English Name: SourSop
Botanical Name: Annona muricata
Igbo Name: Ogbaka nti
Yoruba Name: Samsam
DESCRIPTION: A small tropical American tree of the custard apple family that has spicy odoriferous leaves that produces a large dark-green slightly acid, pulpy fruit of a small West Indian tree also called Graviola.
ORIGIN: A green tropical fruit that is the basis for several beverages popular in South America – beyond its usefulness as a food. It also contains natural compounds with medicinal properties, making it potentially beneficial for your health.
Oviedo, in 1526, describe the Soursop as abundant in the West Indies and northern South America. It is found today in Bermuda and the Bahams from there it appeared in Peru and Argentina. It was one of the first fruit trees carried from America to the Old World Tropics where it has become widely distributed from Southeastern China to Australia and the warm lowlands of Eastern and Western Africa.
NATURAL BENEFITS: The carbohydrates as its major nutrient Soursop also contains abundant Vitamin C and several Vitamin B such as thiamin, riboflavin and niacin, along with calcium, phosphorus and a small amount of iron. The leaves are used to relieve stomach distress, fever, pain and respiratory problems such as cough and asthma.
USES: The fruit is used in beverages, ice cream, juice and other sweet foods.
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