Neotropical and introduced fruits with special tastes and consistencies that are consumed in Colombia Frutas neotropicales y foráneas de especial sabor y consistencia consumidas en Colombia Pablo Buriticá Céspedes 1 and José Régulo Cartagena Valenzuela 2 Abstract. This paper reviews some Neotropical and introduced fruit species that are characterized by their special taste, anatomy and consistency. For the Colombian territory, the principal common names of the species in question are recorded, along with their taxonomic position, principal plant and fruit characteristics, regions where they grow, consumption modes, and speciic uses. Keywords: Botany, biodiversity, bioprospecting, promising fruit species. Resumen. Se hace una reseña de especies frutales Neotropicales y foráneas que se caracterizan por su sabor, estructura y consistencia. Para Colombia, se registran los principales nombres comunes, su posición taxonómica, las principales características de la planta y la fruta, las regiones en donde son comunes, la manera de consumirlas y inalmente, sus usos. Palabras clave: Botánica, biodiversidad, bioprospección, especies frutales promisorias. The consumption of fruits is expanding worldwide, mostly due to their importance in nutritional balance, which in turn results from their contribution of vitamins, minerals and important metabolites for human metabolism (carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, antioxidants, etc.). In addition, transformation processes resulting from agribusiness innovation have introduced new presentations, which have made fruits more and more available to consumers. The global fruit market is dominated by a few species, namely Vitis spp. (especially wine grapes), the Rosaceae family [apple (Malus domestica Borkh.), pear (Pyrus spp.), plum (Prunus spp.), peach (Prunus persica L.)], citrus fruits [(orange (Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck), tangerine (Citrus tangerine Tanaka), lime ( Citrus latifolia Tanaka), lemon ( Citrus limon L.), pomelo ( Citrus maxima Merr.), grapefruit ( Citrus x paradise Macfad)], banana (Musa spp.), pineapple [Ananas comusus (L.) Merr.], papaya (Carica papaya L.) and mango (Mangifera indica L.). Yet, there are a number of tropical and subtropical fruits, such as kiwi ( Actinidia deliciosa A. Chev. Liang et Ferguson) and others, which are currently being introduced and correspondingly appreciated in the international market. People in certain countries are looking for exotic lavors and particular properties [ e. g., the laxative efect of dragon fruit ( Cereus spp.)] that can be easily found in tropical fruits. Generally speaking, the main uses of fruits are: direct consumption of the harvested fruit and preparation of juices, desserts (non-confectionery), sauces, jams, and fruit paste. Fresh consumption takes place when the fruit is washed and consumed in its entirety (e.g. apple), cut into portions [e.g. melon (Cucumis melo L.), watermelon (Citrullus lanatus (Thunb) Matsum et Nakai)] or peeled to consume the entire inner contents (e.g. banana) or a portion thereof (e.g. pineapple, papaya). Currently, fruits are being used in salad combinations complemented with dressings. In all of these cases, fruits are consumed by masticating the pulp. Although any fruit can be used to prepare juice by dissolving it in either water or milk, some of them are particularly adequate for this purpose, as is the case of lulo or naranjilla (Solanum quitoense Lam). Fruit desserts are usually prepared by adding sugar and cooking in water until the syrup reaches the “soft ball” stage. Although denser than the latter, fruit sauces are frequently used as meat dressings (e.g. plum dressing). In turn, jam results from concentrating fruit sauces, until obtaining a semisolid paste that can be spread on bread or crackers. By further concentrating and heavily sweetening fruit pulps, we obtain solid pastes such as that of guava (Psidium guajava spp.) and some jellies. Finally, the rind of some fruits (usually citrus ones) is sometimes used in syrup preparation. A relatively unknown manner of fresh consumption is addressed in this paper, namely sucking or otherwise extracting the juice from speciic parts of the fruit. 1 Full Professor Retired. Universidad Nacional de Colombia – Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias - Departamento de Ciencias Agronómicas. A.A. 1779. Medellín, Colombia. <pburitica@unal.edu.co> 2 Full Professor. Universidad Nacional de Colombia – Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias Departamento de Ciencias Agronómicas. A.A. 1779. Medellín, Colombia. <jrcartag@unal.edu.co> Received: October 31, 2014; Accepted: December 30, 2014 doi: 10.15446/rfnam.v68n2.50948 Rev.Fac.Nal.Agr. 68(2): 7589-7618. 2015 Review