Ice Cream Bean - Inga Edulis
Did your parents ever tell you, in the height of a hot summer, that ice cream doesn’t grow on trees? Well, that’s not strictly true! Inga Edulis, a member of the Legume family, sprouts seed pods that contain fleshy matter with a taste just like Vanilla ice cream.
This tree is native to South America, where it is grown for various reasons including its fruit, shade and timber. It has also been used in medicines for centuries, and forms the basis for an alcoholic drink called Cachiri. The fruit that gives it its name are contained in seed pods-these are long and thin and shaped like bean pods, and can grow up to 3 feet long! The seeds themselves are not generally eaten, but are surrounded by a cottony covering which tastes like ice cream.
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