I have been nurturing my Tamarillo tree all summer and my attentiveness is paying off with a nice crop of fruit ripening just outside our front door. These are a sub tropical fruit that have a huge following in New Zealand and while i find them on occasion in the supermarket in Australia they are usually really expensive. I Wikied Tamarillo and apparently their common name is tree tomato, they were renamed in NZ (in 1967) to differentiate them from the common tomato. The name is derived from the Maori word tama meaning leadership and the Spanish word amarillo meaning yellow. I know of the yellow variety but i am pretty sure the red ones are more common. They neither look or taste like a tomato so i don't know what the original concern was but Kiwi's are always keen to market a point of difference.
Being a subtropical they don't like frost, they are shallow rooted and like to be well watered and mulched. I have also found they don't tolerate the late afternoon summer sun so i have mine planted in our front yard where it gets mostly morning and early afternoon sun.
You can tell the fruit are ripe when the dark strips have mostly disappeared and the darkness has gone around the calyx. It helps to know as these can be sour little suckers, when we were kids we used to cut them in half and dip each in sugar. But if you know how to pick a ripe one you can eat them as is, just like my littlest fruit bat loves to. I also love stewing them with a bit of sugar, great for breakfast with muesli or with apple in a crumble for dessert. But best of all they make an amazing chutney that is much favored by my extended family.
18-24 tamarillo's or 1kg
3 Granny Smith Apples or 1/2 kg
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tblsp salt
2 cups raisins
2 cups vinegar
1 tlbsp mixed spice
3 cups brown sugar
Boil up some water in a pot on the stove and place Tamarillo's in for approx. a minute to scald the skin then peel them.
Peel and finely chop apples and onions
Place all ingredients in to a big pot except for 1/2 cup of vinegar
After it has been cooking for one hour add the 1/2 cup of vinegar
Cook gently for 2-3 hours, mashing gently towards the end
Pack into sterilized jars and store in a cool dark place
This chutney goes well with mature tasty cheese or hot and cold meats and i also like it with spinach pie.
