Battle of the Bowls: Pitaya versus Acai
If you’ve been making the rounds in SoCal coffee shops lately, you’ve likely seen acai bowls on the menu. Acai has been touted as a superfood due to its powerful antioxidant content, and as a result these bowls have dominated the market. While acai is popular, pitaya bowls are hitting the scene and are gaining traction. So which one is truly the champion of superfood bowls? Let's learn a little bit about each and how they stack up nutritionally.
Acai Berries
Acai comes from the acai palm tree, and has long been used in Central and South America. This grape-like fruit is a powerhouse of antioxidants, banging more antioxidant punch than berries. (Antioxidants have the ability to delay or prevent cell damage) While the antioxidant power of this fruit has been studied, many of the claims acai berries promotes weight loss, detoxifies, or will cure arthritis and/or high cholesterol are not proven.
Pitaya
Commonly known as dragon fruit, grows from cacti and is most commonly found in Southeast Asia. Just like the acai berry, studies have shown that pitaya is a good source of antioxidants.
Comparison
So both fruits tout a good load of antioxidants. Now let’s look at the macro- and micronutrient content of two popular frozen packs used in coffee shops and sold in grocery stores. I purchased Pitaya Plus Pitaya Frozen Smoothie Packs and Sambazon's Acai Berry Puree Unsweetened Packs to compare. (You can find them at Whole Foods) Both nutritionals are for a 100 g serving.
As you can see the calories are just about the same, and both have a nice amount of fiber. Where the products differ is their fat and carbohydrate content. The acai paste has 5 grams of fat versus the pitaya which has none.
The fat found in the acai paste is a healthy fat, contributing omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3’s are the type of fat that helps fight inflammation and are considered heart-healthy. In addition, these healthy fats in the acai can help you feel satisfied longer than the fat-free pitaya paste.
While the pitaya paste doesn't offer any healthy fats, the type of carbohydrates found in the pitaya can act as a prebiotic to help support the good bacteria in your gut. Since we are talking about carbohydrates, I recently heard a coffee shop barista state that the pitaya was lower in sugar than the acai paste, but when you look at the unsweetened versions of both, the acai actually contains 8 less grams of sugar than the pitaya.
In terms of vitamin and mineral content, acai has more vitamin A and slightly more calcium, while pitaya has more iron and vitamin C. Either way, there isn't too much of a difference between the two, so don't let these small variations in vitamin/mineral content lead you to select one versus the other.
Finally, we can’t forget taste! I prefer the sweeter taste of the acai paste (but don’t forget it actually contains less carbohydrate/sugar). Pitaya is less sweet and has a hint of "earthy" flavor.
So if you are torn between which bowl to pick, I would say that acai has a slight advantage over the pitaya due to the extra boost of omega 3’s. Plus the sweet flavor makes it hard to resist! In the end, they are both great choices to start off your day, and they provide a great way to sneak in a fruit serving and some fiber. Try one of my recipes to get started: acai bowl or pitaya bowl.
- The next time you head out to order an acai or pitaya bowl at a coffee shop (or make one at home), here’s a few pointers to keep in mind:
- The list of ingredients on the paste should only include the fruit. Avoid pastes with added juice or sugar.
- Have it blended with water or unsweetened almond/soy milk instead of juice. This will help keep the calorie and sugar content in check. Plus if you add in soy/almond milk you'll sneak in some extra calcium and vitamin D!
- Add nuts or seeds like almonds, chia seeds, pistachios, or pumpkin seeds to boost your protein, fiber and healthy fat content of your bowl.
- Go easy on the granola! It can add a significant amount of calories very quickly.
- Try blending it at home with your favorite protein powder for an even more satisfying meal/snack. I like vanilla flavored powders best!
