Selecting lychees
Choose fruit with skin that is pink or red. Once picked, the lychee does not continue to ripen.
Storing lychees
To retain freshness and colour, fruit should be placed in a plastic bag or plastic sealed container and stored in the refrigerator.
If fruit is left uncovered, unrefrigerated and uneaten then the skin of the lychee will brown when exposed to air although the eating quality is not affected.
Freezing lychees
Lychees can be frozen for up to six months or dried within their shells.
Simply peel and eat
Lychees are best eaten fresh.
Peel with fingers, then nibble or suck the flesh from the seed.
They make a refreshing end to a meal.
Lychees can be pitted and added to fruit salads or used in sweet and sour dishes and salads. They make a tasty accompaniment to pork and duck.
Here are some recipes featuring lychees
Availability November to February.
Healthy treat
Australian lychees are packed full of hidden health and nutrition benefits.
Seven lychees (one serve) contain as much vitamin C as a small orange and provide 100% of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C.
Lychees are also ranked second behind strawberries in antioxidant levels.
They have fewer than 65 calories per 100g and are fat-free.
Lychees are also medium GI, with a GI level of 57. Their slow releasing energy makes them a great snack to keep you going.
