African wild custard apple

What it is

The fruit of Annona senegalensis is roughly egg-shaped, about 2.5–5 cm (1–2 in) long and 2.5–4 cm (1–1.6 in) across. Its surface is divided into bumps: the fruit develops from many seed-bearing parts of a flower joined together.

Inside, white flesh surrounds numerous orange-brown seeds. The sweet pulp is the edible part, and the orange-yellow ripe fruit has a pineapple-like scent.

Where it comes from

This is an African fruit, native to countries from Senegal and Côte d’Ivoire to Tanzania and South Africa. It has also been introduced to India. In Tanzania, it grows in coastal lowland savannah, the Usambara mountains and the Lake Victoria basin.

Its scientific name keeps a connection to West Africa: senegalensis means ‘of Senegal’, where the specimen used to name the species was collected.

How it's eaten where it grows

In central and northern Côte d’Ivoire, the ripe wild fruit is eaten fresh, picked from wild trees during its short season. In the part of Côte d’Ivoire where it grows, it's the second most eaten fruit.

The pulp also makes a juice: with the peel and seeds removed, the flesh is pureed with twice its volume of water and strained through muslin.

How it's grown

The shrub or small tree usually reaches 2–6 m (7–20 ft). It grows beside rivers, on land left fallow and beneath the taller trees of savannah woodland. In Tanzania, new plants come from seed or from wild seedlings moved to a growing site.

Young plants need light shade and protection from fire, grazing animals and competing weeds. Beetles carry pollen between the flowers; incomplete pollination helps explain why some fruits grow unevenly.

When and where you'll find it

Fresh fruit is gathered from wild trees and eaten during the harvest season. Around Yamoussoukro and Bouaké in Côte d’Ivoire, ripe fruit was harvested from March to June in 2023. The ripe fruit spoils quickly, so it keeps only when chilled or turned into juice.