GASTROPAEDIA

A backyard fruit (Averrboa bilimbi) found all over Southeast Asia but not yet commonly available in markets, bilimbi looks like a tiny cucumber and has a very sour and acidic taste even when ripe.

In Thailand, where it is called taling pling, it is usually eaten raw with a dip like nam pla wan (a gooey, sweet and salty concoction) or added to curries to add sourness. In other parts of this region, it is variously candied, dried, pickled or preserved in the form of jam.