Alex_K 2022 - Fruits/Vegetables

[Alex_K]

Guabiraba aka. Palillo or Chamba - (Campomanesia lineatifolia)

This fruit is native to the Amazon rainforest of Peru, Brazil and Colombia, unfortunately it is another fruit that is not commercially available, you will not find it on supermarket shelves here unless you live in the Amazon region.
Juices, jams and liqueurs can be made with the fruit, fresh it has a sour and sweet taste and its smell is very intense when ripe, almost like a perfume a good perfume!

 

[Alex_K]

Carambola aka. Star fruit (Averrhoa carambola)

I think everyone knows what fruit is it... Despite being native to Southeast Asia, it is quite common here in Brazil. An easy-to-grow fruit for those who live in the tropics, mine was grown from seed.

 

[Alex_K]

Jabuticaba "Sabará" aka. Brazilian grapetree (Plinia cauliflora)

Native to the Atlantic Forest it is one of the most popular fruits in home gardens it is one of my favorite fruits too, it is sweet and juicy and fun to eat, you squeeze it and it pops in your mouth revealing its white pulp.
The Sabará variety is the most common and most productive, considered by many to have the best flavor too, the fruits have a thick black skin and small dark green leaves and the tree can reach up to 10 meters in height.
If planted from seed, it can take up to 12 years to produce the first fruits, normally bears fruit only 3 times a year, it is eaten fresh or made into very tasty jams and liqueurs.

Jabuticaba Híbrida aka. Brazilian grapetree Hybrid/Early (Plinia X cauliflora)

The hybrid variety has fruits with thinner skin and reddish black color, the leaves are larger and light green in color and the tree does not exceed 4 meters in height.
The fruits are sweet and succulent like the "Sabara" variety but the flavor is slightly different.
If planted from seed, this variety starts to produce fruit in 3 to 4 years and despite producing less than the Sabará variety, it produces almost all year round, as long as the climate is warm and water is available.

 

[ahayastani]

I think everyone knows what fruit is it... Despite being native to Southeast Asia, it is quite common here in Brazil. An easy-to-grow fruit for those who live in the tropics, mine was grown from seed.

Common here and cropping heavily now. I made some jam yesterday as an experiment.

 

[Alex_K]

Common here and cropping heavily now. I made some jam yesterday as an experiment.

Making jam with the fruit sounds great! Here we make juice, candied or eat it fresh.
I think that in other countries you can find the sour variety as well however here it is not common.

 

[Alex_K]

Goya aka. Bitter melon, Nigauri - (Momordica charantia)

This is the white variety of Bitter Melon.
As a child I couldn't stand the bitterness and ate only for the alleged medicinal properties, now I can eat and I even appreciate it, it's something you acquire taste or not! I think 90% of people who try it for the first time will hate it!

 

[Alex_K]

Longan - (Dimocarpus longan)

Longan I bought from an exotic fruit nursery, it's doing well in container, it's the second year producing fruit Very sweet is like a concentrated version of lychee.

 

[Alex_K]

Australian Finger Lime aka. Caviar Lime (Citrus australasica)

Interesting variety of lime from Australia, small leaves, branches covered by thorns and elongated fruits, this plant I grown it from a seed I have only the green pulp variety I think there are varieties with red, pink or purple pulp unfortunately I don't know how to use it in other way than spreading a little over sushi or ceviche.

Yuzu (Citrus junos)

I love the smell of this lemon, the zest and juice goes well in tea, desserts... Essential for making ponzu sauce or yuzukosho.
The branches are covered with large thorns and the leaves are "doubled" like other wild citrus.

 

[Wiriwiri]

Nice to see some unusual fruits of the tropics...you're doing a great job Alex.

 

[Alex_K]

These are just a few herbs I'm growing at the moment... Some just to try and some for everyday use in dishes.

Shiso or Perilla is used extensively in Japanese cuisine, currently I have 3 varieties the red one used to make ice tea and Umeboshi the ruffled green one for Sushi and Tempura and the Britton variety which has bicolor leaves green on top and purple on bottom.

Red Shiso (Perilla frutescens purpurea)

Ruffled Green Shiso (Perilla frutescens viridi-crispa)

Britton Perilla (Perilla frutescens discolor)

 

[Alex_K]

Occasionally making some Indian dishes like curries I ended up buying this Curry tree plant, but I confess that I rarely use it, because it has a very strong aroma, I found it difficult to balance its pungency with another ingredients in the dish. I think I need to find a better recipe to use this herb!

Curry Tree (Murraya koenigii)

The Quirquiña I got seeds as a gift when I made a purchase of pepper seeds from an American seller, it smells like a mixture of rue and cilantro/coriander and I haven't used since!!! I think it's used in Mexican and Bolivian cuisine.

Quirquiña (Porophyllum ruderale)

Lovage is one of my favorite herbs...

Lovage (Levisticum officinale)

 

[Alex_K]

Finally... I am growing some varieties of basil too the Cardinal Basil is suitable for culinary and ornamental purposes as it produces a large flower head, it is very similar to Thai Basil with a strong anise scent. The Blue Spice Basil as the name imply have scent of spices and vanilla and has hairy leaves and branches, the Alfavaca do Campo despite being native to Brazil is less known to people in general compared to the Italian Sweet Basil here, have a grassy and peppery scent.
The Married Man Pork Basil (Thanks to @Wiriwiri ) variety from Guyana, I haven't tried it yet because they are still small, it seems to be essential in many dishes in the country I'm excited to try!

Sweet Basil (Ocimum basilicum)

Cardinal Basil (Ocimum basilicum)

Blue Spice Basil (O. basilicum × americanum)

Alfavaca do Campo (Ocimum campechianum)

Married Man Pork Basil (Ocimum basilicum ?)

 

[Wiriwiri]

Nice selection of Basil you have...glad to see the MM pork basil enjoying the South American
weather...that is used in many dishes in Guyana as you so rightly noted...any luck with the wilds?

 

[Alex_K]

Hi @Wiriwiri the MM pork basil seems to be enjoying the weather, I hope the autumn here is not too cold for him... About the wilds I replied on my GLOG: Alex_K - 2021/2022

 

[Alex_K]

Caigua (Cyclanthera pedata)

From Peru this vine survived the winter and produced a few pods... Great vegetable to stuff as it is hollow inside.

 

[Alex_K]

Pumpkin on Stick (Solanum aethiopicum)

Ornamental variety of eggplant, I've heard it's edible when it's still green, they look like mini pumpkins...

Happy Halloween!

 

[Alex_K]

Resurrecting the thread!
A few more plants from my garden...

Feijoa aka. Pineapple Guava (Feijoa sellowiana)

Feijoa is a native fruit from the south of Brazil and also found in the north of Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay, when I brought it I didn't have much hope that it would bear fruit here since it needs at least a few weeks of moderate cold in winter, however this is the third year producing in container so I got lucky!
I think it has already been introduced in some US states and in New Zealand where it is produced on a large scale.
In addition to producing sweet fruits that resemble a mixture of guava, pineapple and banana (they are really delicious), the plant itself has ornamental value, producing very beautiful red flowers.

Yuzu (Citrus junos)

I picked some Yuzus to make a yuzu/honey marmalade that will be great to make a tea in the winter to come...

 

[Alex_K]

These last two are not my, they were bought in a kind of 'farmers market' (not necessarily from farmers, most are resellers! ) here in the city. I just thought it was interesting to post here.

Jaca aka. Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus)

It is not a native fruit from here but it is very common throughout the country and I think that many here have already tried it too. The fruit is massive and has an interesting appearance very sweet and with a very strong aroma that is difficult to describe, some love it and others hate it. The fruit can be consumed in many ways, it can be eaten as a vegetable when immature, when ripe it can be eaten raw or made into sweets or juices and the numerous seeds can be roasted or boiled to be consumed too.

Umbu aka. Imbu (Spondias tuberosa)

This tree is very important in northeastern Brazil, mainly in the dry/semi-desert region where it thrives, its tuberous roots manage to accumulate a large amount of water and thus manage to survive in these harsh conditions.
Its fruits are great to be consumed raw, mixed with milk or made into ice cream and even its leaves can be consumed and can complement meals poor in vitamins and proteins or as food for livestock and its roots can be collected to extract water in case of scarcity, as it happens often in these regions that can go for months and even more than a year without any rain.