Kummel fruit

What it is

Kummel, or red milkwood, is Mimusops kummel, a tree in the Sapotaceae family. Each fruit grows up to about 2 cm (¾ in) and has a pointed tip. The edible pulp surrounds one reddish-brown seed. Before the fruit forms, the branches carry fragrant, cream-white flowers shaped like small, flat stars.

Where it comes from

The tree’s range stretches across tropical Africa, from Côte d’Ivoire east to Ethiopia and Eritrea, then south to Tanzania and Malawi. It grows beside rivers as well as in dry evergreen forest and wooded grassland. In Ethiopia, its habitats include both drier mountain forests and humid highland forests.

How it's eaten where it grows

In Tanzania, the ripe pulp is eaten raw as a sweet snack. Ripe fruit is also dried in the sun and pounded; the powder goes into juice or a local alcoholic brew. Dried fruit keeps for several months.

In Ethiopia, people of all ages gather and eat the ripe fruit. Unripe kummel isn’t eaten: it is buried in the soil until it ripens and turns red.

How it's grown

Kummel is an evergreen tree that can reach 30 m (98 ft), with a leafy, oval crown and deeply grooved grey bark. New trees grow from seed or from naturally sprouted seedlings moved into place. Fresh seed germinates best, and established trees tolerate pruning, including cutting back the upper branches.

When and where you'll find it

In Tanzania, ripe kummel usually arrives from October through December. In Ethiopia, fruit is usually available from October through March, and fresh fruit reaches local markets there. Dried, the fruit keeps for several months.