12.13.2012

tamarillos

When I see an unusual fruit at the grocery store, I'll sometimes bring it home, for several reasons. First, I have an insatiable curiosity about everything. Second, it's a great way to expose the boys to new foods and tastes, and third, we can also learn about where it comes from and how it's prepared.
I hadn't noticed tamarillos until last week, and they are just so pretty, I couldn't help myself. So I bought two. I must say, though, the flavour is... well...

"Terrible." Phillip just came in, read what I was typing, and finished the sentence for me.
Maybe these weren't quite ripe? I tried adding a bit of sugar, but that really didn't help. They're tannic and bitter, and I couldn't find a way to make it tasty. I have one left, so I'm hoping that someone (Teresa? Mad? Anyone?) may be familiar with them and offer up a way to prepare the last one.

Even if I can't find a way to eat them, they're so very pretty. Still worth the purchase!

8 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh! I love finding out new things too! These are adorable. Unfortunately, I've never heard of them before, but now I'm going to look them up and see if I can find them somewhere.

    I hopped over to Wiki just to get an idea of the size and distribution of the plant (South American, as one might suspect from the name), and noticed this line: Red fruits are more acetous, yellow and orange fruits are sweeter. Well, now to know to buy the yellow and orange ones. ;) But that won't help you with eating the last one. I was thinking that if was just sour, you could sub it into any recipe that calls for sour cherries or sour fruits, but bitterness is much harder to mask. Wonder if you can cook the bitterness out?

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    Replies
    1. Thanks, Teresa! I saw that in the Wiki entry, too - but our store only had red ones! I may try cooking it. It's been a few days now, though, so maybe the last one has had a chance to ripen a bit. We'll see!

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  2. Anonymous12/14/2012

    Hello Sherrie,

    Are your tamarillos ripe? Here is a link that might be of interest http://www.tamarillo.com/recipe_finder .

    Cheers !

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  3. they are beautiful.

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  4. Sorry! I know nothing of tamarillos except that they exist.

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  5. Ah well, at least they're pretty! And I've never heard of them before either!

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