The Delicious Annona Squamosa

Ok, most people know this fruit as the sugar apple. Really it is not at all like a northern apple, I think people just miss them a lot and used apple in the name. This fruit is exceptionally tasty. A ripe sugar apple separates naturally at the segments. Just pull it apart and scoop out the delicious custard like insides. Each segment surrounds a shiny black seed that you spit out. The pulp is worth the hassle. These fruits don't transport well, so unless you are in a tropical climate, you probably won't see one. Even here in Florida, these fruit sell for $4 to $6 lb. There are two kinds of sugar apple - one green and one red. That is the difference between them! They taste exactly the same. The red is prettier and sells for more but only because red is seen as more desireable in the Asian culture.

Growing the Consuming Jakfruit

I really started this blog to record my adventures in rare fruit growing and to help others enjoy the hobby. If you enjoyed the jakfruit cleaning and eating, you might be interested in growing the fruit. I have two trees planted now. One tree was hit by frost last winter, so it is rather small but is coming up again. I really expected it to recover faster because it had a good root system, but I guess it is coming along. They can produce fruit in 3 to 4 years from seed. I can't wait! I have them planted in well drained soil. They get abundant water and are watered year round. Of course I planted all the seeds from my purchase, so some day I may have a jakfruit orchard.

Eating or being consumed by Jakfruit

I purchased 1/2 of a jakfruit Saturday at the Wagon Wheel Flea Market. I chose the smallest one possible and it still weighed about 10 lbs. I had to promise to buy it if the seller cut it (even though pieces of jakfruit are easier to sell at $2.50 lb rather than the 30 - 50 lb whole fruit). So, I promised. As soon as she cut into it with her machete, fragrance erupted from it. It smelled just like juicy fruit gum. We put my fruit on a plastic bag and then into my Whole Foods bag to carry around the market and then out to the car. This is my first jakfruit purchase. Amanda and I had been at Ashok's house during the week and had eaten several pieces of fruit he received from Chris Rollins of the Fruit and Spice Park in Miami. It was so good I decided to try my hand at breaking into one and enjoying the fruit. It was much easier just eating the fruit at Ashok's. Jakfruit is filled with a milky latex substance. I was told to coat myself and my knife and everything else with vegetable oil so it wouldn't stick to everything. This was a very helpful tip because in short order the stringy latex consumed everything that wasn't coated in oil. The fruit was very tasty and crunchy and was suprising little for my $20 purchase.