Taiwan Plums: Red-Fleshed, Xi Gua and Tao Jie Plums

Discover the diversity of Taiwan-grown plums! Different varieties offer different skin colors, flesh colors, aromas, and textures. A red-skinned plum may reveal red, rosy, or yellow flesh inside.

Join AI Ken for an introduction to three examples: red-fleshed plums, Xi Gua plums, and a yellow-fleshed Tao Jie plum example. Explore their characteristics, enjoy prepared pitted fruit, and discover more culinary uses. Come taste Taiwan!

Watch: Three Taiwan Plum Types to Discover

This short video introduces red-fleshed plums, mountain-grown Xi Gua plums, and yellow-fleshed Tao Jie plums. Each tasting portion is prepared with the hard pit removed.

Watch Taiwan Plums on YouTube Shorts

Taiwan Plums: More Than One Flavor

Taiwan grows many plum varieties. The three examples featured here provide a starting point rather than a complete guide to every local plum.

Variety, growing conditions, and ripeness influence sweetness, acidity, aroma, and firmness. Skin color alone cannot reliably identify a variety or tell you what the flesh looks like inside.

Red-Fleshed Plum: A Familiar Sweet-Tart Fruit

Red-fleshed plums are familiar in Taiwan's plum selection. Their red to purple-red skin and red flesh make them visually distinctive, especially when cut open.

They can be enjoyed fresh or used in processed products. Their sweet-tart balance and firmness change with maturity: riper fruit generally becomes softer and juicier. The exact tasting experience varies from fruit to fruit.

Xi Gua Plum: A Mountain-Grown Example

Xi Gua plums are associated with Taiwan's cool mountain growing areas, including the Lishan region. The example illustrated here has red-blushed skin and rosy flesh.

Their flavor and texture depend on ripeness and growing conditions. The local name "Xi Gua" means watermelon, but the name does not mean that the fruit is a plum-watermelon hybrid.

Enjoy the variety for its own characteristics rather than expecting every fruit to have an identical aroma or level of sweetness.

Tao Jie Plum: Understanding the Grafting Name

"Tao Jie" refers to plums grown by grafting plum branches onto peach rootstock. It describes a cultivation practice, rather than proving that the fruit is a peach-plum hybrid.

Bai Yu, also known as Zao Yu, is an early-ripening, yellow-fleshed plum associated with this local naming tradition. Despite the name Bai Yu, its flesh is yellow to orange-yellow rather than white.

The yellow-fleshed fruit featured in this story illustrates this type of plum. Local names and appearance may vary, so an image alone is not a technical identification of a cultivar.

Ripeness, Harvest Timing and Natural Bloom

Plum harvest timing differs by variety, growing area, and seasonal weather. Early varieties and mountain-grown varieties do not necessarily reach the market together.

Many plums develop a pale, powdery coating called a natural waxy bloom. This is a feature of the fruit's surface, but it does not replace checking the fruit's condition or washing it before eating.

Choose fruit suited to your preferred texture. Firmer fruit and softer ripe fruit offer different eating experiences; color alone is not a dependable measure of sweetness.

More Ways to Enjoy Taiwan Plums

Fresh tasting is only one way to explore plums. Depending on the variety, maturity, and recipe, they can also be used in:

• Preserves: sweetened preparations with textures ranging from firm to soft.
• Pickled plums: prepared sweet, salty, or sour versions, depending on the recipe.
• Jam and compote: cooked fruit served with toast, yogurt, or desserts.
• Sauces: fruit-based accompaniments for suitable savory dishes.
• Baking: pitted plum pieces used in cakes, tarts, or crumbles.
• Frozen treats: prepared plum puree used in sorbet or ice pops.

Not every plum variety is equally suited to every preparation. Adjust sweetness and acidity to the fruit, and use a recipe appropriate to the intended product.

Plums and Ume Are Different Fruits

Taiwan plums and ume are related stone fruits, but they should not be treated as interchangeable names. Ume, also known as Japanese apricot, is Prunus mume and is usually processed before eating because of its sour flavor.

Product names such as "plum preserves" can be ambiguous in English. Check the ingredient information to understand which fruit is used. Discover more in our Taiwan Ume guide .

Prepare Plums for Tasting

Wash the fruit before eating and use clean utensils when preparing portions. Remove the hard pit and cut the flesh into manageable pieces. The video tasting portions are already pitted.

Do not eat or chew the pit. Keep cut fruit refrigerated until serving, and follow the producer's instructions for prepared preserves and pickled products.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are all red-skinned plums red inside?

No. Depending on the variety, red-skinned plums can have red, rosy, yellow, or other flesh colors.

Does Tao Jie mean a peach-plum hybrid?

No. In this context, the term refers to grafting plum branches onto peach rootstock. Grafting and hybrid breeding are different processes.

Does Xi Gua plum contain watermelon?

No. Xi Gua is a local plum name. It does not mean that watermelon is an ingredient or a parent fruit.

Which plum is the sweetest?

There is no single answer based on these names alone. Variety, ripeness, and growing conditions affect sweetness and acidity.

Can plums be used beyond fresh eating?

Yes. Suitable plums can become preserves, pickled products, jam, sauces, baked desserts, and frozen treats.

Come Taste Taiwan!

From deep red flesh to rosy and golden-yellow examples, Taiwan plums offer more variety than their skin color alone suggests. Explore these three examples, then discover more local fruit and food traditions.

Welcome to Taiwan. Come taste Taiwan!

Explore More Taiwan Fruit Stories

• Taiwan Ume: Preserves, Drinks and More
• Taiwan Melons: Three Types to Discover

Plum references: Taiwan Ministry of Agriculture: Plums and Miaoli Agricultural Research: Local Plum Characteristics .