Like acai and quinoa before it, the Inca golden berry is a New World superfood that’s impressing everyone from health-conscious snackers to gourmet chefs.
Inca golden berries have been popular for hundreds of years in South America and were reserved for royalty in ancient Peru. While they’ve remained relatively unknown outside of the region for centuries, they’ve actually been cultivated in places like the United Kingdom since the 18th century.
Thanks to their unique flavor and globalization, there’s a fast-growing market for Inca golden berries today. From their nutritional benefits to their year-round usability, find out why you should consider adding this superfruit to your next healthful food offering.
What is an Inca Golden Berry?
You may have already heard of this ancient fruit under one of its other names. Inca golden berries are also known as Cape gooseberries, giant ground cherries, Peruvian cherries, and by their scientific name: physalis peruviana.
Whatever name you use, this superfood is a tangy-sweet fruit that’s closely related to tomatoes, tomatillos, and ornamental Chinese lanterns — which means they’re not actually berries at all.
Inca golden berries grow on a vine in papery husks. When they’re fresh, they look like tiny, orange tomatoes and offer a juicy, citrusy eating experience. When dried, they resemble golden raisins and have a sweet yet tart flavor. In addition to their distinctive and delicious taste, this superfruit offers a wide range of health benefits to consumers.
What Are the Health Benefits of Inca Golden Berries?
Inca golden berries are jam-packed with nutrients — whether you eat them fresh or dried. In one four-ounce serving, this superfruit offers:
- Over 70% of your daily vitamin A needs
- Vitamins B and C
- High levels of protein, potassium, and fiber
- Zinc, magnesium, and phosphorus
- Over 20% of your daily iron needs
Iron is critical for a healthy immune system and eyesight, while protein allows the body to build and repair tissue. Health-conscious consumers following vegetarian and vegan diets, in particular, might not always find it easy to eat enough of these essential components. Adding Inca golden berries to your healthful food offering as a plant-based source of iron and protein can give your product extra appeal in this market.
Inca golden berries are also exceptionally high in antioxidants — even higher than their fellow superfruit, the goji berry. This can help protect against liver, kidney, and organ damage. Best of all, these benefits come with a relatively low sugar content. For your health-conscious consumers, this means using Inca golden berries in your food products adds delicious flavor, nutrients — and nothing more.
How Can You Use Dried Inca Golden Berries?
Thanks to the climate in South America and the ease of harvesting them, Inca golden berries are available year-round for your food manufacturing convenience. Buying them dried keeps your supply more stable.
Dried Inca golden berries are an incredibly versatile ingredient. By pairing them with sweet ingredients to balance out their tartness or focusing on their superfood status, you can encourage health-conscious consumers to incorporate them into a balanced diet through your food offerings.
Here are just a few ways you can add dried Inca golden berries to your next healthful food product:
- Package them as a healthy snack on their own
- Add them to trail mixes and granola bars to increase nutritional value and flavor
- Add them to cereal or packaged oatmeal as an even healthier alternative to raisins or dried cranberries
- Pair them with other superfoods like dark chocolate, goji berries, and acai berries for healthful treats
- Include them as a topping for boxed smoothie and protein shake mixes
- Add them to boxed mixes for cookies, muffins, and pies
- Include them in boxed meals for pilaf rice and other fragrant savory dishes for tasty texture
Inca Golden Berries from Seawind Foods
At Seawind Foods, we offer dried Inca golden berries in both conventional and organic varieties.
No matter which variety you choose, you can be sure the product you receive has been harvested with optimal maturity and quality in mind. We work with certified producers to ensure that our Inca golden berries are subject to the most stringent quality and safety standards — starting in the mountains of Peru where they’re grown, all the way to the end of the distribution process.
Our Inca golden berries have no sugar or SO2 added to them, ensuring your customers will enjoy the best and healthiest ingredients when you work with Seawind Foods as your trusted ingredients supplier.
Contact us today to request your free sample of our dried Inca golden berries, or to learn more about our other premium quality ingredients.
