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Sapodilla fruits being sold on a street in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India. The fruit is a large berry, 4–8 cm (2–3 in) in diameter. [13] [16] An unripe fruit has a firm outer skin and when picked, releases white latex (chicle) from its stem. A fully ripened fruit has saggy skin and does not release chicle when picked.
Sapote (/ s ə ˈ p oʊ t iː,-eɪ,-ə /; [1] [2] [3] from Nahuatl: tzapotl [4]) is a term for a soft, edible fruit. [1] The word is incorporated into the common names of several unrelated fruit-bearing plants native to Mexico, Central America and northern parts of South America. [1] [5] It is also known in Caribbean English as soapapple ...
Etymologically speaking, "Sapodilla" derives from the Nahuatl word "tzapotl" which refers to any sweet fruit with a soft flesh. Hence many species of Manilkara may be colloquially called "sapote" or "sapodilla" and indeed a number of unrelated fruit trees such as Pouteria sapota .
Manilkara fruit are an important food item for various frugivores, in particular birds. The red fruit bat (Stenoderma rufum) is the primary – and possibly the only – seed disperser of M. bidentata in parts of the Caribbean. Tuckerella xiamenensis, a species of peacock mite, was described from a sapodilla tree.
The fruit's texture is creamy and soft, and the flavor is a mix of sweet potato, pumpkin, honey, prune, peach, apricot, cantaloupe, cherry, and almond. [ 11 ] [ 12 ] [ 13 ] A mamey sapote is ripe when the flesh is vibrant salmon in color when a fleck of the skin is removed. [ 14 ]
Many species produce edible fruits, or white blood-sap that is used to cleanse dirt, organically and manually, while others have other economic uses. Species noted for their edible fruits include Manilkara ( sapodilla ), Chrysophyllum cainito (star-apple or golden leaf tree), Gambeya africana and Gambeya albida (star-apple), and Pouteria ( abiu ...
The fruits are used as a fresh dessert fruit; it is sweet and often served chilled. The fruit also exists in three colors, dark purple, greenish brown and yellow. The purple fruit has a denser skin and texture while the greenish brown fruit has a thin skin and a more liquid pulp; the yellow variety is less common. [citation needed]
The fruit, like that of the related sapodilla , is edible. Though its heartwood may present in a shade of purple, Manilkara bidentata should not be confused with another tropical tree widely known as "purpleheart", Peltogyne pubescens. [10]