Top 10 fruits to try in Sri Lanka

Yes, it’s just as you suspected… Here’s yet another blog post about food! Perhaps I should call myself a food blogger instead of a travel blogger?! I am after all, a big time foodie… and food is what I think about most of the time! But that’s a thought for another time. This time’s blog, though very similar to my post in July about the top ten foods to try, specializes in fruits. This is mostly because I couldn't fit everything I loved eating into one general food post! Sure enough, there will be more to follow!

As usual, the following is in no particular order. So here goes:

1) Banana

 I know what you’re thinking, you've had bananas… you get them in your country… it’s no big deal. But it is in fact a HUGE deal for us Sri Lankans! They are so much tastier here. If you don’t take my word for it, here’s a quote from a fellow blogger from England, Emily Jenkinson:

“I’ve just got back from a two week holiday in Sri Lanka and am already missing its bananas, which are out-and-out, no contest, the best goddamn bananas I have ever eaten, anywhere, ever. Full stop. Amen. In fact, before visiting Sri Lanka, I don’t think I’d ever really eaten a proper banana, just mere imitations of them: under-ripe, over-refrigerated, no-life-left-in-them apologies for bananas which (I realise now) must have little nutritional value and certainly no taste to speak of”.

http://theladybites.co.uk/2012/12/sri-lankan-bananas-im-bananas-for-them/

You can find over 20 different types of bananas in Sri Lanka and they all have different colours, sizes and tastes. My personal favourites [and the most popular and widely available] varieties are the Ambul and the Kolikuttu.

 Bananas for bananas!

2) Mango

Like bananas, there are many different types of Mangoes in Sri Lanka. Some smaller than the palm of your hand and some as big as papaya! The star mango that is everyone’s favourite [including mine] is the sweet and juicy Karthakolamban Mango that is endemic to Jaffna, a city in the North of Sri Lanka. You should also definitely try raw mango seasoned with salt and chilli powder. It is a popular street food in Sri Lanka.

Each pile is a different variety of Mango

                                                                                            

3) Rambutan

Some of my earliest childhood memories include the Rambutan tree that we have in our garden. I can still remember very clearly how my grandmother used to sit out in the balcony holding on to a string that was attached to a noise maker on the tree that was rung to scare away the squirrels who came to eat the not-yet-ripened fruits. I also remember my father plucking the ripe Rambutan from the balcony and from our neighbour’s roof! After we plucked all of them, we used to sit out on the grass in the garden eating Rambutan’s.

It’s a small red hairy fruit that tastes similar to lychees, but better! They are found in abundance during the months of June, July and August.

Freshly picked Rambutans

4) Mangosteen

I know I’m probably losing my credibility by saying that everything is my favourite, but they really are! Mangosteens are a wonderful fruit that are in season the same time as Rambutans.

Tip: don't get any on you clothes...! It stains!

5) Papaya

Papaya or Papaw is another ‘everyday’ type of fruit for Sri Lankans that is in season all year round. This juicy and nutritious fruit was even dubbed ‘the fruit of the angels’ by Christopher Columbus.

6) Pineapple

Here’s another one that’s delicious. Like raw mangos, it goes well with salt and chilli… a mixture which only the street vendors can perfect!

Stacked up and waiting to be eaten!

7) Jambu

Also known as Roseapple, Jambu is also another home garden type fruit that you don’t find the market very often. It goes well with salt and chilli too! If you haven’t already noticed, we Sri Lankans love to put chilli on everything!!

A friend of mine with a bowl of
freshly picked jambu mixed with salt and chilli!

8) Woodapple

This hard on the outside, mushy on the inside fruit is a rare find. People often blend it and make it into a runny pudding and have it with vanilla ice cream… yum! It’s also something that’s loved by elephants!

9) Duriyan

Duriyan is one of my least favourite fruits. It’s like Marmite… either you love it, or you hate it! The skin of the fruit has a very strong stink that can be smelled from a distance! But the creamy centre is what is relished by Duriyan lovers like my dad [and my dogs!]. This has around the same seasonality as Rambutan and Mangosteen. I’m not going to guarantee that you’ll like it, but it’s something that you should definitely try.

10) Soursop and Custard Apple

Although the two above are different fruits, they come from the same Graviola [atha] family, so I have grouped them together to ensure that my list doesn’t go beyond ten like it did the last time! Famed for its cancer prevention properties, Graviolas have a soft but seedy centre. Soursop and Custard Apple taste different to each other though, so make sure you try them both!

  

Soursup Fruit

Custard Apple

That concludes my top ten. A few fruits that were close to being a part of this list were avocado, pomegranate, jack fruit, amberella, passion fruit and Sri Lankan pear.  As always, you shouldn’t limit yourself to this list… venture out and try as many different things as you possibly can!