I used to love autumn in England – foraging in the hedgerows for blackberries was fun and my grandmother used to make summer pudding from the berries…even more rewarding! When I moved to NZ I missed the hedgerows and there seemed to be nothing to forage other than Puha from the roadside ditches. Puha is a traditional Maori food – a bit like watercress but boiled; I found it hard to feel excited about Puha.
Recently I found it distressing to watch English TV programmes about foraging for free food in hedgerows and forests. Then I discovered a fruit that we can forage here; berries from the Butia palm. These palms line roads in the North Island and are regularly ignored. The palm’s colloquial name is Jelly Palm – because you can make jam from the berries! I started trying this a few years ago and the jam is gorgeous, tasting to me a bit like a cross between guava, pineapple and apricot.
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| The tree we collected our fruit from |
There are a couple of palms opposite my mother’s house and yesterday we spent 15 minutes picking up the ripe fruit from beneath the trees. Beating the birds is important! The pukekos eat them once they have dropped and waxeyes will have a go while they are on the tree. Picking them when they are large (the size of a guava) and blushed pink guarantees they are ripe. If they fall from the tree they are definitely ready!
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| Fruit ready for washing |
We picked kilos – no one else seems to know that they can be eaten and the council even clear the fruit away because it looks a mess on the grass! We are doing a civic service by picking them! Once picked making jam is easy. The beautiful smell of the fruit will fill your kitchen until you do. Here is the recipe and pictures of the finished product.
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| Ripe fruit |
Making jam is a long process and you need patience! However, it is worth it – the taste has been described as a magical cross between a pineapple and apricot with a touch of vanilla!
• Choose fruit that is the size of a large grape or larger. Wash the fruit.
• Cover the fruits with water and boil for 30 minutes.
• Cool then separate the seeds from the pulp. The pulp is fibrous and this is tedious – but it’s worth it! The riper the easier.
• Add sugar (equal sugar to weighed fruit pulp). Add extra water to the pulp. I double the water in the pan.
• Boil down until this syrup becomes jam (test for the soft set point as you would other fruit).
• Strain and put into clean jars
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| The finished product |