Mamoncillo
Melicoccus bijugatus · Tropical fruit
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Mamoncillo (Melicoccus bijugatus) — also called Spanish lime, genip, quenepa or mamón — is a small, round tropical fruit borne in dense grape-like clusters on a large tree of the soapberry family (Sapindaceae). Inside a thin, leathery green rind sits a single large seed wrapped in a translucent, salmon-to-cream pulpy aril that is sucked off rather than chewed.
Picking a good onedrag
Just clipped, taut green, heavyBlackened, shrunken, fermenting
Shop freshEveryday bestEaten out of hand, or strained into a cold drink. It will not ripen after picking, so a sour bunch stays sour; the seeds are a roasted snack at home, never chewed raw.
RindGreen dulling, a few tan freckles
Weight in the handFirm and heavy, no give at all
Cluster stalksStalks browning, fruit still held on
Open one at the stallLittle smell — the leathery rind hides it