Rambutan

Appearance

It is an evergreen tree growing to a height of 12–20 m. The leaves are alternate, 10–30 cm long, pinnate, with three to 11 leaflets, each leaflet 5–15 cm wide and 3–10 cm broad, with an entire margin. The flowers are small, 2.5–5 mm, apetalous, discoidal, and borne in erect terminal panicles 15–30 cm wide.

Rambutan trees can be male, female, or hermaphroditic.

The fruit is a round to oval single-seeded berry, 3–6 cm long and 3–4 cm broad, borne in a loose pendant cluster of 10–20 together. The leathery skin is reddish, and covered with fleshy pliable spines, hence the name, which means 'hairs'. The fruit flesh, which is actually the aril, is translucent, whitish or very pale pink, with a sweet, mildly acidic flavor very reminiscent of grapes.

The single seed is glossy brown, 1–1.3 cm, with a white basal scar. Soft and crunchy, the seeds may be cooked and eaten. Some folklore regards the seeds as poisonous, but tests of seed extracts reveal no toxicity to mice, even in doses up to 2500 mg/kg. The peeled fruits can be cooked and eaten, first the grape-like aril, then the nutty seed, with no waste.

Naming

The name 'rambutan' is derived from the Malay language word for "rambut" or "hair", a reference to the numerous hairy protuberances of the fruit, together with the noun-building suffix "-an". In Vietnam, it is called "chôm chôm" due to the spines covering the fruit's skin.

Distribution

Rambutan is native to tropical Southeast Asia and commonly grown throughout Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines. It has spread from there to various parts of Asia, Africa, Oceania and Central America.

Although its precise natural distribution is unknown, it is thought to have originated on the Malay peninsula. The earliest historical record of rambutan trees show that they were cultivated by the Malayan jungle tribes around their temporary settlements, a practice followed to date. The widest variety of cultivars, wild and cultivated, are still found in Malaysia.