mackerel, pork and aniseed.

Kiwi fruit – lime, with other citrus and tropical fruits and with ginger, coconut and sesame.

Pomegranate – orange and walnuts, pheasant, duck and Vodka.

  Stone Fruit aka Drupes

Peaches and Nectarines – almonds, pecans, honey, brown sugar, Bourbon, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, cream, ice cream, cream cheese, cherries, raspberries, blueberries. Chicken, duck, ham, and barbecued meats are all good with peaches too.

Plums – other stone fruit, oranges, warm spices such as cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, ginger, nutmeg and black pepper, Brandy, port and cream.

Apricots – vanilla, almonds, cinnamon and cherries.

      Citrus

Grapefruit – mint, orange, honey, brown sugar, Rum, shellfish, smoked chicken, watercress and avocado.

Lemons – fish, chicken, fresh green herbs, olive oil, garlic, blueberries, raspberries, lime, honey and gin & tonic.

Limes – seafood, chilli, ginger, Rum, coconut, other tropical fruits, lemon avocado and fresh coriander.

Oranges – almonds, black olives, chocolate, cinnamon, caramel, vanilla, ginger, sweet potatoes, red onion and other citrus fruits.

      Tropical Fruits

Bananas – warm spicy flavours such as cinnamon and cloves and also by coconut, brown sugar, um, chocolate, toffee, coffee, nuts, peanut butter and, surprisingly, bacon.

Figs– honey, balsamic vinegar, cinnamon, soft cheese, blue cheese, almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, calves liver, chicken livers, foie gras and air dried ham.

Guavas – lime juice, other tropical fruits, cream, ice cream and in fruit punch.

Mangoes – vanilla, ginger, avocado, orange, lime, coconut, chilli, fresh coriander, mint, curry spices, seafood, chicken, smoked chicken, ham, duck and rum.

Papaya and Pawpaw– lime and other citrus fruits, pineapple, coconut, Rum, chilli, black pepper, curry spices, chicken and seafood. and

Passion Fruit and Granadilla (large golden passion fruit) – other tropical fruits, cream, ice cream and, being quite sharp, go very well with meringues.

Pineapple – other tropical fruits, Rum, coconut, ham and poultry.

     Melons

Cantaloupe and Honeydew – lime, ginger, black pepper, mint, basil, grapes, cucumber, smoked and air dried ham, salty cheeses and shellfish.

Watermelon – strawberries, , ginger, mint, basil, rocket, Feta, goats’ cheese, sweet vinegar and salt.

Rhubarb

Rhubarb is technically a stem vegetable, but is legally
considered a fruit so here it is!

Strawberries, ginger, orange, vanilla, cream, crumble and custard, also pork, game and oily fish.

Dried Fruit

These all go well with cereals, nuts and grains, especially oats, and in baked goods, additionally …

Apricots – almonds, cinnamon, raisins, prunes, dates, dried cranberries, brown sugar and honey.

Dates – walnuts, pecans, cinnamon, nutmeg, bananas, apples, pears, orange, honey, marzipan and goat or blue cheese.

Dried cranberries – apples, brown sugar, almonds and honey.

Raisins, currants and sultanas – apples, rum, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and each other.