The elephant apple is a tropical fruit native to Southeast Asia, eaten in both ripe and unripe stages and used in chutneys and pickled dishes. The tree can grow up to 7.5 meters tall and has tough, scaly bark. The fruit has an acquired taste and is enclosed in a tough husk. The tree’s wood is valued for construction and its gum is used in watercolors, inks, and paints. The fruit is best purchased still in its outer skin and should be deep brown when opened.
The elephant apple, or wood apple, is a tropical acidic fruit native to Southeast Asia. The fruit is eaten in both ripe and unripe stages, and is common in chutneys and other pickled dishes. The fruit comes into season in the autumn months, depending on the region, with maturity in October and November in Malaysia and a longer harvest period, from October to March, in India. The wood apple has an acquired taste: in addition to being very floury, it has an odor that some consumers find offensive.
The elephant apple tree grows up to 7.5 meters tall, in tropical and subtropical regions, and can also be found at relatively high elevations. It is a dense tree that prefers full sun or very light shade and has dark green, toothed, leathery leaves. The tree has a core of a few branches that reach out and long hanging branches that return to the earth. The bark is scaly and sharp. The tree’s flowers are white to pale red in color and have a distinctive odor that many find very pleasant.
The fruit of the tree is enclosed in a tough husk, which must be cracked to get the fruit. This can be accomplished by throwing the fruit onto a hard surface or using a hammer to open the peel. The elephant apple itself is brown and mealy, with astringent and resinous notes. It also has a strong smell, along with numerous small seeds.
While the fruit was originally thought of as a food source for the poor, in recent years more mechanized harvesting techniques have made it popular in Southeast Asia. Serrated and misshapen fruits are still relatively unknown in the United States, like many Asian fruits. Elephant apple wood is very hard and valued for construction applications where strong wood is needed. During the rainy season, the tree exudes a gum that is used in some parts of the world to replace gum arabic and appears in watercolors, inks, paints, and other applications where gum arabic might normally be used. Products from the tree are also used in some traditional Indian medicines, and the plant is said to be soothing to digestion.
If you come across elephant apples available for purchase, look for the fruit still in its outer skin. Gently shake it to see if the fruit has been peeled off the sides of the skin, which will indicate that the fruit is ripe. When you open the fruit, the flesh should be deep brown. The elephant apple is also available canned, although it is often not fully ripe in that case.
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