The Fruits Of Ramayan: Ram Phal, Sita Phal, Lakshman Phal And Hanuman Phal

Sita Phal and Ram Phal, as the names themselves suggest, have a historical and mythological background. Tasty to the core, these two fruits have found severa uses, both edible and medicinal. They look quite different, although they carry the names of Ram and Sita.

ramphal

The pulp of Sitaphal and Ramphal are segmented and white coloured, smooth with a good aroma. Sitaphal is a little more round in shape and in the brown shade whereas Ramphal is heart shaped with red highlights. Hence it is called bulls heart. It is tasty but less popular than Sitaphal.

Ramphal

Historical Background

After the Samhara or annihilation of Ravan, Lord Ram visited Rishikesh to perform penance, to get rid of the dosha of killing a Brahmin. At this time, during penance, he subsisted on these fruits which were later named after him. This is called prickly pear which is extensively used in European countries as well. The Mexican government uses this symbol in official documents.

Most popularly called Soursop, this rare fruit from India grows in tropical parts of the nation such as east Assam, West Bengal, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Southern Tamil Nadu and Kerala. They can grow anywhere up to the elevation of 1300 but not higher than this.

Recipes With Ramphal

Ramphal has a creamy and granular to touch and also taste sweet. They do not have many seeds, unlike Custard apple. We can use Ramphal in several innovative ways. For example, a milk shake can be prepared by using Ramphal, milk, nuts, and cinnamon. Or you could add Ram phal to custard and add dry fruits and nuts and consume. Otherwise, you can make ice cream from the Ramphal. Note that it is not available withn street side vendors so you have to buy them in Markets and Malls.

Sita Phal

Origins

Sita phal is named after Sita the Goddess of Ramayana. Sitaphal is our very own custard apple that is known to have its roots in South America. Some say it reached through Portugal in the 17th century.

Legend

The legend associated with this fruit goes thus. When Ravan abducted Goddess Sita and rushed to Lanka in Pushpak Vimaan, the highly distressed Sita shed copious tears, every drop of which, along with her sweat,moistened the earth but instead of getting absorbed in the soil, they a very special variety of plant started growing, With each glistening tear from her eyes, a plant grew up in response. These plants, when they grew bore fruits that tasted a lot different from the ordinary fruits. When the fruits were broken open by vanaras much later, they saw that these fruits were full of seeds covered by white pulp looking like tear drops. The tears of Goddess showed up as fruits that were named after Sita.

Recipes With Sita Phal

Custard apple can have variety of uses and recipes. You can prepare Almond And Custard Apple Rabdi, Almond Ginger And Custard Apple Smoothie, Custard Apple Kalakand, Custard Apple Kheer, Sitaphal Ice Cream, Sharife Ki Kheer.
Custard apple puree is used to add flavor to fruit soufflés and compotes. You can blend custard apple pulp with chilled milk and consume it when you need to get refreshed. Other uses for the Sitaphal are syrups, squashes, jams and marmalades along with other fruits. Add puree to cake fillings to better their taste. You can also consider preparing Custard fruit sauces.

Lakshman Phal

Lakshman Phal or soursop, is grown in Brazil. It is believed to be a miracle food for cancer patients which clinically is supposed to have helped many patients with TB, Cancer, AIDS and so on.

Hanuman Phal

Hanuman phal, or soursop, belongs to the custard apple family. It is green coloured and prickly to touch with an edible white pulp and it is full of seeds. It is used to make confectionaries and is being seriously experimented in Cancer research.

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