Ackee (Blighia sapida) is the fruit of a West African evergreen tree, now the national fruit of Jamaica and the heart of the island's national dish, ackee and saltfish. The edible part is not the pulp but the soft, cream-yellow aril cradling each large, shiny black seed inside a leathery red pod. Cooked, the arils are buttery, mild and faintly savoury, with a soft, scrambled-egg-like texture, yet the fruit is dangerous if eaten unripe, carrying a toxin that causes the potentially fatal Jamaican vomiting sickness.