Tropical Wild Edibles - The Achacha

Botanical name: Garcinia humilis

Common names: Achacha, Honey Kiss, Achachariu

Family: Clusiacea

Physical Appearance: A small, evergreen, shrub or tree growing to approximately 2-10 metres in height. Generally pyramidal in shape. Its leaves are a darker green on top and lighter on the underside. The leaves are also waxy and fairly brittle and grow in opposing pairs. Flowers are cream or white in colour, have 4 petals and grow in groups of 5. The Achacha’s fruits are small and yellow/orange in colour. Each fruit contains 1-3 seeds that look similar to an over-sized coffee bean. The white fruit flesh is has elements of sweet and sour and has been likened to the taste of lemonade.

Natural habitat: South America and the Caribbean but is now being grown commercially in Australia.

Point of interest: Achacha fruit is a good source of potassium and vitamin C. It is also a great source of folate.

Uses: The fruits are consumed raw as a tasty treat. Other uses include the making of a refreshing drink which can also incorporate the skin of the fruit. Non culinary uses include the extraction of a hard wax from the plant which is used to make traditional torches. Extracts of the Achacha are also used in makeup production.

Images courtesy of Wikipedia via;

Shou Hui Wang - Shou-Hui Wang, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons