Plum, raw, organic? (real plum)

The raw common plum ( Prunus domestica var. subrotunda ) is round, very juicy and tastes sweet. We distinguish it from the oval-shaped damson and other plum fruits.

Using plums in the kitchen:

The real plum has a dark red to blue-black skin. The round plums have a strong core seam that runs across the entire fruit. The flesh is usually yellow to reddish, soft, juicy and tastes sweet. There is hardly any acidity. The stone is rounder than that of the plum and is harder to remove from the flesh. There are also spherical green-yellow varieties that are called greengage (Reineclaude, Reneclode, Ringlotte, etc.).

Plums are delicious raw as a snack, dessert or chopped up in your daily muesli . Processed into sauces (plum sauce), chutneys, jam, compote or puree, fine plums taste excellent. Plum juice is also popular and you can easily make it yourself. The sweet fruits can also be used for a fine fruit crumble or a sheet cake (flaky pastry, fruit tart - made from shortcrust pastry) or to refine an iced tea. Plums give salty or spicy dishes a balancing taste. Dried plums also go perfectly with savory dishes. Plums harmonize with cinnamon , cardamom or vanilla , but also with turmeric , thyme or sage .

Vegan recipe for cooked plums with cinnamon:

Ingredients (for 4 people): 800 g plums, 2 tablespoons brown sugar , 4 tablespoons drinking water , 1 cinnamon stick .

Preparation: Halve the plums and remove the stones. Place in a pan with sugar, water and cinnamon. Heat slowly. Cover and simmer over a low heat for about 8 minutes. Add a little water if necessary. Remove the cinnamon stick. Serve the fruit lukewarm or cold.

Vegan recipes with plums can be found under the note: " Recipes that have the most of this ingredient ".

Shopping - where to buy plums?

Fresh plums can often be found in the range of large supermarket chains such as Coop , Migros , Denner , Volg , Spar , Aldi , Lidl , Billa , Rewe , Edeka or Hofer , occasionally also in controlled organic quality (organic quality). Plums can also be bought in organic supermarkets such as Denn's Biomarkt or Alnatura and seasonally at the weekly market. Plums are in season from July to October . ³ However, they are available all year round thanks to imports. When shopping, look for fresh and, above all, firm fruit; overripe plums often have worm infestations. Organically produced plums are also free from pesticide residues.

The availability of plums in the supermarkets mentioned varies depending on the size of the store, catchment area, etc. If you are interested, click on our recorded food prices for the DA-CH countries (above under the ingredient image). There you will find current prices from various supermarkets and their price development.

Found in the wild:

The plum is a cultivated form that does not occur in the wild. Its wild 'ancestors' are the cherry plum ( Prunus cerasifera ) and the blackthorn ( Prunus spinosa ). ^5,6,7 The cherry plum originates from Central Asia. ⁶ The blackthorn is an important wild shrub. Today, the blackthorn is widespread throughout Europe, in the Middle East as far as the Caucasus and in North Africa. ⁷

Storage:

Plums ripen very quickly at room temperature. It is therefore worth buying firm, fresh plums and letting them ripen at home. If fine plums have a white layer on the skin, wash it off shortly before eating. This natural wax coating prevents them from drying out. ³ Plums should be stored in a cool, dark place, ideally in the refrigerator. They will keep for three to four days. If you want to eat the plums you bought at a later date, you should wash them, remove the stones and freeze them. ⁴

Plum ingredients - nutritional values - calories:

Raw plum (organic) contains 46 kcal per 100 g. It consists of 87.2% water. With 0.28 g fat and 0.7 g protein per 100 g, it is low in fat and protein. 100 g of plums contain 11 g carbohydrates, of which 9.9 g are sugar. The fiber content is 1.4 g/100g. ¹

Plums contain vitamin C. The 9.5 mg/100g cover 12.0 g of the daily requirement.Blueberries (9.7 mg), fresh goji berries (9.7 mg) and bananas (8.7 mg) have similar values. Sea buckthorn berries are rich in vitamin C with 450 mg/100g, which corresponds to 563% of the daily requirement. ¹

It also contains vitamin K. However, the 6.4 µg/100g only corresponds to 9.0% of the daily requirement. Swiss chard (830 µg/100g) and kale (705 µg/100g) contain particularly high levels of vitamin K. This corresponds to 1,107.0% and 940.0% of the daily requirement, respectively. ¹

Raw plums also contain low levels of potassium and manganese , as well as folate (folic acid) . ¹

The complete ingredients of plums, the coverage of the daily requirement and comparison values with other ingredients can be found in our nutrient tables. In the article Nutrients explained you will get a detailed insight into the topic.

Dangers - Intolerances - Side effects:

People with fructose intolerance should avoid plums or eat only a small amount of them. The fruit sugar (fructose) content is relatively high at 3.07 g/100g. ¹ If you are intolerant, plums can cause stomach pain, nausea, flatulence or diarrhea.

People who are allergic to birch pollen or peaches can have an allergic reaction to plums. If it is a cross-reaction to the birch pollen fruit protein (birch fruit syndrome), you can eat cooked plums, as the allergen is not heat-stable. However, if you are intolerant to peaches and plums, a heat-stable protein is responsible. Cooking the fruit does not alleviate the symptoms. In addition, they are usually more severe than with a birch pollen fruit allergy. ¹³

Health aspects - effects:

Plums are said to have a number of health-promoting properties: improved bone health (in osteoporosis), cognition and memory, an antioxidant, anti-inflammatory effect and relief from constipation. ¹⁴ The polyphenols and chlorogenic acid contained in plum extracts also appear to protect against (breast) cancer. ¹⁵ Fresh plums contain high concentrations of secondary plant substances, including anthocyanins. They contain more anthocyanins and flavonols than dried plums. ¹⁶

Do plums have a laxative effect?Dried plums are considered an old remedy for constipation and diarrhea. The sorbitol responsible for this is also contained in plum juice. Alternatively, you can drink 1 cup of fresh plum juice to get the laxative effect or consume a larger amount of fresh plums. ¹⁹ You can find details about this in the link to dried plums, because they work much better.

The bark of the plum tree ( Prunus africana ) is used in African folk medicine to treat prostate problems. The decreasing testosterone level in men as they age can lead to a benign enlargement of the prostate. In animal models, it has been proven that the positive effect can also be seen in the sweet plum ( Prunus domestica ). The bark also helps against inflammation and free radicals. ¹⁷

Occurrence - origin - ecology:

The origin of the noble plum ( Prunus domestica var. subrotunda ) is not clearly understood. It is assumed that it is a hybrid of cherry plum ( Prunus cerasifera ) and blackthorn ( Prunus spinosa ). The low genetic diversity and the lack of true wild types in conjunction with the known cultivation history of Eurasian plums indicate that the noble plum could have been a product of interspecific crossing and artificial selection by early agrarian Eurasian societies. Its original home is believed to be near the Caucasus and the Caspian Sea. ⁵

According to FAOSTAT , around 12 million tonnes of plums and sloes were produced worldwide in 2021. The main growing areas are China (6.6 million tonnes), Romania (807,170 tonnes), Chile (426,776 tonnes) and Serbia (412,778 tonnes). ²

Ecological aspects:

Plums are usually available all year round thanks to imports. It is better to buy them regionally and seasonally, as they have a better ecological balance. Non-local or out-of-season fruit and vegetables are transported by truck, ship or plane, which greatly increases their ecological footprint. ¹⁸

Growing in the garden or as a potted plant:

In addition to plum trees, there are also varieties that grow as shrubs and therefore require less space in the garden. Special varieties can also be cultivated as columnar fruit in pots. ⁹

If you buy a young tree, you should choose a grafted fruit tree, consisting of a rootstock (rooter) and a noble variety. A self-fertile variety is suitable. It is best to plant the young tree in autumn (October and November), alternatively March and April are also possible. A moist, humus- and nutrient-rich garden soil is important. A pH value between 6 and 7 is ideal. The location should be sunny and as sheltered from the wind as possible. In the first few years, the tree should be watered regularly, as the roots do not reach deep enough into the soil and therefore cannot absorb enough water. Annual fertilization with compost and pruning promotes growth and yield. ¹⁰

Cultivation - Harvest:

The plum harvest (season) extends from July to October and depends on the variety planted. The main harvest time is in September. Ripening depends on the amount of sunlight, which is why fruits can be at different stages of ripeness on one tree. The plums should therefore be harvested over several weeks and not all at the same time. ¹¹ Plums are ripe when they are dark in color and give slightly when pressed. ¹²

Possible confusion:

It often happens that noble plums are confused with damsons (Prunus domestica subsp. domestica ). Strictly speaking, both belong to the plant species of the (cultivated) plum ( Prunus domestica ), but are different subspecies. There are many different varieties of plums. However, they can always be recognized by their egg-shaped, tapered shape and their bluish-violet color. They are not grooved. Their flesh is usually yellow-green, firmer, drier and more sour in taste than that of plums. Because they contain less water, they are better suited to baking than noble plums. In contrast to plums, the stone of the plum separates very easily from the flesh. ⁸

General information:

The common plum ( Prunus domestica var. subrotunda ) - the best known of the common plums ( Prunus domestica subsp. italica ) - appears in dark red to blue-black. Green-yellow varieties are called greengages ( Prunus domestica var. claudiana ). It is a rose plant (Rosaceae), probably a result of a hybrid between cherry plum and blackthorn. ⁵ There are 7 subspecies of the (cultivated) plum, including the damson and mirabelle.

There are various varieties of the plum: Italian plum, French d'Agen plum, Van der Merwe, or Californian plum (usually also a d'Agen variety). The purple Turkish plum is also called Kriecherl.

Alternative names:

The noble plum is also called noble round plum. It is also spelled noble plum and noble plum. The greenish-yellow varieties are called greengage, Reine Claude, Reneclode, Ringlotte, Ringelotte or Ringlo. In English, the dark plum is called plum and the greenish-yellow plum is called greengage.