VideoNEW
Podcasts
Blogs
Watch VideoGlossary
Custard apple
Also known as cherimoyas, custard apples originated in South America and are now grown across South East Asia, Africa and Australia. In their natural habitat, custard apple trees grow to a large size and are often found on the edge of the rainforest.
During Series 5 of Food Lovers' Guide to Australia, Maeve O'Meara spoke to Phil and Patti Stacey who have been growing custard apples since 1980:
Every winter there’s a rush for the beautiful pale green nubbly fruit that grows in Australia’s temperate zone. The soft white flesh of this tropical fruit - the sweetest fruit in the world - is best eaten fresh with a spoon or in segments, removing the hard, shiny black pips.
Phil and Patti Stacey have been growing custard apples since 1980, after discovering this new niche market.
The Staceys’s farm covers over 400 mature trees. They also have 300 new trees in their orchard in Alstonville.
They grow two varieties – the better-known African Pride (slightly firmer and better for use in cooking) and another superbly soft kind called Pinks Mammoth, which is so luscious it’s best to break it apart rather than attempt to slice it.
In Sydney’s Cabramatta, custard apple season means delicious fresh fruit shakes. The creamy white flesh is scooped into a blender with sugar syrup, ice and water to make a frothy drink that tastes wonderfully tropical.
For custard apples:
Phil and Patti Stacey
145 Victoria Park Rd
Alstonville NSW 2477
Tel: 02 6295333
Email: mpcstacey@bigpond.com
Website: www.custardapple.com.au
For Vietnamese fruit drinks:
Que Huong
8/ 105-107 John Street
Cabramatta NSW 2166
Custard apple recipes:
Featured Food & Recipes
Hot Tips
Making a cartouche
A cartouche is a circle of baking paper placed on top of a dish to prevent it forming a skin or drying out. To make a cartouche take a square of baking paper slightly larger than your pan, fold in half and in half again, keep folding the same way so that one corner remains the centre point of the paper. When you have folded it over a few times cut off the edge to form a circle.
Glossary
Praline
A sweet made of almonds and sugar invented for the French Comte du Plessis-Praslin by his cook in the 1600s.
