Carissa Cider In Thailand

Carissa Cider?! I have never heard of Carissa Cider before. Seeing this foreign-sounding berry-lookalike fruit in Bangkok, had my interest piqued.

I found these Carissa Cider boxes at Big C; not even at one of those premium supermarkets. A quick search indicated that it is also known as Carissa Carandas, natal plum, etc, and “Carissa is cultivated for its plum-like fruits. The berries are used mainly for processed products such as jellies, preserves, or syrup, but they are also eaten fresh. They taste like a slightly sweet cranberry.”

Sounds interesting, and it only costs 39 baht (approx RM 4.50) for something described as taste like a slightly sweet cranberry. So, I bought one to try.

This Thai website here says to eat like fruits generally. Google translate says, “eat 7-8 a day after meals, will receive the highest vitamin. Very sour at maturity but it is sourish sweet when fully ripe. It can be eaten raw or stewed with sugar. In Thailand it is mainly used as pickles, however, it can also be made into jam, jellies and puddings. Furthermore, the fruit is also used to make beverages, curries and tarts.’

Jared Rydelek, weird fruit explorer in Thailand captured it here.

Not ripe yet

I didn’t get much taste out of it, probably because it is not fully ripe yet. To me, once is enough.

If you’re interested to find out more, read more about Carrisa Cider here.