Craboo

Craboo is one of the exotic fruits from Belize - small yellow balls that are often made into wine or ice cream.

The craboo or nance is a large shrub or small tree that is well known and enjoyed in Belize. The tree produces a fruit that the local children and adults love.

Once ripe, the craboo drops to the ground. The fruit is peculiarly odorous, orange-yellow, round, 8 to 12 centimeters wide, with a thin skin and white, juicy, oily pulp varying in flavor from bland to sweet, acid, or cheese-like. Even though it has an offensive odor, the fruits are eaten with rice, in soups, in tamales and as preserves. The craboo wood has a very pleasant odor which some people use for smoking meats. Bark infusions are said to help cure diarrhea and gum disease. Belizeans use the bark infusion as an antidote for snakebite. Whatever its name, it is both prolific and popular in Belize.

Children and adults alike like to smash the fruit and mix it with evaporated milk for a desert. But one special treat made with the craboo is when it is stewed. The stew craboo may have a peculiar smell, but apart from that it is equally yummy and scrumptious. The process of making the stew craboo may be time consuming, but the end result makes a perfect snack.