Spring has, of course, sprung which means all the farms and gardens around the village are abundant with new, fresh and usually unknown to me fruits.
When The Turk arrived he planted trees around the garden but they are still very young and so far only our nectarine (which is a sad looking young sapling) has borne fruit.
I have however been thieving fruit from the neighbour’s trees to taste and to introduce to you today.
The first fruit that I have never seen (or tasted) before is called as Yeni Dünya (New World) but you may know the fruit as a loquat. There are so many trees groaning under the weight of these little beauties that I am clearly doing their owners a favour when I steal them. I am told that you should never buy them from the market and if you cannot eat them straight from the tree don’t bother as you are wasting your time. They do not keep well, even in the refrigerator, and can bruise very easily. They are succulent, tangy and sweet. Delicious.
Another seasonal fruit in Mersin at the moment is an Erik, a super crunchy little fruit that you need to eat it now – before it ripens. They are quite tart or sour in taste but they are very moreish. The Turk has them with salt which I believe can soften the taste a little. Can anyone tell me if eating unripened fruit is problematic to the digestive system? I remember from science class (all those millennia ago) that unripened fruit is very acidic but honestly I just cannot stop eating them. As they ripen the Erik fruit loses its zing.
There are so many fruits currently burdening the trees and gardens around the village (mulberries, apricots, nectarines) that I now take a basket with me when I go on pilfering so that I can pick at the branches as I go by – and I am not the only one who does it as I helped an elderly lady fill a plastic bag with Kayisi (unripened apricots) this morning. When she had had her fill she patted my face and said “sus” which basically means keep quiet or hush. We are now partners in crime.
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