Category Archives: Thai Fruits

How does my garden grow… Chillies , mangoes and Gourds…

 

There are no silver bells and cockles shells…but I have seedlings… my garden is growing…welcome to an update…hopefully by updating and rescheduling it will flummox the damn spammers…

Having found a new market place I am filling my garden with some unusual plants and fruits…from seeds to seedlings all is well…if only I didn’t have to share my seedling with the birds…sigh…if I didn’t feed them I could understand…

Hubby had a good idea to try and thwart the little darlings…  my seeds and tiny seedlings I have transferred to my second kitchen…most Thai houses like mine have them… a sort of enclosed but open-air kitchen if that makes sense…A gas hob which is great for Thai stir-fries and my second oven but there is still lots of room for my seedlings it is warm and humid and the birds can’t feast on my seedlings… they are out of the sun it’s like a greenhouse…

This purple mango is so beautiful I know I have a few years to wait for the fruit but it will be worth it…although one of my gardening friends has told me as I started with a little tree rather than a seed I may get some mangoes sooner…smile…

One of the beautiful purple mango trees now has its permanent spot… I am still deciding on where to put the other one but for now, it is in my plant nursery…update it is now in a pot as the permanent home I chose was the wrong one the other bushes grew quicker and blocked the sun….the brightly coloured little rainbow treasure chilli seeds which I planted in the eggshells last week have just started to peek their heads through the soil… one yesterday and another 4 today …however they are not rainbow chillies they are bog standard red chillies which is ok as I use a lot of chillies…I won’t be buying seeds from that seller again…you live and learn as they say…

Our Chocolate Habanero chilli plant arrived yesterday smaller than I hoped but strong and with lots of little offshoots…

The Chocolate habanero is from Jamaica. It is also known as “Congo Black” or “Brown Scotch Bonnet”. The plant grows to about 1 metre in a pot and would probably grow bigger in the ground. … This is one of the hottest Habaneros measuring over 400.000 SHUs units.

The long pepper has now been staked and is climbing there are also quite a few little long peppers appearing…

This plant has been growing well and producing lots of long peppers which I am drying…

The purple melon is a little sturdy seedling but growing well a few months and they should be well established…Pepino melons like most purple fruits and vegetables are a good source of beta-carotene, vitamin C, and potassium, and are rich in dietary fibre.

Again I eagerly await the fruit as it is supposed to be very nice…I have decided my first dish will be a nice salsa…

The white Taiwanese Bitter gourd has been planted, so they will start appearing within the next 7-10 days…fingers are crossed…

taiwanese white papaya

These are stunning-looking fruit and the seedlings I gave to my neighbour have also produced fruit….

The coriander and grapow (Holy Basil) are growing well…

Today I will be planting some more Horapa seeds, a Thai sweet Basil…both these basils are true annuals which means it has to be replanted each year…

Thai - Basil- horapa

I have discovered a Clove Basil which is a new one for me…hopefully, I can get some seeds or seedlings…

Clove Basil has much larger leaves than regular basil and is nicknamed “tree basil” the plant can reach 3 metres tall hence its name. It is an aromatic perennial herb the oils in the leaves give off an intense clove aroma with the occasional notes of thyme. Mature plants develop edible, white flowers that have a slightly feathery appearance and are bitter compared to the sweet and spicy leaves of other basils…

Thank you for reading this post if you have tips on growing any of these or you have grown any of these plants and fruits please leave a comment I love to chat and any tips are gratefully received…Carol x

Tropical Friday…The Gingerbread Fruit Tree…Doum Palm …

The Ginger Bread Fruit comes from the Doum Palm…These trees grow in hot, dry regions where little else grows. It is native to the Arabian Peninsula and also to the northern half and western part of Africa.

All parts of the tree are used although the leaves are the most important part…used to make mats, coarse textiles, brooms, ropes, string, and a thatch roof.

The timber is used for posts, poles, furniture, fuel and to make beehives.

The fruit is edible..the thin brown rind is used to make molasses, added to cakes and sweetmeats…the unripe kernel is also edible and the germinated seeds are eaten as a vegetable. Found on street stalls in  Egypt as a snack food the pulp is also roasted with sugar and served as a cold summer drink…

It can also be used as a spice…

In Niger, a common drink called Torridite Glacee is made from the fruit…

As the video shows the nut is extremely hard if not impossible without the correct tools to access how they get the outer cover off to make molasses I don’t know…Once inside the nut is also rock hard, and has been described as “vegetable ivory”. Apparently, there once was a factory set up to make buttons from it, in the days before plastic took over the world.

Nutritionally, doum fruit is an excellent source of carbohydrates and fibre. Additionally, micronutrients such as vitamins (especially B vitamins) usually dried doum fruits are chopped to make a drink…that has a unique taste, flavour and health benefits it has long been used in natural medicines…

Once the Doum Palm was considered a sacred tree and symbolised male strength and virility.   In fact, the fruit of this tree was of such importance that eight baskets full of dried doum fruit were discovered in Tutankhamun’s tomb, left to provide him with sustenance in the afterlife.

Once found in every backyard the fruit is now considered more of a rarity…

Thank you for popping by I hope you enjoyed learning about this rare fruit see you tomorrow for Saturday Snippets always a popular post…xx

 

 

 

Tropical Friday…#Peanut Butter Fruit…

Not something I eat often although I do know some who eat Peanut butter every day…This fruit tastes exactly like Peanut Butter…How cool is that?… The more you eat the stronger the Peanut Butter taste.

A small backyard tropical tree which is very distantly related to the Acerola Cherry…a tree whose fruit birds love to feast on commercially it doesn’t have value as the fruit once ripe should be eaten they are highly perishable.

Fruits grow in clusters that flower and fruit at the same time. With a thin pale green skin turning to orange then red at maturity. The internal pulp of the Peanut Butter fruit is very thick and slightly sticky similar to that of soft persimmon and surrounds a large central seed. The fruit has an aroma of peanut butter and a sweet flavour which has been compared to that of sweet potato and dried fig. Once ripe, Peanut Butter fruits must be harvested immediately to prevent them from spoiling on the tree.

The size of a grape you just need to wash and pop in your mouth then spit out the pip or remove delicately into a tissue…

The pulp can be used to make smoothies, ice cream for all you peanut butter lovers…or a sherbet…Jellies or Jams…muffins…

High in fibre, it keeps you fuller for longer…

Although the tree is native to Northern and Western South America: Venezuela and Columbia. Naturalized In Southern America: Caribbean (Grenada, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico), Northern and Western South America: Guayana, Suriname, Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Brazil.

It also has been introduced elsewhere in the tropics like Thailand The tree requires a tropical climate with or without a dry season. It is rarely cultivated outside its natural range except in botanical gardens or as a curiosity.

I love this guy he describes fruit perfectly in layman’s terms…

Another native tree I will be adding to my little collection of fruit trees…as I am curious…Just in case you love PB but missed the recipe here it is.…so quick and easy with no nasty additives and sugar…

Thank you for joining me today...I hope you enjoy discovering these rare and exotic fruits…Maybe you have tried this one? If so please share we would love to know…

See you tomorrow for another Saturday Snippets xx

 

Tropical Friday…The Fruit Salad Fruit( Monstera)

Fruit Salad conjures up a very pretty picture..no so the fruit with those scales Monstera seems to fit it much better …it is also more commonly known as breadfruit.

Native to the tropical rainforests of southern Mexico as the years have gone by it now grows pretty much everywhere…if you pass by a Large leafed Swiss cheese plant and notice some fruits then these are the ones… Monstera fruit…I have seen them once on a market stall and passed them by…next time I will be stopping…

Once you pick the breadfruit, wrap it in a newspaper or put it in a paper bag on the counter for 2-4 days. You can also place it upright in a glass jar covered with a paper bag. Ripe breadfruit will smell very fruity and the scales will start to separate and peel off on their own. If the scales are falling off on their own or are very easy to remove, the fruit in that area is ripe!

Once the fruit is ripe and prepped by scraping off the little black specks they are edible but some people find they can have an allergic reaction to them…, you can eat the fruit raw or use it like you would any other tropical fruit. Try it on a salad, in a smoothie, in a fruit salad, or even to top a cheesecake.

Mexican breadfruit also makes delicious jam.

To make jam with monstera fruit, follow a basic pectin-free fruit jam recipe (Mexican breadfruit contains enough natural pectin that you won’t need to add any). Skim off the black seeds and bits that rise to the top.

Keep in mind that the ripe fruit does still contain some oxalic acid, so don’t go too crazy or you may end up with a sore mouth (anyone who has ever overeaten pineapple knows this feeling well). This fruit can also have a laxative effect if you eat too much at once.

To enjoy this fruit requires a bit of work, it takes a while to ripen and you must only eat the fruit where the scales have fallen away from the fruit where the scales remain the fruit is still unripe…but you’ll be well-rewarded with a delicious, exotic fruit you may not have thought to try …

Do you have one of these plants and have you tried the fruit…?

Thank you for reading I will be back tomorrow with SATURDAY SNIPPETS…x

Update on Lauren…She attended the hospital yesterday for the results of the MRI…her cancer has not spread and is classed as in the early stages of grade 1…She is booked in for the 17th of July to have the lump removed and some lymph nodes although they don’t think it has gone into the lymph nodes. They will then do radiotherapy which they hope will be enough so chemo may not be required. She will also have hormone therapy to suppress her estrogen levels…She still has some hurdles to overcome but she is very positive …

Far better than we had been visualising which is a relief …a big relief. I have been very grateful for all the messages and prayers…Thank you so much xx

Tropical Friday.. Langsat …The Bon Bon Fruit…

langsat thai fruit

Don’t let this rather ugly fruit which looks like a small potato fool you…once you peel the thin skin transparent arils appear which look just like garlic segments…some of these little cloves do contain seeds that are said by some not to be harmful if eaten they just have a slightly bitter taste.

In traditional medicine, the seeds of the Lansat are used to prepare antihelmintic medication. Antihelmintic medications are are a group of antiparasitic drugs that expel parasitic worms and other internal parasites from the body by either stunning or killing them and without causing significant damage to the host.

The fruits of this tree grow from the trunk of the tree and the branches…they are picked in clusters ..they are also one of Lily’s favourite fruits she loves them…it was also thanx to Chel Owens as she reminded me of the Langsat fruit by a comment she made on my Culinary A-Z in the week…sometimes I think you forget the most obvious don’t you?… Thanx Chel …x

Originally native to Malaysia over the years they have been introduced to other countries across Asia…because of this, they are also known by other names …Lanzon, Duku, Longkok, Lotka, Dokong, Lanzon, Bon Bon to name but a few.

Once picked the langsat fruit does not last longer than 3 days which is why it is mainly eaten in the countries it grows. This fruit is far better eaten as soon as it is picked as the lovely taste deteriorates quickly and the fruit takes on a musty unpleasant taste… Nutritionally rich it contains many vital elements like proteins, fibre carbs, minerals and vitamins it is rich in Vitamin A…Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that is naturally present in many foods. Vitamin A is important for normal vision, the immune system, and reproduction. Vitamin A also helps the heart, lungs, kidneys, and other organs work properly.

Both the bark of the tree and the peel of the fruit have medicinal uses…the peel contains oleoresin which helps cure diarrhoea and its symptoms ..burning the peel is a useful mosquito repellant and the peel if rubbed on the skin can reduce redness and itching…

The fruit is traditionally used for culinary purposes and as a complement to fruit salad, desserts and Thai curries. It is also often cooked into a syrup or canned…the syrup is also used in the making of cocktails I have heard tell that mixed with pomegranate syrup, a splash of rum and some lime juice that it is rather a good sundowner…

I also came across this spicy salad with Gourami recipe...it sounds delicious and on googling Gourami it is a fish and not as I originally thought a snake due to the name snakeskin and the mention of lots of bones my imagination took a trip…but it refers to the skin of the fish…Definitely, one I will be testing…for now have a look at the recipe and see what you think it does sound rather delicious…

Upon searching for an image of this fish I recognise it as a common fish here and one that has quite a delicate flavour and I would say would pair well with the Langsat Fruit…although I am sure any white fish would be suitable.

Thank you for joining me for Tropical Friday  I hope you are enjoying these fruits…Please let me know if you have tried them or cooked with them…xx

The Culinary Alphabet with a twist…The letter G ( nutmeG)

Good morning everyone and Pete… time for another post which is this crazy idea from one of my fellow scribes …but food fun…

G is not quite another doozy…  more processes but still culinary processes with a few foods thrown in…

 

Butterflying:

pork loin gruyere cheese onions

To butterfly in cooking terms is to cut a piece of meat, fish or poultry nearly in half and flatten it out…Prawns are often butterflied when being prepared for the BBQ…A leg of lamb butterflied and stuffed then rolled is a wonderful thing as is this loin of Pork...All you need is a sharp knife and the know how…click the link above and I will show you how easy it is to do…

Charbroiling:

Charbroiler grilling is defined as “the process used when an item is cooked on a grated surface to sear in the flavours and impart a degree of charring which gives the product a light charcoal smoke flavour.” Charbroiling will expose food to temperatures often in excess of 260 °C (500 °F).

Egg:

Comes from a chook/duck/goose/quail/turkey, ants or fish…Caviar being one of the most expensive of eggs…The most expensive of all caviar, and indeed the world’s most expensive food is ‘Almas’, from the Iranian Beluga fish – 1 kg (2 lb 3 oz) of this ‘black gold’ is regularly sold for £20,000 (then $34,500). Almas is produced from the eggs of a rare albino sturgeon between 60-100 years old, which swims in the southern Caspian Sea where there is apparently less pollution.

Caviar is traditionally eaten directly from the skin between the index finger and the thumb. The eggs are rolled slowly around the mouth and pop to release the flavour.

Ant eggs are a popular food here and can be found on most market stalls and indeed make a lovely salad or are good in a soup…But if you want to know the weirdest of eggs to eat think shark egg, penguin, Emu, Turtle, Snail eggs…and of course the most expensive chocolate egg comes from Choccywoccydoodah – €31,000. When it comes to luxury Belgian chocolate, look no further than British-based chocolaterie, Choccywoccydoodah. …Hows that for an Easter Egg?

Etrog:

Is the yellow citron or Citrus medica used by Jews during the week-long holiday of Sukkot as one of the four species. The Etrog (citron fruit), Lulav (frond of date palm) Hadass (myrtle bough) and Aravah (willow branch) – are the four species the Jewish people are commanded to bind together and wave in the sukkah, a temporary booth constructed for use during the week-long festival of Sukkot.

Fig:

There is nothing quite like a beautiful fresh fig...one of my favourite things …

Glug:

Is a hollow gurgling sound or series of sounds as of liquid being poured from a bottle. i.e some recipes call for a glug of Olive oil…it is a word I am quite familiar with as my mother used to refer to a glug of oil or wine…is a British thing I ask…so many of my American friends have queried my use of the word.

Gochujang:

My new favourite chilli paste…it is a Korean hot pepper chilli paste…used for marinades, added to dipping sauces or your soups and stews if you want to spice things up a little…

Goreng:

A Malaysian word which is applied to noodles or rice which are fried with meat, fish or vegetables as in Nasi Goreng a popular Malaysian fried rice dish often served for breakfast.

Homogenising:

Is process milk goes through where fat is emulsified thus the cream then does not separate. As a child, a treat was the gold-topped milk which had a layer of cream…it comes from Jersey or Guernsey and although pasteurised it is not homogenised…One of my childhood memories…

Icing:

Icing, or frosting, is a sweet, often creamy glaze made of sugar with a liquid, such as water or milk, that is often enriched with ingredients like butter, egg whites, cream cheese, or flavourings. It is used to coat or decorate baked goods, such as cakes.

Jug:

To “jug” is to stew or boil a hare or a rabbit in an earthenware jug or a jar…an old fashioned method of cooking before we had slow cookers and the like.

Maprang:

Or Marian plum is a lovely golden plum grown here in Thailand…

Maprang fruit is a smallish lemon colour fruit…This lovely fruit has a very short season and is likened to the mango but the taste is nothing like a mango…Also called the Marian Plum by some this small, oval-shaped fruit, small enough to fit wholly within the palm of your hand, is green when young, but will turn a deep yellow-orange when ripe.

Many Thais prefer to eat this fruit before it is fully ripened…a cross between mango and plum, with just a hint of sour flavour on the surface right under the skin which gives way to a sweet fruit beneath.  It’s a lovely combination of sweet and sour, which many look forward to eating each year! In fact, the entire fruit is edible, from the skin to seed, however, the seed is quite bitter, so not many will eat them.  The leaves are used in salads or cooked.

Due to its short season, it is one of the more expensive fruits here ..it is high in Vitamin C, fibre and has quite a high water content…I like this fruit very much.

Nutmeg:

Originating from the dark-leaved evergreen Myristica fragrans tree in Indonesia, the seed is now grown and used globally, mostly for cooking but sometimes as a narcotic. However, for the purposes of getting high, nutmeg is not a commonly used substance.

One of my favourite spices which is great as a topping for rice pudding or an egg custard tart…

Nog:

Any beverage made with beaten eggs usually mixed with alcoholic liqueur…Egg Nog is a good example especially popular during the cold months of the year. There is nothing like a good glass of egg nog topped with a sprinkling of nutmeg I have lovely memories of my nana making egg nog and letting me have sneaky sip…

That’s all for this week see you in two weeks for the letter H (noocH)…

Please stay safe as it seems in some places lockdowns are being introduced again…not good xx

About Carol Taylor:

Enjoying life in The Land Of Smiles I am having so much fun researching, finding new, authentic recipes both Thai and International to share with you. New recipes gleaned from those who I have met on my travels or are just passing through and stopped for a while. I hope you enjoy them.

I love shopping at the local markets, finding fresh, natural ingredients, new strange fruits and vegetable ones I have never seen or cooked with. I am generally the only European person and attract much attention and I love to try what I am offered and when I smile and say Aroy or Saab as it is here in the north I am met with much smiling.

Some of my recipes may not be in line with traditional ingredients and methods of cooking but are recipes I know and have become to love and maybe if you dare to try you will too. You will always get more than just a recipe from me as I love to research and find out what other properties the ingredients I use contain to improve our health and well being.

The environment is also something I am passionate about and there will be more on this on my blog this year

Exciting for me hence the title of my blog, Retired No One Told Me! I am having a wonderful ride and don’t want to get off, so if you wish to follow me on my adventures, then welcome! I hope you enjoy the ride also and if it encourages you to take a step into the unknown or untried, you know you want to…Then, I will be happy!

Please stay safe and well and follow your governments safety guidelines remember we are all in this together xxx