Açaí palm

Template:Taxobox begin Template:Taxobox image Template:Taxobox begin placement Template:Taxobox regnum entry Template:Taxobox divisio entry Template:Taxobox classis entry Template:Taxobox ordo entry Template:Taxobox familia entry Template:Taxobox genus entry Template:Taxobox end placement Template:Taxobox section subdivision About 25-30 species including:
Euterpe edulis
Euterpe macrospadix
Euterpe oleracea Template:Taxobox end

Açaí Palm Euterpe is a genus of 25-30 species of palms native to tropical Central and South America, from Belize south to Brazil and Peru, growing mainly in floodplains and swamps. They are tall slender attractive palms growing to 15-30 m tall, with pinnate leaves up to 3 m long. The fruit is a small, round, black-purple drupe similar in size to a grape. They are produced in branched panicles of 700-900 fruits. Its appearance is similar to that of a grape, but it has a smaller amount of pulp and a single large seed about 7–10mm in diameter.

The genus is named after the muse Euterpe of Greek mythology. The vernacular name is also sometimes spelled Assai Palm in English.

Uses

Açaí are used (particularly Euterpe edulis) for their 'palm heart' eaten as a steamed dish, and (particularly Euterpe oleracea) for their highly-prized fruits that are rich in B vitamins, minerals (particularly iron), fibre, proteins and anthocyanin, a member of the flavonoid class of antioxidants. The extraction of the palm's heart (the soft inner growing tip) involves the inevitable death of the palm as its growing tip is removed, and it cannot recover. Some species are self suckering, not single stem, and produce multiple stems, sometimes up to 40 on one plant, so harvesting palm heart is not such an environmental problem as the original stock plant can live on. Harvesting is still a costly and labour intensive task, and so palm heart dishes are regarded as a delicacy more than a staple diet due to their high price, and so palm's heart is sometimes called 'Millionaire's Salad'. The juice and pulp of açaí fruits are used in delicious deep purple ice-cream resembling chocolate and are frequently used in various beverages. It can also be eaten raw or used as a condiment, most commonly with shrimp or manioc. It is considered one of the most nutritious fruits of the Amazon, second perhaps to the Brazil Nut. The leaves are often used in weaving and basket making.