Queen Of Dates: Deglet Nour of Tunisia
If the Medjool date is called the King of dates, then the Deglet Nour date would be the "Queen of dates". Beside the many benefits of dates, this Tunisian gem has a slender and elegant shape with a rather translucent texture and honey-like taste.
The Deglet Nour date tree starts to mature and produce fruits after roughly 5 years. The production cycle of the Deglet Nour takes between 8 and 10 months, from the flowering stage to harvesting. Between March and April, the date fruits are usually green in colour and round in shape. By summer, the dates begin to grow to their optimal size and turn yellow in colour with a smooth skin. Deglet Nour usually begins to mature and ripen in autumn, after exposure to the summer heat.
The harvesting period usually starts from middle of September until December. Due to its delicate texture, these mature dates can only be kept for a few days. Hence, here at All Kurma, we always advise our customers to keep the Deglet Nour refrigerated to prolong its shelf life.
While some prefer fresh Deglet Nour, a lot of consumers like them preserved with glucose syrup to preserve it longer for a more practical, weather-proof and economical ways to last through Ramadhan.