White Sapote

Name: White sapote (Casimiroa edulis), also called zapote blanco or Mexican apple. It is a member of the citrus family and unrelated to the true sapote family, and common varieties include Suebelle and Pike.

Description

White sapote is native to the highlands of central Mexico and Central America, where it has been eaten for centuries. Its Nahuatl name is often translated as “sleep sapote,” and the fruit is traditionally said to cause drowsiness. It was introduced into the United States around 1810, and is grown on a small scale in California, Australia, New Zealand, the Mediterranean and parts of Asia.

The tree is a large, spreading evergreen, and bears round, pale green to yellow fruits with a thin skin and creamy, custard-like, white to pale yellow flesh. The flavour is sweet and rich, often described as a mix of banana, peach, vanilla and pear. The fruit is fragile, ripening quickly and bruising easily, so it is rarely found in shops and mostly eaten from home gardens.

Main nutrition value

White sapote provides carbohydrate, fibre, vitamin C and potassium, with a very soft, sweet flesh.

How best to be consumed

White sapote is best eaten very ripe and soft, scooped from the skin.

1. Wait until the fruit is soft and yields gently, then halve and scoop out the flesh.
2. Discard the large seeds, which are not edible.
3. Blend into smoothies, ice cream and desserts.
4. Eat soon after ripening, since it spoils fast.
5. Eat modest portions, since the flesh is sweet and rich.

Overconsumption could cause…

White sapote flesh is safe in ordinary amounts, while the seeds are not.

1. Poisoning from the seed kernels, which contain toxic alkaloids, so seeds must never be eaten.
2. Drowsiness or lowered blood pressure in some people, as traditionally reported, so take care if on blood-pressure medicines.
3. High sugar intake if a lot is eaten at once.
4. Digestive upset from over-ripe or fermenting fruit.

GroupsTropical FruitsMexican and Latin AmericanFresh

Related foodsBlack SapoteCanistel / EggfruitCherimoyaMamey SapoteAcerola CherryAvocado

Wikipedia — Casimiroa edulis, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casimiroa_edulis