Palm Heart

Also heart of palm, palmito

The palm family comprises 2,650 species, according to D. J. Mabberley (The Plant-Book), and most of these bear edible “hearts,” the name used for the crunchy-creamy terminal buds (growing tips) from which the new leaves will emerge. They are harvested across the tropics, from the Asian coconut palm to the American palmetto called swamp cabbage (a Florida delicacy not commercially available). While superficially similar, the hearts of these palms differ in size, sweetness, bitterness, tenderness, fibrousness, tendency to discolor, and ability to regenerate.