Lucuma

Lucuma is an evergreen tree up to 15 metres tall, native to Andean valleys. Its green fruit are round to heart-shaped and about the size of a large orange, with dry, starchy, bright yellow-orange flesh that tastes like a blend of maple, sweet potato and caramel. Each fruit holds one to five large, oblong, glossy dark brown seeds, up to 5 centimetres long, with a broad pale scar on one side. The seed is hard and bitter and not used for food. The flesh is sold as a freeze-dried or air-dried powder, and the fresh fruit is sold in Andean markets, mainly in Peru, Chile and Ecuador.

Lucuma originates in the inter-Andean valleys of Peru, Ecuador and Chile, and it was cultivated by pre-Columbian peoples. The name lúcuma derives from the Quechua word rukma. The tree grows best at altitudes between about 1,500 and 3,000 metres, in mild frost-free climates, and it has been introduced to places such as California, Hawaii, Mexico and New Zealand on a small scale. The species name lucuma is a Latinised form of the Quechua word. Archaeological finds suggest people in the Andes ate and traded the fruit long before the Inca, and wild and semi-wild trees still occur in mountain valleys where it is a traditional garden fruit.

Evidence of lucuma use in the Andes dates back thousands of years. Moche and Chimú potters on the coast of Peru shaped ceramic vessels in the form of lucuma fruit, and remains of the fruit have been found at archaeological sites, suggesting it was a valued part of pre-Inca diets and was perhaps considered a symbol of fertility and abundance. The Incas are said to have prized the fruit, and the nickname gold of the Incas is widely used in marketing.

After the Spanish conquest, lucuma continued to be grown in Andean kitchen gardens, and Spanish chroniclers recorded it as one of the local fruits. In modern Peru it is the most popular ice cream flavour, with lucuma ice cream sold in shops across the country and used in milkshakes, pastries and the dessert called lucuma mousse. Chile uses it in desserts and cakes.

In the twenty-first century, lucuma powder became an export product marketed as a low-glycaemic natural sweetener, bringing the fruit into health food stores worldwide. Because the fruit is highly perishable and starchy, drying and milling became the standard way to preserve it. The seed remains an unused by-product.

The fruit flesh is eaten fresh, blended into ice cream, milkshakes, cakes, puddings, yogurt, smoothies and baking, or used as a flavouring in porridge and desserts. Powdered lucuma is added in tablespoons to smoothies, oatmeal, baked goods and raw desserts as a sweetener with a maple-like flavour. The seeds are not eaten and are discarded, although they are sometimes kept for planting or crafts and polished as ornaments. Wood from the tree is used locally for construction and fuel. It also flavours traditional Peruvian sweets and is stirred into yogurt or oats.

Lucuma flesh provides carbohydrate, some fibre, beta-carotene and small amounts of niacin, iron and potassium. Lucuma powder is promoted as a low-glycaemic sweetener, but it is still a source of sugars and starches, and published human data on glycaemic effects are limited. Claims about anti-ageing or immunity are not supported by robust studies. It is best viewed as a flavourful ingredient and not a health product. Nothing is known to support medical use of the seed.