What is a tamarillo?

Tamarillos are small, red-purple coloured egg shaped fruit native to the Andes of South America. The flavour is quite complex and is reminiscent of tomato, passion fruit, kiwi and guava. The outer skin is quite tough and it is usually only the inner pulp that is eaten. Tamarillos can be sweetened and eaten as a dessert, or can be eaten with savory foods. I will share with you a recipe for a tangy, bold, sweet, and flavourful tamarillo salsa .

½ cup freshly scooped tamarillo

1 fresh chilly, finely chopped

2 chopped scallions

1 teaspoon olive oil

The juice of one lime

Chopped cilantro (to taste)

Salt (to taste)

For a chunky salsa, cut the tamarillo lengthwise and scoop out the fleshy part and the seeds (compost the rest). Add to a bowl or jar and add the remaining ingredients. Mix.

For a smoother salsa: Puree the above ingredients in a blender or food processer.

This salsa will last up to three days refrigerated in a sealed container. It is amazing on toast, with tofu, salads or on anything you can imagine!