Rose hip

Rosa canina · Temperate fruit

40 pairings

The rose hip is the ripe, fleshy false fruit of the wild rose (chiefly Rosa canina, the dog rose), a small scarlet-to-orange pome-like berry left behind when the petals fall. Tart, faintly floral and extraordinarily rich in vitamin C, it is a foraged hedgerow staple across the temperate north — the base of Scandinavian nyponsoppa soup, of rose-hip tea, syrup and jam, and of the ubiquitous northern-European vitamin cordial.

Picking a good onedrag

UnderripeOverripe

Scarlet and firmEvenly scarlet and thick-walled enough to halve and core for drying or tea. Still sharply acid. Ends trimmed, rinsed and patted dry, it keeps about a week covered in the fridge.Buy it

ColourEven scarlet, skin taut and glossy

The squeezeFirm all round, the barest give at the thumb

Cut one openFirm orange-red wall, seeds dry and pale

Reading a just ripe one. Move the slider and the rest of this page — nutrition, pairings — re-scores with it.

Preparing