Carissa and Karanda
karonda (Hindi), khan (Burmese), nam phrom, nam daeng (Thai), kerenda (Malay), kerenda (Indonesian), caramba (Philippines), mtanda mboo (Swahili)
(Carissa sp. — Family Apocynaceae)
Carissa and Karanda are two closely related fruits.
Carissa is indigenous to South Africa and Karanda to South Asia. Carissa is a botanical and a common name which refers to the genus of thorny, fruiting shrubs to which both belong. The more popular of the two is Carissa macrocarpa, also known as the Natal plum.
In many places, the tree is valued mainly as a thorny hedge and for its fragrant white flowers than for its fruits. The fruits look like scarlet plums with dark red streaks on the skin. The flesh is red and flecked with white containing about a dozen thin, brown seeds. The whole fruit can be eaten without peeling, seeds and all. The texture is slightly granular and the flavour mildly sharp. The semiripe stage makes good jellies and jams, with the ripe fruit also being used in pies.
Karanda, C. congesta, is cultivated in India, where it was popular with the British residents as it reminded them of the gooseberry. It is also found in some parts of Southeast Asia and East Africa.
The fruit resembles the carissa and is used in a similar manner.
