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What are Tamarillos?
Tamarillos are red, egg-shaped sub-tropical fruits in the nightshade family that grows on trees known as tree tomatoes in warm climates. It’s originally from South America and was first cultivated in Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, and Argentina. The skin is bitter, the flesh is mild in taste, and the pulp is juicy, sweet and tart. Tamarillos can be eaten fresh or cooked. The peel is usually avoided.
The fruit contains tiny, tender, edible seeds (like a tomato). Tamarillos are used in chutney, mixed into sauces, made into a dessert topping, pressed into juices, baked, and pickled. Cooked Tamarillos are used in a variety of ways. It is popular with poultry and fish.
Nutrition
Tamarillos is high in sodium, potassium, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B6, and vitamin E.
How to eat Tamarillos raw
The most common way to eat a tamarillo is to cut it in half. Cutting the tamarillo makes it easy to get to the flesh behind the bitter skin. It is best to scoop the pulp out first with a spoon. The pulp of a tamarillo is the juiciest part of the fruit and is similar to the pulp inside tomatoes. The seeds are also edible and very similar to tomato seeds. Scrape the remaining flesh from the skin. Scooping the flesh out is more efficient than trying to remove the skin. Eat raw Tamarillos with a dash of sugar, sorbets, ice cream, and salads.
How to Use Tamarillos in Cooking
The easiest way to peel tamarillos for cooking
Place a pot of water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Put the tamarillos into boiling water for 30 to 60 seconds. Strain the hot water and rinse them in cold water. Cut off the stem end. Pinch, pull or peel away the skin. The skin should come off easily. Cut the tamarillo into slices or into whatever shape a recipe calls for. Pass the pulp through a strainer to remove the seeds.
Tamarillo sauce
- 1 large onion
- 5 to 6 peeled tamarillos
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 a cup red wine or water
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Heat Olive oil in a pan. Add one large sliced red onion and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the tamarillos, brown sugar, red wine/water and salt. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook until the fruit is completely softened. Taste the sauce and add more sugar or salt if needed.
Tamarillo Salsa
Tamarillo salsa goes well with meat, chicken and fish. It is delicious on a burger.
- 4 tamarillos
- 1 large onion
- 1 tbsp of brown sugar
- A sprinkle of freshly chopped herbs to taste
Scoop out the flesh of the tamarillo with a spoon. Chop the tamarillos and onion finely. Add the brown sugar and mix well.
Tamarillo Mango Salsa
- 1 cup diced tamarillos
- 1 cup diced Mangos
- 1/4 cup finely diced onion
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- Sprinkle of freshly chopped herbs such as lemon-thyme or cilantro to taste
Scoop out the flesh of the tamarillos with a spoon. Dice the fruit into small bite-size pieces. Wash, peel and pit the mango. Cut into similar size pieces as the tamarillo. Blend the fruit and onion in a bowl, add lemon juice and sprinkle with your choice of herbs.
Tamarillo Jam
Tamarillo jam is delicious and filled with nutrients. The natural citric acids in the fruit act as preservatives and the jam can be stored in sterilized glass jars for a long time.
- 2.5kg Tamarillos
- 2kg sugar
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons butter
- juice of one lemon
- sterilized glass bottles for storage
Scoop the flesh of the tamarillos with a spoon. Place it in a pot with lemon juice and water. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer until the fruit is soft. Lower the heat and add the sugar. Stir the mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Add the butter and stir until it melts.
Now you can increase the heat. Keep stirring to prevent the jam from burning, and cook for about 30 minutes. Check the consistency of the jam and stop cooking when you are happy with the thickness.
Tamarillo Chutney
- Approximately 12 tamarillos
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 long red chilly, seeds removed and finely chopped.
- 1.5 cups castor sugar
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 3/4 cup raizens
- 1 teaspoon all spice
- 1/2 a teaspoon cinnamon
Peel the tamarillos, chop them up and place them in a bowl. Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic and chilli. Cook for 3 minutes till the onions are soft. Stir often. Add Tamarillo, sugar, vinegar, raisins, allspice and cinnamon. Stir until well combined, and sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until thickened. Remove from the heat and scoop the chutney into large hot, sterilised jars.
Tamarillo Leather
Fruit leathers (in this case, tamarillo fruit leathers) are a fantastic way to prolong your favourite fruits’ life by preserving them before they go to waste.
- 10 tamarillos
- 1 Banana
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 60ml water
Remove the skin of the tamarillos, cut it into pieces and place into a pan. Add water and honey and let the mixture simmer while stirring. Simmer and stir until the pulp breaks down into a thick sauce (with lots of seeds). This will only take about 30 minutes. Strain the mixture through a strainer to catch the seeds. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor, add the banana and blend until smooth with the consistency of a thick milkshake.
Pour the mixture carefully into the centre of a drying sheet or wax paper until there is enough to spread. Spread the mixture to the edges of the drying sheet, about 5mm thick. The last step is drying it in a dehydrated or oven. The drying time in a dehydrator is about 12 hours. To dry it in an oven, set it at 55 to 60 degrees Celsius. Check it every few hours until the fruit leathers become tacky but not sticky. Let the fruit leathers cool off, and there, ready to eat!
