Dates are the sweet and tasty fruit of the palm trees that are scientifically classified as Phoenix dactylifera. Their history dates back to seven thousand years and historians believe that they originate in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, or Mesopotamia. Its exact place of origin is still debated amongst several scholars and remains unclear. The palm tree is very valuable in hot and dry areas and is commonly referred to as the “Tree of Life”. The date is considered as a stone fruit meaning it has a single seed surrounded by an outer fleshy fruit like peaches, mangoes, and olives. Dates have remained popular in hot climate regions such as Iraq, the Middle East, Northern Africa due to their sweet flavour and widespread availability. Egypt is the largest producer of dates in the world today followed by every other Middle Eastern country. Buy dates online or from your local store to store and consume a flavourful snack.
The date is the fruit of the palm tree and it’s a berry of golden yellow colour or reddish-brown when ripe. Its meat is soft, aromatic, and sweet with a stone inside it of elongate shape and with a longitudinal furrow. They are consumed fresh or dry and represent a basic food for the inhabitants of North Africa and the Middle East who are the main producers. These dry fruits have a similar taste to that of honey and grow in clusters in the crown of the tree around 25 m high.
Dates are usually consumed as a standalone snack or incorporated into several dishes varying from region to region according to their preferred means of consumption.
In North America, they are related to sweet meals and in the Arab countries they are consumed in various forms, for eg they can be eaten stuffed, distilled crystallized, or combined with salads and with couscous. In India, they are used to prepare chutneys and curry while in the Sahara desert and other parts of Northern Africa they make date cakes intended for feeding the groups of travelers. In the Middle East, dates are used to make palm wine or toddy by fermenting the sweetened sap extracted from the crown of the date palm. Dried dates are kept in dry places for several months or even up to a year. The soft varieties are stored in the fridge for two weeks. The optimal relative moisture of this fruit is between 70-75 %. They have a great nutritional value that lies in their easily assimilated sugar content and proteins, calcium, phosphorus, iron, and vitamins of the B and A group. Buy dates online to own a flavourful snack that is versatile in its use.
Dates are also an excellent source of natural sweeteners as they contain fructose, which is a natural type of sugar found in fruit. Dates are very sweet and also have a subtle caramel-like taste and it is exactly due to this reason they make a great healthy substitute for white sugar in recipes due to the nutrients, antioxidants, and fiber they provide. The most commonly used way of substituting dates for white sugar is to make date paste. This is done by mixing the dry fruit with water in a blender. The rule of thumb when incorporating it into any dish is to replace sugar with date paste at a 1:1 ratio. It is important to note that although dates are an excellent source of nutrients and fiber, they are fairly high in calories and best consumed in moderation. So when you buy dates online to use them as an alternative for sugar make sure to use them in moderation.
Dates are also used to yield several products that are used in everyday use. All parts of the date palm yield products of economic value. Its trunk furnishes timber that is very valuable for construction while the midribs of the leaves are broken to supply material for crates and furniture. The leaflets of the date palm are used for basketry while the leaf bases are used for fuel. The fruit stalks of the date palm are used for rope and fuel while the fiber is used for cordage and packing other materials. The seeds of the date palm are sometimes ground and used as stock feed. So when you buy dates online make sure to remember you are only buying a part of the dry fruit which is used for several other purposes in various industries.
Dates are also excellent for preserving the health of your skin. Its commonly incorporated in several cosmetics and is used mainly in the form of extracts or oil. Dates are a powerful antioxidant that can prevent the aging of the skin and the harmful actions of the free radicals on the skin. Date oil offers nourishment for dry skin and improves the elasticity of the skin while fighting against the appearance of wrinkles. Buy dates online from trusted sources to get the most out of it in whatever means you want to apply it for.
Dates can be found in several industries around us and are used for several functions in our daily lives. Dates are an ever-popular dry fruit that is used in various fields spanning countries and continents.
