The other morning, I bought a soursop from my regular supplier of veggie and meat as I could not remember ever eating it before and I wanted to try after hearing and reading so much about the goodness of soursop. The seller told me that the soursop was still very raw and recommended to me to have it boiled as soup with some pork ribs. So I bought a medium size soursop which cost over RM6. After leaving the soursop in my kitchen in room temperature for about 2 weeks, I got impatient and decided to cut up the fruit, though the fruit did not feel completely soft.  After it was cut up, the inside was still hard. And it did not taste pleasant. It tasted like a cross between a tasteless raw pineapple and ‘fun kok’ (a root used to boil soup). That’s the price to pay for being impatient. I should have waited for another week for the entire fruit to ripen. I was told that a ripe soursop is very sweet and the flesh is creamy and soft.   I forced myself to eat a quarter of this tasteless, hard fruit while telling myself that this stuff is chokefull of health benefits.  My mum suggested that I cooked veggie curry with this fruit but I had left it in the fridge and had forgotten all about it until a week later.  It ended up in the bin, sigh.  The next time I buy a soursop, I’ll make sure I choose a completely ripe one to enjoy it.

Food For Thought:

Soursop health benefits:

1. Prevents UTI (Vitamin C)
Soursop is an excellent source of vitamin C, a nutrient which increases the acidity level of urine, resulting in decreased number of harmful bacteria that may be present in the urinary tract.

2. Prevents constipation (Fiber)
Go natural! Let this fruit’s rich fiber content be the solution to problems in bowel movement.

3. Prevents leg cramps (Potassium)
It contains half the potassium in bananas. Lack of potassium, together with magnesium, calcium and sodium (also known as electrolytes) in the body can cause muscle weakness and cramping.

4. Prevents water retention (Magnesium)
Women who experience water retention before their monthly period would benefit from the soursop’s rich magnesium content. It may help alleviate this annoying premenstrual symptom.

5. Helps the body produce energy (Thiamin)
Feeling a little tired? Eat soursop! It can supply the body a good amount of thiamin, the B vitamin which is needed in aerobic energy production, the process when oxygen is used to help convert sugar into usable energy.

6. Keeps bones healthy (Copper)
It is loaded with the trace mineral copper. Calcium contributes only about 25% to the prevention of bone loss as magnesium, manganese, zinc and copper are also equally crucial for healthy bones. Zinc and copper boost the effectiveness of vitamin D, which promotes the absorption of calcium.

7. Boosts good cholesterol levels (Niacin)
Worried about your cholesterol? Fresh fruits and veggies are the perfect choice! Soursop is a good source of niacin, a vitamin which studies show has significant benefits on levels of HDL, the good cholesterol

8. Prevents pregnancy complications (Folate)
This spiky fruit contains folate. Studies have proven that folate intake during pregnancy prevents deficiency in pregnant women. A lack of this mineral during pregnancy may contribute to birth defects and pregnancy loss.

9. Helps prevent anemia (Iron)
It can provide iron which prevents the common blood disorder anemia – a condition in which the blood lacks enough healthy red blood cells. RBC is responsible for the distribution of oxygen to the body tissues, giving the body energy.

10. Helps prevent migraines (Riboflavin)
Headache? Try soursop! It has riboflavin. Several studies have shown that high riboflavin intake helps prevent migraines.