Fruits
Butiá Palm Fruit in gelato
Butiá (jelly palm fruit) is the tangy, apricot-fibrous fruit of Butia palms native to southern Brazil and Uruguay. In gelato it acts as a low-solids, high-acidity character fruit: very high water, modest sugar, and a bright tropical-acidic flavor that must be balanced with added solids and sugars.
Balancing parameters
Per 100 g of product, verified against independent food-science sources (listed below).
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Total Solids | 17.5% |
| Water | 82.5% |
| Sugars | 7% |
| Fat | 2% |
| MSNF | 0% |
| Protein | 1% |
| POD (sweetening power) | 7.5 |
| PAC (anti-freezing power) | 9.3 |
Typical use: 20-35% of the mix for fruit gelato or sorbet
Balance butiá palm fruit in a real recipe
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Open the balancerHow to use it in gelato
Butiá pulp is roughly 82-85% water with only about 6-8% sugars, so on its own it dilutes the mix and raises the water fraction; compensate with milk solids, dextrose, or fiber to reach target total solids. Its sugar profile is about 63% sucrose and 37% glucose+fructose, giving a PAC near 1.3 and POD near 1.07 relative to sucrose, so it lowers freezing point modestly more than sucrose while adding slightly less sweetness. Its pronounced acidity (pH about 3.0-3.4, 1.7-3.5% citric acid) brightens flavor but can curdle dairy, so add pulp cold after pasteurization or use a sorbet base. Treat it as the flavor fruit, never as a bulk sweetener, and add extra sugar or stabilizer to offset iciness from its high water content.
Origin & background
Butiá is harvested from Butia odorata and Butia capitata palms that form protected native groves (butiazais) across the Pampas of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Uruguay and Argentina. Studies of jelly palm fruit from southern Brazil report wide genotype variability, with pulp yields ranging from 40% to 74% and total soluble solids around 10-15 degrees Brix (Beskow et al., Food Research International, 2013). It has long been eaten fresh and made into juices, liqueurs and jellies in the region.