At the Sri Lankan place (refer to the previous blog) my eyes skipped straight past more conventional offerings such as roti, dosa and appa. I didn't even notice the biriyani or samosa. No siree. There was a brief pause to smirk at Curry Buns before my attention zeroed in on Lump Rice.
Lump Rice?! Who'd want to eat something with a name like that? Well, me, of course (and millions of pregnant Sri Lankans).
So you're hardly going to be surprised to read about what I bought at the adjoining Indian supermarket before we headed to lunch. A tin of this stuff:
Why?
A good question; one that I've asked myself. I think it was the fruit's fungal appearance - there's something appealingly puffbally/truffly about it. Although why I'd be drawn to a fruit that looks like a fungus is anyone's guess. But primal instinct took over and, before I knew it, I was the perplexed owner of a can of wood apple cream. What ever the hell that was.
Over lunch, my friends Lindsay and Freeman, and I contemplated the mysteries of my purchase. And that's when I noticed the fruit was a product of Sri Lanka. I headed back to the Sri Lankan outlet, where the friendly lump rice man was more than happy to tell us all about wood apples. He said to serve it topped with coconut cream and some toddy sugar (like palm sugar).
So this evening I experimented on the family and served them wood apple surprise for pudding. Well, it wasn't really a surprise because I kindly told them about it beforehand and sampled it first to make sure it wasn't disgusting.
I, however, got a bit of a surprise when I opened the can because I thought I was going to see a preserved version of the fungusy fruits depicted on the label. Instead I was greeted with a dark brown poohy looking sludge that smelled vaguely vomity (in the same way a ripe paw paw can).
Oh, yum.
I tasted a bit and it was okay - very soupy, very sweet, ever so slightly gritty, and vaguely medicinal. Topped with coconut cream and grated palm sugar it was okay - certainly edible - but too sweet for my taste.
The kids were happy to try some (I made sure they only saw it after I smothered it in coconut cream). Kieran, the adventurous eater, thought it was okay: "I can't decide whether I really love it, or don't like it". To my surprise, fussy Rory said he was happy to try it, pronouncing it "okay". But I don't think he'll be back for seconds.
Hubby Don, a plain fooder if ever there was one, pretended he didn't hear my offer of an exotic Sri Lankan pudding and his bowl is still sitting unused on the bench.
Interested to know more about wood apples, I headed for Google. Apparently it's native to India, but also grows profusely in Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Cambodia. It's also know as elephant apple or monkey fruit.
It is high in vitamin A, vitamin B and has small amounts of vitamin C. The taste is astringent but sweet, and the pulp and juice are often mixed with other sweeteners to make juices.
And here's the bit that has me slightly worried: when unripe, the fruit contains high levels of tannins, which are useful for treating indigestion and avoiding constipation. Let's hope life later this evening does not imitate the tin's contents. Wish me luck!
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