Preserving Tropical Fruits

Tropical fruit isn’t widely grown in the United States, which can make it expensive. Buying in bulk and preserving these fruits is a great way to enjoy them all year. It is easy to preserve bananas, pineapples, mangoes, avocados, coconuts, guavas, tamarind, and papayas at home. A tasty ready-to-eat salad is easy to make by combining tropical fruits with local vegetables.

Wash ingredients under cold, running water. Recipe guidelines from the National Center for Home Food Preservation (NCHFP) when preserving tropical fruit say when drying, use a dehydrator set at 140°F (60°C). When canning, use a boiling water bath canner and the processing times for elevations below 1,000 feet. When freezing, leave appropriate headspace based on the size and type of container. Use ½ inch (1.25 cm) headspace for wide-top pint containers or narrow-top quarts, or ¾ inch (1.9 cm) for narrow-top pints, or 1 inch (2.5 cm) for wide-top quarts.

Bananas

Bananas dry well. Kendall and Sofos (2025) recommends avoiding bruised, overripe bananas. Peel and slice ¼ to ⅜ inches (6 mm to 3.175 mm) thick as "coins" or "sticks." Dry 8–10 hours. Before drying, dip slices in honey, fruit juice, or an ascorbic acid solution to preserve color. Enjoy as a snack.

Mashed bananas can be frozen. Peel ripe bananas, add ½ teaspoon (1500 mg) ascorbic acid per cup, and mash well (NCHFP, n.d.-b). Use a freezer-safe container.

Pineapples

Pineapples should be washed and peeled, then sliced lengthwise and the core removed. Cut crosswise into ½-inch (1.25 cm) slices. Dry 24–36 hours. Enjoy as a snack or blended into a puree for a fruit leather (Andress & Harrison, 2020).

Slices or cubes may be canned in a boiling water bath by hot packing in fruit juice, a sugar syrup, or water. Simmer for 10 minutes in a saucepan with the desired liquid. Fill jars with hot pieces and liquid leaving ½ inch (1.25 cm) headspace. Process pints for 15 minutes or quarts 20 minutes (NCHFP, n.d.-f).

Mangoes

Mangoes can be preserved by drying, freezing, or canning, according to Oregon State University Extension Services (2024). Mangoes may cause skin irritation to some people, because they are members of the same family as poison ivy. Wear plastic gloves and avoid touching your face, lips, or eyes. Wash your hands and all surfaces after handling.

Make a fruit leather by blending together four large underripe peeled mangos, 1 cup of honey, ½ tsp of ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp of nutmeg, and ¼ tsp of cloves. Pour the puree ¼-inch (6 mm) thick onto fruit leather trays. Dry for 10 hours.

Dry ¼-inch (6 mm) thick slices for 10–12 hours until they are pliable. Or freeze slices in a syrup pack, as unsweetened tray pack slices, or as puree. Mango may be canned as chutney, salsa, or slices in syrup.

Avocados

Avocados freeze well. Select fruit that is free of blemishes. To maintain color, add ¼ teaspoon ascorbic acid to each quart of puree, or add 1 tablespoon lemon juice for every two avocados. Pack puree into a freezer container leaving headspace appropriate to the shape of the container (NCHFP, n.d.-a).

Coconut

Coconut meat dries well. Shredded meat also freezes well. Pack shredded coconut dry, or cover it with coconut liquid before freezing. Freeze in a wide-top pint container, leaving headspace for either pack (NCHFP, n.d.-c).

Guava

Guava does not dry well, but can be blended with other fruits and dried as a fruit leather. It can be frozen. Select ripe, tender fruit. Wash, peel, and cut the fruit in half. Freeze unsweetened whole fruit in water, unsweetened juice, pectin syrup, or as part of a 30% syrup. Freeze in a wide-top pint container, leaving headspace for either pack (NCHFP, n.d.-d).

Papaya

Papaya can be dried, frozen, or canned. Select firm, ripe fruit. Peel and remove seeds. Can papaya in a medium or heavy syrup. A ½ cup of lemon juice should be added to each quart of syrup. Cut fruit into cubes and cook in syrup for 2 to 3 minutes. Hot pack the fruit and juice into jars, leaving ¼ inch (6 mm) headspace. Process pints for 15 minutes or quarts for 20 minutes (NCHFP, n.d.-e).

Grilled Corn Salad with Avocado and Tomato

Looking for a recipe to use fresh tropical fruit? Try this Grilled Corn Salad with Avocado and Tomato recipe.

Note: This recipe is not for canning. 

Combining tropical fruits with locally grown vegetables yields a delicious and nutritious salad to eat fresh.

Recipe adapted from "Grilled Corn Salad with Avocado and Tomato" from Well Plated

Ingredients

• 5 ears fresh corn, husked
• 1½ tablespoons olive oil
• ¾ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups packed arugula
• 1 medium avocado, diced
• 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
• 4 green onions, finely chopped
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped

Dressing

• ¼ cup lime juice
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon onion powder

Directions

1. Rub the corn with olive oil and season with pepper.
2. Grill the corn at 400°F (204°C) for 7 minutes until lightly browned, turning every few minutes. Remove from grill and let cool.
3. Cut kernels from the cob and place in a large mixing bowl. Add cherry tomatoes, arugula, avocado, bell pepper, green onions, and cilantro.
4. Whisk together lime juice, olive oil, honey, paprika, black pepper, and onion powder.
5. Pour dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve immediately.

Sources

Andress, E. L., & Harrison, J. A. (2020). So easy to preserve. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.

Kendall, P., & Sofos, J. (2025, August). Drying fruits. Colorado State University. 

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.-a). Freezing avocados. University of Georgia. 

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.- b). Freezing bananas. University of Georgia. 

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.- c). Freezing fresh coconut. University of Georgia. 

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.- d). Freezing guavas. University of Georgia.    

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.- e). Papaya. University of Georgia. 

National Center for Home Food Preservation. (n.d.- f). Pineapple. University of Georgia.