Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
FILIPINO FRUITS
The Philippines is justly celebrated for its variety and quality of fresh fruit, especially its
mangoes, which are ubiquitous throughout the islands and always juicy and delicious. The list
below is just a selection.
Atis
Pine-cone shaped, and about 10cm long with green scaly skin, the ripe flesh of the atis
(custard apple or sugar-apple) is gloriously sweet and soft; it might look a bit like custard but it
tastes like a combination of banana, papaya and strawberry, or more prosaically, bubble gum.
With black pips scattered throughout it can be messy to eat. The main season is late summer
to October.
Balimbing
(starfruit, aka
carambola
) Crunchy, juicy fruit, with a slightly sweet flavour that
tastes a bit like a blend of apple, pear and grape.
Bayabas
(guava) Fruit with a tough green skin and distinctive deep-pink pulp that has a sweet
flavour, similar to passion fruit mixed with strawberry.
Buko
(coconut) Another Philippine staple grown throughout the archipelago year-round,
harvested casually by villagers as much as by commercial plantations for its refreshing juice
and nutty white flesh. Used to make
buko
pie and a variety of desserts.
Calamansi
Little green lime that is squeezed into juices, hot tea, over noodles, fish and
kinilaw
(raw fish salad) and into numerous dipping sauces.
Chico
(sapodilla) Roughly the size of an egg, with brown skin and sticky, soft flesh that has a
malty, exceedingly sweet flavour.
Durian
The “king” of tropical fruit is spiky, heavy and smells like a drain blocked with garbage
- but its creamy inner flesh tastes like heaven. Rich in protein, minerals and fat, the durian is
one of the more expensive fruits in the Philippines, though in Davao, the centre of production,
you can buy whole ones for P50.
Guayabano
(soursop) A large, oval fruit with knobbly spines outside and fragrant flesh inside.
Kaimito
(star apple) Plum-coloured and round, about the size of a tennis ball, with leathery
skin and soft white pulp inside that tastes a bit like grape.
Langka
(jackfruit) The largest tree-borne fruit in the world (it can reach 40kg) is also one of
the most delicious, with an interior of large, yellow bulbs of sweet flesh that tastes like
flowery bananas.
Lanzones
Small round fruit grown mostly on southern Luzon, especially in Laguna, and
available October to December. It's also grown in northern Mindanao and especially
Camiguin, where there is a festival in its honour (see p.412). It tastes a bit like a combination of
grape and sweet grapefruit.
Mangga
(mango) Eat as much mango as you can in the Philippines - you won't taste any
better. Most grown on the islands turn from green to yellow as they ripen and are always very
sweet. The main season runs June through August.
Mangosteen
Nothing like a mango, this sumptuous fruit the size of a tangerine has a thick,
purplish skin and creamy white flesh. The season runs June through August.
Marang
If you travel in Mindanao look out for this special fruit. A bit like a breadfruit, it's a
cross between jackfruit and
atis
but with a taste all its own.
Pakwan
(watermelon)
Papaya
You'll see papaya plants growing in gardens and along roadsides all over the
Philippines and it's one of the cheapest fruits. Some 98 percent of the annual crop is
consumed locally and it's extremely nutritious.
Piña
(pineapple) The Spanish introduced the pineapple to the Philippines and thanks to huge
plantations run by Del Monte and Dole (both in Mindanao), it's one of the nation's biggest
export earners.
Saging
(banana) A staple crop in the Philippines, with a remarkable range of size and types
grown in Mindanao and the western Visayas throughout the year; the country is one of the
largest exporters of bananas in the world.
Santol
The
santol
is an apple-sized fruit, with a white juicy pulp often eaten sour with some
salt. It's also popular as a jam or a bitter marmalade.
