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Annona muricata·Caribbean / Central America
Also known as: graviola, guanábana
Spiky green skin hides a pulpy white flesh with a flavour the Caribbean built juices around — pineapple meets strawberry meets banana cream, with a fibrous, custardy texture and a clean tartness on the finish. Hand-sized fruit will feed two; larger fruits, double that.
Soursop (Annona muricata), known as graviola or guanábana across Latin America and the Caribbean, is the largest member of the custard apple family — a hand-to-football-sized fruit covered in soft, fleshy spikes. The interior is fibrous, white, threaded with shiny black seeds.
The flavour pulls from strawberry, pineapple and banana cream, with a real backbone of acidity that lifts the whole thing into something more like a yogurt drink than a tropical fruit. Texture is the surprise — fibrous and custardy, scooped rather than sliced. The seeds aren't eaten.
Look for a fruit that gives slightly to pressure, like a soft avocado. Halve, spoon out the white flesh, discard the central core and seeds. Eat as is, blend with milk and a touch of sugar for a Caribbean-style juice, or freeze the pulp into a sorbet that beats anything from a tub.
