I have learned so much marrying into a Chinese family. One of the first observations my husband and I made relating to our cultural differences was that (in general) Chinese people do not eat raw vegetables (salad is not a very Chinese dish) and they don’t cook their fruit (he tried apple pie for the first time with me).
Chinese people are also very big on peeling fruit. Whereas I LOVE apple peels, etc. my husband had to acquire the taste since his father always peeled his apples (and the rest of the fruit he ate).
My father-in-law will painstakingly remove the membranes from my children’s tangerines. Tangerine membranes are quite thin which makes this a very time-consuming job.
Fortunately it is SO EASY to remove the membranes from grapefruit and pomelos. I had never eaten a pomelo before meeting my husband. I always liked grapefruit, but I hated the time it took to prepare them buy cutting around the membranes, etc. All of this changed when my hubby showed me the Chinese way. The membranes on grapefruits and pomelos are very thick and loose which makes removing them a cinch.
The white grapefruits at my local farmer’s market are so sweet and juicy right now which means that I have been eating a lot of them…always the Chinese way. I remove the peel from the grapefruit and keep them in the fridge (whole) so they are ready for a quick snack. Remove the membranes as you eat them (this will keep them fresh).
Have any of you tried eating grapefruit or pomelos this way?
THAT is very cool! I haven’t tried it yet, but I will, now that I know the trick!
I was wondering about the same thing about your surname because it is a Chinese surname. But lovely story though!
Pomelo is also very popular in Thailand, too 🙂
I was wondering about your surname, too since it sounds like a Chinese surname! Anyway lovely post!
Yes, my husband is in fact Chinese 🙂