Prune vs Plum
Plants that belong to the genus Prunus, such as cherries, are cultivated as ornamental plants and also for their fruits. Almonds are cultivated for their seeds, and apricots, peaches, and plums are cultivated for their fruits. The fruits of the plum plant are either eaten fresh or dried. Dried plums are also called prunes.
Plum belongs to the plant genus Prunus which is a relative of the peach, apricot, cherry, and almond. It is a drupe, which is a fruit that has a hard stone pit around its seeds which does not easily separate from the flesh. It has a sweet and at the same time tart taste and is very juicy.
It can be eaten fresh, made into juice, jam, or wine, used as ingredient in food or dried. Plums are a good source of vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin B2, and potassium. They are also full of dietary fiber, carbohydrates, sodium, minerals, and amino acids.
There are over 2,000 varieties of plums which come in different shapes and colors. Some are oval-shaped and others are heart-shaped, but the most common are the round-shaped plums. Most plums are red when ripe, but there are some varieties that are purple, blue-black, red, green, amber, and yellow.
When dried, plums are called prunes, but the prune fruit comes from a different type of plant than plums. Although of the same genus (Prunus) as plums, which makes it a type or variety of plum, prunes have pits that are easier to remove from the flesh unlike all other types of plum.
They are oval-shaped and are blue or purple in color when ripe. They are used in cooking. While most plums are consumed fresh, prunes are mostly dried or made into prune juice. Dried prunes and prune juice are known for their laxative effects.
Prune juice is prepared by steaming prunes which produces the natural laxative dihydrophenylisatin which helps in muscle contractions. Prune juice and dried prunes help regulate the digestive system because they are rich in dietary fiber.
Prunes are usually eaten by the elderly as medication for constipation and so they are associated with them. To make prunes more appealing to the younger market, manufacturers have changed the product name of “prunes” into “dried plums.”
Summary:
- A plum is a plant of the genus Prunus the hard pit of which does not easily separate from its flesh while a prune is also a plant of the genus Prunus, but its hard pit can be separated from its flesh easily.
- A plum is a relative of cherries, peaches, and almonds while a prune is a variety or a type of plum.
- Most varieties of plums have red skins when ripe, but prunes have blue or purple skins when ripe.
- Prunes are oval-shaped while other types of plums are either heart-shaped or round-shaped.
- Prunes are usually dried or made into prune juice while the other types of plum are mostly eaten fresh.