In most area, it is grown as a backyard tree or as part of a subsistence farming system as appropriate elevations.
Universally regarded as a premium fruit, the cherimoya has been called the ‘pearl of the Andes’ and the ‘queen of subtropical fruits’.
Compared with other fruits the cherimoya will ripen rapidly. At room temperature, a cherimoya will ripen in 6-7 days.
Cherimoya is most often consumed as a desert fruit eaten out of the hand, or scooped with a spoon. It can be served in fruit salads, sorbets, custard and pies. The fruit can also be cooked to make jam, jelly, or compote or to make juice.
Once cut, this fruit tends to oxidase quickly, and is therefore frequently sprinkled with orange juice to prevent discoloration.
The fruit is high in calories and fiber. Cherimoya is a fair to good source of niacin and vitamin C.
Outside the New World a scattering of cherimoya trees can be found in South Africa, South Asia, Australasia and around the Mediterranean. However, only in Spain and Portugal is there sizeable production.
The cherimoya Fruit
