Grapefruit and Salads

The grocery store is more of a challenge every day. The news says there is no inflation, but they exclude in their figures the price of food and gas. ??????? That makes no sense to me since these are things everyone consumes on a daily basis. Even if you don’t drive an automobile, the price of all goods is increased when fuel increases. The only one over which we have any control is food.


I actually enjoy going to the store and scouting out the bargains. I don’t enjoy having to pay more for basic staples that I can’t do without, however, so whenever I come across some staple that is on sale or relatively cheap I buy as much as I can use and store. The “red letter” foods (foods that reach their peak of quality and availability and thus are inexpensive) for March are onions, lemons and grapefruit.

Lemons are such a versatile and important food that I have written about them many times and they are in a class of their own—likewise onions; but not so much grapefruit. This year I have found grapefruit at rock bottom prices while at the same time other produce has been going up. I actually purchased a 5 pound bag of delicious, plump, pink grapefruit from Texas (the best, I think) for $2.00! That’s $.40/pound—a magnificent buy. Granted, they are not usually that cheap—yesterday I bought the same amount for $3.00, but that is still a great bargain.

What to do with all this grapefruit? I began in earnest looking through my recipe collection for grapefruit recipes and there are hundreds. I actually fell back on an old standard that I serve here at the inn frequently—broiled grapefruit.

Many of our guests tell me they have never had grapefruit served this way before, which I find amusing, since I always thought it was the only way people ate grapefruit when I was young. Turns out that my mom had tooth sensitivity to hot and cold and wanted her grapefruit warm—so she covered it with brown sugar and broiled it until the sugar caramelized and formed a crust. She then usually put a maraschino cherry in the center and a little of the cherry juice to make it pretty and sweeter and served it. Simple and delicious—just be sure you cut around the outside of each grapefruit half, freeing the pulp from the skin completely and then (hopefully using a special grapefruit cutter) cut between each section, loosening the fruit from the membranes. Don’t forget to remove the seeds. This isn’t really too difficult and it makes it so much easier and more pleasant to eat.

Grapefruit is an extremely healthy food. In addition to the obvious citrus fruit content of vitamin C, one half of a grapefruit has 325mg of potassium 25mcg of folate, 40 mg of calcium and 1 mg of iron. The pink and red varieties are high in beta carotene—a great antioxidant. It’s low in calories and high in fiber making it a great first course or snack food to make you feel full. Recent studies have found that grapefruit are high in lycopene, an antioxidant that appears to lower the risk of prostate cancer; phenolic acid which inhibits the formation of cancer-causing nitrosamines; limonoids, terpenes and monoterpenes and bioflavonoids all of which inhibit the production of cancerous cells. There are anecdotal studies that say grapefruit can alleviate the symptoms from arthritis, lupus and other inflammatory disorders. If that is true, it is probably due to plant chemicals that block prostaglandins, substances that cause inflammation. It’s plain to see that grapefruit is not only a bargain in food, but also in pharmaceuticals.

Here’s a Thai recipe that is a really new and sophisticated take on the common grapefruit—we loved it!

Thai Pink Grapefruit Salad

Serve either as a side salad alongside fish or chicken or as a main dish salad with chicken or shrimp added.

3 Tbsp sweetened shredded coconut
2 Tbsp fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp fish sauce (nam pla)
1 Tbsp sugar
2 cups sectioned pink grapefruit (about 4 grapefruit)
½ cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
2 Tbsp coarsely chopped roasted salted peanuts
1 Tbsp. finely minced green onion
2 tsp. finely minced jalapeno peppers
Sprinkling of crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
Leaves of soft, buttery lettuce

Toast the coconut in a dry skillet for 3 to 4 minutes over medium-high heat until soft brown. Turn out on plate to cool. Combine lime juice, fish sauce, and sugar in a medium bowl and stir to dissolve sugar. Add grapefruit, cilantro, coconut, peanuts, onion and chile. Toss gently to combine. Line a salad plate with lettuce leaves and tear a few for the center of the plate. Spoon grapefruit mixture onto torn lettuce. Sprinkle with a few more chopped peanuts and red pepper flakes if using.