Abiu

We have two abiu trees on our property.  We planted them near our coffee trees to provide shade, not only to the trees themselves, but to us when we’re picking.  They’ve both grown quite well, and each produced its first fruit this year … literally fruit, each tree gave us one fruit.  They fruited at exactly the same time which was interesting.  I didn’t even notice that one of the trees had a fruit until it turned yellow and stuck out amongst all the green leaves.

This small slightly oblong fruit turns from green to yellow when ripe.  It is a tropical fruit found in the Amazon region of South America.  It prefers a hot humid climate which makes it ideal for growing in Hawaii. It can be propagated from seed, and grows fairly quickly.

Inside the fruit has a creamy translucent look to it.  It has a distinct taste a little difficult to describe.  I find it tastes like a mildly sweet apple, but softer and creamier in texture. Others have compared it to vanilla and even caramel. To eat the abiu, you simply cut it half, and scoop out the flesh with a spoon.  There is one large seed in the middle which is easily removable.  The skin is not edible, and has a latex like sap when cut into.  It’s pretty sticky if you touch it,   There’s not a lot of it, but caution should be taken when eating it.  It’s not harmful, but it make your lips stick together a bit, and can interfere with the tastiness of the fruit itself.  It’s most commonly eaten chilled as is, but it can made into many desserts from cakes to pies, and even ice cream.

This tree is supposed to be a fairly prolific fruit bearer.  This is the first year, so it’ll be interesting to see if we get anymore this season.  Overall, we’re very pleased with the taste of the fruit, and find it a nice addition to our tropical farm.

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