buko (young coconut)
the sweetest pineapples i've had...would that i could have these every day...
giant jackfruit. 
yes, they have some bananas. no different than what we have here, except in terms of freshness, and thus, sweetness. 
longan and lychees. I did not try these during this trip, but loved how they look.
i wish i could call this "nice melons" but obviously, these are voluptuous grapefruit.
santol (in the foreground). we were lucky to travel at this time of year (despite the "monsoon" season) as it is peak (or near peak) season for many fruits that are unavailable here. like santol. i used a knife to cut through the thick fuzzy rind that protects the whitish, opaque, and mushy fruit. the fruit is sectioned, like any common citrus fruit and it does taste vaguely like grapefruit, but without any bitterness. it's mild and sweet, but not pretty. and it's also not terribly satisfying, since the fruit pulp seems to only serve as protection for the 4 or 5 brown, inedible pits that are roughly the size of a brazil nut. you can't chew or really swallow the fruit. you just gnaw the flavor out of it until you get tired of lolling the pit around in your mouth. i was told that you could use a knife to carefully separate some real fruit from the pit, but i had already gone native with the thing and tried to eat it the way i would an orange. apparently a method exists where the meat can be extracted and reproduced commercially into dried fruit and jam.
i think this is the dreaded durian (on the left), and so i steered clear. have you ever tried it? i bought a durian popsicle once and it was the foulest thing ever. i imagine if i were to eat a dirty sweatsock, that had been steeping in its own wet funk for about a week, that would be on par with what durian tastes and smells like.
red pitaya dragonfruit! i tried one variety of dragonfruit that has white flesh and black seeds...wonderful! reminiscent of kiwi. at market! market! they were selling a variety that has pink flesh and purply-black seeds, which i have read is costa rican...
clockwise, top left: lanzones, santol, and chico...and to lanzones: i tried this for the first time when i was 5. it was one of the few fruits that i ate that age that wasn't in soaked in a bath of heavy corn syrup...but i only had a few times during one visit to the philippines that our family made. i don't know if i really remembered its taste, but i never forgot that i liked it. after this trip, i am fascinated all over again.
they grown in tight bunches, on a branch. pull one off, and squeeze it very gently, and the very thin skin will break to reveal an opaque, whitish fruit (a theme in tropical fruit?) that is encased in a nearly translucent rind. if you're patient, you can separate the sections...otherwise you can probably pop it whole into your mouth. i prefer the former method, if only to marvel for as long as i can at its delicateness. the flesh is light and juicy, rather like a grape but without that crispness or intensity. it's mellow and sweet and a touch citrusy. if only i could have smuggled some in...
and chico: it is a handsomely shaped fruit and it looks great on the tree (as you'll see in future photos). small enough to hide in your palm, skin, thin and smooth like a stone. sweet or sour, depending on ripeness, it tastes very much like kiwi, but flatter. a couple of people in my family cited this fruit as their favorite. it's good, but not mine.
they grown in tight bunches, on a branch. pull one off, and squeeze it very gently, and the very thin skin will break to reveal an opaque, whitish fruit (a theme in tropical fruit?) that is encased in a nearly translucent rind. if you're patient, you can separate the sections...otherwise you can probably pop it whole into your mouth. i prefer the former method, if only to marvel for as long as i can at its delicateness. the flesh is light and juicy, rather like a grape but without that crispness or intensity. it's mellow and sweet and a touch citrusy. if only i could have smuggled some in...
and chico: it is a handsomely shaped fruit and it looks great on the tree (as you'll see in future photos). small enough to hide in your palm, skin, thin and smooth like a stone. sweet or sour, depending on ripeness, it tastes very much like kiwi, but flatter. a couple of people in my family cited this fruit as their favorite. it's good, but not mine.
clockwise, top left: limes, mangosteen, atis, and rambutan.and finally, two more fascinating tropical adventures: mangosteen and atis.
atis (AH-tees) looks like a cross between an artichoke and a grenade. i thought i would need a knife to power through the rind, but that tough-looking exterior is all for show! squeeze it a little, and the little "plates" will give way. you can pull it apart into two or more pieces, and suck out the flesh. but being the "civilized girl" that i am, i took a teaspoon to it, and shoveled the pulp into my mouth. again, this fruit does not have pretty insides. remember alien? all that white goo? that's what atis looks like. but wow, the flavor! delicately sweet and grainy, like pear puree. the only downside, aside from the visual, is the many seeds inside. you can't get too carried away eating this, you need to concentrate on spitting the seeds.
and...mangosteen. i've been fiending to try mangosteen for years now, since the rw apple and david karp wrote dreamy articles about it. i nearly left the country without trying some! fortunately, our last minute trip to market! market! meant that i could finally satisfy my curiosity. this rich, eggplant colored little fruit has tough skin and like other fruits i've tried on this trip, there is a thick rind. the mangosteen fruit is nestled like a rare jewel in a maroon velvet cushion...
and curious it is, because each person that tried it had a different take on it.
i said it reminded me of banana, with a hint of lychee and the deep, heartiness of mango. my sister said, "grape!" my aunt said lanzones, but then agreed with my mom in that it's also like santol. i couldn't, at the time, remember what karp and apple said about it. but i loved that it didn't remind all of us of any one fruit. we loved it. but it seemed appropriate that something that is still so elusive to us stateside is just as mysterious to the palate.
atis (AH-tees) looks like a cross between an artichoke and a grenade. i thought i would need a knife to power through the rind, but that tough-looking exterior is all for show! squeeze it a little, and the little "plates" will give way. you can pull it apart into two or more pieces, and suck out the flesh. but being the "civilized girl" that i am, i took a teaspoon to it, and shoveled the pulp into my mouth. again, this fruit does not have pretty insides. remember alien? all that white goo? that's what atis looks like. but wow, the flavor! delicately sweet and grainy, like pear puree. the only downside, aside from the visual, is the many seeds inside. you can't get too carried away eating this, you need to concentrate on spitting the seeds.
and...mangosteen. i've been fiending to try mangosteen for years now, since the rw apple and david karp wrote dreamy articles about it. i nearly left the country without trying some! fortunately, our last minute trip to market! market! meant that i could finally satisfy my curiosity. this rich, eggplant colored little fruit has tough skin and like other fruits i've tried on this trip, there is a thick rind. the mangosteen fruit is nestled like a rare jewel in a maroon velvet cushion...
and curious it is, because each person that tried it had a different take on it.
i said it reminded me of banana, with a hint of lychee and the deep, heartiness of mango. my sister said, "grape!" my aunt said lanzones, but then agreed with my mom in that it's also like santol. i couldn't, at the time, remember what karp and apple said about it. but i loved that it didn't remind all of us of any one fruit. we loved it. but it seemed appropriate that something that is still so elusive to us stateside is just as mysterious to the palate.
all photos © anita aguilar
