Jujube

This small green to reddish-brown fruit originated in China, although Syria is also said to have planted the first seed. Growing on very attractive trees, the jujube fruit is either round or pear-shaped. The round variety is known as Li, while the pear-shaped variety is known as Lang. They are often left to dry on the tree and thus resemble a date—hence the nicknames Chinese date and red date. Jujube is cultivated in Japan and along the parallel all the way to the Mediterranean island of Majorca. When eaten out of hand, the jujube has a crisp and refreshing apple flavor, although the fruit of some varieties is dry and mealy when eaten fresh. Typically, the fruit of all of the varieties is candied or dried.