Foods To Eat With Miracle Fruit

Miracle fruit derives from the shrub Synsepalum dulcificum, which is native to Africa. The fruit is a reddish berry approximately the size of a grape. Miracle fruit does not have a distinct taste, but once eaten, it causes most sour flavors to taste markedly sweet. This is because miracle fruit contains a glycoprotein called miraculin, which alters taste cells. The effects of miracle fruit last at least 30 minutes.

Sour Fruits

Many fruits contain large amounts of acid, resulting in a sour taste that makes them unpalatable without added sugar. Lemons and limes are such fruits; they usually appear in desserts and sugary drinks, diminishing their nutritious value. However, lemons and limes taste sweet when eaten after miracle fruit, eliminating the need to add sugar or mix them with other foods.

Fresh lemons and limes can be nutritious without added sugar, say Deborah Mitchell and Winifred Conkling in "The Complete Book of Nutritional Healing." For example, limes contain antibiotic, cancer-inhibiting agents called flavonol glycosides. Both lemons and limes contain limonoids, which also mitigate cancerous growth, as well as copious amounts of vitamin C, which strengthens immunity.

Sour Vegetables

As with fruits, there are vegetables not considered tasty because of their acid content, which makes them inordinately sour. One such vegetable is rhubarb. Rhubarb, which contains vitamins A and C as well as the mineral potassium, could be a nutritious addition to the diet without the added sugar that usually accompanies it. Combined with miracle fruit, rhubarb becomes very sweet and much more palatable, allowing you to enjoy the nutritious benefits of rhubarb without adding carbohydrates that can contribute to weight gain and other health difficulties.

Sour Low-Calorie Desserts

Low-calorie desserts are available that are sour rather than sweet, promoting weight loss and overall health. However, eating miracle fruit makes these desserts indistinguishable from sweeter desserts considered more appetizing. The study "Miracle Fruit Improves Sweetness of a Low-Calorie Dessert Without Promoting Subsequent Energy Compensation" by Wong and Kern, which included 13 subjects tested over four trials, confirmed this premise. The authors say evidence from the study is strong, and shows the need for further study to confirm the beneficial effects of miracle fruit regarding low-calorie desserts.