Breadfruit is a tropical fruit native to the Pacific Islands. It gets its name from its edible starchy pulp, which some people think tastes and feels like bread.
Breadfruit varies in shape from round to oval. In most cases, the ripe fruit weighs from 1 to 5 pounds (0.5 to 2.25 kilograms) and has a rough, brownish-yellow skin. The pulp ranges in color from white to yellow. Some types of breadfruit contain seeds. People bake, boil, or fry breadfruit, and they sometimes use it like potatoes in salads and stews. The seeds, which are also edible, are boiled or roasted.
Breadfruit grows on large-leafed trees that are 65 to 95 feet (19 to 29 meters) tall. These trees grow in rich, well-drained soil in tropical lowland areas. Breadfruit is produced commercially mainly on islands in the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean, including Hawaii.
