Fruit
Acai
Açaí is a small, deep-purple palm berry (Euterpe oleracea and related species) harvested mainly in the Amazon estuary. The edible portion is a thin, oily pulp around a large seed—earthy, lightly tart, and faintly chocolate-like rather than candy-sweet. Fresh berries spoil within a day or two of picking, so nearly all global trade is frozen pulp, dried powder, or juice concentrate. In Brazil, açaí bowls thickened with manioc flour or served with fish are traditional riverside food; outside the region, sweetened smoothie bowls, sorbets, and functional drinks dominate. Colour bleeds intensely purple-red; flavour dulls if over-sweetened or held warm too long. Quality turns on harvest freshness, rapid freezing, and how much seed fibre or water was blended into the pulp.
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Cuts & parts
Breeds & varieties
A sample of named types with their own origin and culinary profiles.
Characteristics
Preparations
Provenance
Sources
Traits
Nutrition and pairings
Nutrition
Typical values per 100 g edible portion. Nutrient names open the reference page.
Nutrition Facts
Per 100 g edible portion
Amount per 100 g
- Total Fat 0.3 g
- Saturated Fat 0.05 g
- Trans Fat 0 g
- Monounsaturated Fat 0.11 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Sodium 5.34 mg
- Salt 0.01 g
- Total Carbohydrate 13.3 g
- Dietary Fibre 1.92 g
- Total Sugars 10.5 g
- Complex / starch 0.97 g
- Protein 0.79 g
- Water 86.6 g
- Energy 52.7 kcal
- Water 86.6 g
- Carbohydrates 13.3 g
- Sugars 10.5 g
- Monosaccharides 7.36 g
- Disaccharides 3.16 g
- Starch 0.97 g
- Amylose 0.24 g
- Amylopectin 0.73 g
- Digestible Starch 0.82 g
- Resistant Starch 0.1 g
- Fibre 1.92 g
- Soluble Fibre 0.67 g
- Insoluble Fibre 1.25 g
- Protein 0.79 g
- Plant Protein 0.75 g
- Fat 0.3 g
- Saturated Fat 0.05 g
- Monounsaturated Fat 0.11 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
- Vitamins 74.8 mg
- Vitamin A 20 µg
- Vitamin B1 — Thiamine 0.03 mg
- Vitamin B2 — Riboflavin 0.04 mg
- Vitamin B3 — Niacin 0.41 mg
- Vitamin B5 — Pantothenic Acid 0.21 mg
- Vitamin B6 0.08 mg
- Vitamin B7 — Biotin 1 µg
- Vitamin B9 — Folate 14.9 µg
- Vitamin C 33 mg
- Vitamin E 0.29 mg
- Vitamin K 4.8 µg
- Minerals 488 mg
- Major Minerals 481 mg
- Trace Minerals 6.7 mg
- Salt 0.01 g
- Sodium Chloride 0.01 g
Vitamins
vitamin-c: 33 · vitamin-a: 20 · vitamin-b1-thiamine: 0.03 · vitamin-b2-riboflavin: 0.04 · vitamin-b3-niacin: 0.41 · vitamin-b5-pantothenic-acid: 0.21 · vitamin-b6: 0.08 · vitamin-b7-biotin: 1 · vitamin-b9-folate: 14.9 · vitamin-e: 0.29 · vitamin-k: 4.8 ·
Minerals
Sodium: 5.34 · Potassium: 428 · Calcium: 48 · Iron: 1.3 · Zinc: 0.4 · Iodine: 5 ·
Fruit energy is mostly natural sugars with fibre and vitamin C varying by species.
In the kitchen
Culinary partners and combinations that usually underperform with Acai.
Usually avoid with
Often clash in flavour or tradition
History
Indigenous Amazonian communities harvested wild açaí palms as a staple fruit and palm-heart resource.
Colonial and river-trade records note açaí as everyday food along the lower Amazon and Pará coast.
Frozen pulp plants in Belém and the Amazon supply chain enabled national and export trade beyond local markets.
Global “superfruit” marketing and café smoothie bowls made açaí a year-round frozen retail item worldwide.