Im Ackee from Jamaica!!
Hi Ackee!
Im Ackee
Ackee is the national fruit of Jamaica and is borne in clusters on an evergreen tree. Its name is derived from the West African Akye fufo. The tree is not endemic to the West Indies but was introduced from West Africa during the 18th century. The plant was named Blighia sapida in honour of Captain William Bligh who in 1793 took samples to Kew Gardens in South London. Ackee trees are found across the island of Jamaica but the main producing areas are located in Clarendon and St Elizabeth. There are two bearing seasons: between January to March and June to August.
The fruit turns red on reaching maturity and splits open with continued exposure to the sun. Traditionally it is at this time that the ackees are harvested and the edible portion (the arilli) removed and cleaned in preparation for cooking. This delicacy is enjoyed by many at breakfast or as an entree. The canned product is exported to ethnic markets worldwide and continues to be enjoyed by both visitors to the island and Jamaicans residing overseas.
Nutritional value:
Ripe Ackee
According to CFNI’s “Food Composition Tables for the English-speaking Caribbean” (1998) the contents of a 100g serving of “Ackee, canned, drained” are as follows:
- Water (76.7 g)
- Energy (625 kJ or 151 kcal)
- Protein (2.9 g)
- Fat (15.2 g)
- Total carbohydrate (0.8 g)
- Dietary fibre (2.7 g)
- Calcium (35 mg)
- Iron (0.7 mg)
- Potassium (270 mg)
- Sodium (240 mg)
- Zinc (1 mg)
- Vitamin A – thiamin (0.03 mg)
- Riboflavin (0.07 mg)
- Niacin (1.1 mg)
- Total folacin (41 microgram)
- Vitamin C (30 mg).
How to consume?
Splited one
The fruit of the Ackee is not edible in its entirety. Only the inner, fleshy yellow aril can be consumed.
An aril is any specialized outgrowth from the funiculus that covers or is attached to the seed. It is sometimes applied to any appendage or thickening of the seed coat in flowering plants, such as the edible parts of the mangosteen and pomegranate fruit, or the mace of the nutmeg seeds are consumed. The shiny black seeds at the tips of the arils, and the bright red pod enclosing 3 or 4 arils are discarded. Ackees must be harvested, prepared and cooked properly. Ackee pods should be allowed to ripen and open naturally on the tree before picking. Prior to cooking, the ackee arils must be cleaned, washed, boiled and the water discarded: raw ackees and the inner red tissue of the ripe ackee arils contain potent alkaloid toxins Hypoglycin
Ackee is one of the most preferred choices of food in Jamaica for many reasons. Even though ackee is regarded as a fruit, Jamaicans often consider it to be a kind of meat that can be served with a staple or carbohydrate. A lot of people prepare ackee because of its taste, while many also make it a part of their meals because it grows on a tree, which means that it is costless. Majority of Jamaica’s population enjoys the taste of ackee and a meal prepared with ackee is highly regarded as cheap, yet delicious. Jamaicans prepare ackee differently and some even add their own special ingredients. Ackee can be prepared with a variety of meat kinds, some of which include sardine, corned pork, chicken back,red herring, salt mackerel and the most popular, ackee and salt fish.
Ackee Fruit Food poisoning: Unripe ackee fruit contains a chemical called hypoglycin A and B which affect the central nervous system and fatty acid oxidation. Eating the unripe fruit can cause symptoms that occur in as little as two hours but are generally 6 to 48 hours.
Jamaican vomiting sickness is an acute illness caused by the toxin hypoglycin A, which is present in unripened fruit of the ackee tree. Hypoglycin A is present in the unripe arilli at levels of over 1000 ppm, which falls to less than 0.1 ppm in the fully ripened aril. Though it may be poisonous when improperly prepared, ackee has high nutritional value and is rich in essential fatty acid. Hypoglycaemia or hypoglycemia is the medical term for a Pathology state produced by a lower than normal level of Blood glucose. The term hypoglycemia literally means “under-sweet blood” known as Jamaican vomiting sickness
Other Uses:
Fruit: In West Africa, the green fruits, which produce lather in water, are used for laundering. Crushed fruits are employed as fish poison. The seeds, because of their oil content, and the jacket because of its potash content, are burned and the ashes used in making soap.
Flowers: In Cuba an extract of the flowers is appreciated as cologne.
Bark: On the Gold Coast, a mixture of the pulverized bark and ground hot peppers is rubbed on the body as a stimulant.
Wood: The sapwood is white or light greenish-brown. The heartwood is reddish-brown, hard, coarse-grained, durable, and immune to termites. It is used locally for construction and pilings and has been recommended for railway sleepers. It is also fashioned into oars, paddles and casks.
Medicinal Uses: In Brazil, repeated small doses of an aqueous extract of the seed have been administered to expel parasites. The treatment is followed by a saline or oily purative. Cubans blend the ripe arils with sugar and cinnamon and give the mixture as a febrifuge and as a treatment for dysentery. On the Ivory Coast, the bark is mixed with pungent spices in an ointment applied to relieve pain. The crushed new foliage is applied on the forehead to relieve severe headache. The leaves, crushed with salt, are poulticed on ulcers. The leaf juice is employed as eye drops in ophthalmia and conjunctivitis. In Colombia, the leaves and bark are considered stomachic. Various preparations are made for treatment of epilepsy and yellow fever.
