Foodstuff: Mangosteen – Sybaritica

This curious object, which looks for all the world like a little wooden apple, is yet another of those obscure culinary items that occasionally turn up in our local Co-op from time to time. They were identified as ‘Sharron Fruit’ on a hand lettered sign (a name which meant nothing to me), but each of the little fruit had a tiny sticky label on them bearing the name ‘Mangosteen’ (which was at least familiar). The appellation ‘Sharron Fruit’, it turned out, was actually the name of the Company from which the fruit had been purchased so it was obvious that the store employee stocking the shelves was not too familiar with the item either. In any event, whatever the name, I had never seen these before and naturally had to investigate…

Mangosteens (in this case, actually more properly known as ‘Purple Mangosteen’, in full), are native to Indonesia but are also grown in South America and, to a lesser extent in Florida. They are not very widely produced, however, and tend to be quite expensive outside their production areas. I paid $1.99 for the single one I purchased.

Having no idea what to do with the fruit, I simply sliced it open with a sharp knife. This was not easy as the thick outer covering is extremely woody and very tough, being more of a shell, rather than a rind. I probably should have researched first as I later read that the correct way to open the fruit is to score deeply all around the middle and then twist the halves apart. I don’t imagine, however, that this is a very easy process either.

Once the soft center is popped out, you can see that it has a similarity to a head of garlic, being formed into similar ‘cloves’.

In close-up, one can clearly see that the flesh is very soft and that each ‘clove’ contains a tiny little pit about the size of a grape seed. There wasn’t much of an aroma, really, but the taste was very pleasant being somewhat like a cross between a raisin and a slightly fermented grape with woody overtones. The texture was also very grape-like, being a little more fibrous in some places, while softer and more jelly-like in others.

Anyway, I like the taste and I am glad I tried it but there was barely a mouthful inside the thick covering so I can’t really say they are really worth the price. Interesting experience, though…

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