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Jambu!! My wife and I are obsessed with this stuff, hah. We went to north Brazil (near Fortaleza) to spend time with her family. Her stepdad kept trying to find
by kaycebasques 4y ago
Jambu!! My wife and I are obsessed with this stuff, hah. We went to north Brazil (near Fortaleza) to spend time with her family. Her stepdad kept trying to find cachaça (pronounced "cashasa") infused jambu for me to try. No luck. Even in Brazil jambu is not that well known and is hard to find. It's easier to get in the north (closer to where it grows supposedly). We've been doing a running poll where we ask all her Brazilian friends, family, etc if they've tried jambu and most have never heard of it. Back to our time in north Brazil: eventually we're at a wonderful gourmet restaurant and we ask if they have any jambu and the waiter goes to the kitchen and comes back with the chef. Not only did they have a quality cachaça with jambu for us to try but the chef also prepared a jambu flower with some kind of oil. My whole mouth got numb. Also if you find yourself quite drunk the first time you try cachaça with jambu (like I was) take care to only have a little sip because a big one could make you throw up. Side note Brazilians call the "pins and needles" sensation of having a leg fall asleep "formigando" which comes from their word for ants ("formiga"). In other words instead of "pins and needles" they think of it as ants crawling on your leg. Anywho jambu is definitely an experience and Brazil is a very cool place. Also you can gain brownie points with Brasilians by spelling Brasil with an "s" ;D
- marcodiego 4y agoI'm from Fortaleza and never heard about Jambu before. I actually thought it was Jambo misspelled. Everything you said about Brazil seems true to me. And for anyone thinking about visiting us: people from here a very receptive, especially with curious and respectful tourists.
- muaytimbo 4y agoProbably more widely available in Manaus than Fortaleza.
- marcosdumay 4y agoWell, Fortaleza is on the North-East, not North. As you said, you will only find jambu on the North. I have no idea why people don't ship it around.
- eliseumds 4y agoI did a road trip from the extreme south to São Paulo (1500km+) last month and found jambu-infused cachaça in the four different states I've been to. Def a recent thing though. I even saw jambu risotto and pastel (stuffed fried crust pie).
- soneca 4y agoSo a recent thing indeed. Living in São Paulo I never heard of jambu (I also do not drink alcohol, and apparently it is more interesting to consume with alcohol, so it might explain).
- jeanlucas 4y agoSão Paulo resident here as well... You may find it in several restaurants around Paulista avenue.
- eliseumds 4y agoI've had jambu in São Paulo many times, although I admit that I visit the city multiple times a year just to eat. It's easy to find tacacá, pirarucu, chicken/duck with tucupi and so on.
- soneca 4y agoI would imagine so. There is a lot of good things in SP, probably never heard of a lot of them.
- pvorb 4y agoFirst time I've heard of pastel outside of my mother's family. I thought it's a very local thing. My mother is from Santa Catarina, but I grew up in south west Germany.
- jalbertoni 4y agoIt's a very local thing in the sense that outside Brazil it isn't well known. But nearly everyone in the country will have eaten one, it's quite popular. Hell, I like them so much, my wife gets me birthday pastels instead of birthday cake.
- O__________O 4y agoJambu (Acmella oleracea) is native to southeast Brazil: https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:914778-1 https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:9... Also known as: Electric Daisy, Paracress, Eyeball Plant, Toothache Plant, Jambu, Brazilian Cress, Sichuan Buttons, Buzz Buttons, Tingflowers, Novacaine Plant, Phak Khraat Hua Van, Brede Mafane, Agrião Do Para, Peek-a-boo, Spilanthes acmella https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acmella_oleracea https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acmella_oleracea
- billfruit 4y agoIs it same/similar to Java Apple/Water Apple
- O__________O 4y agoNo, they are not from the same plant. The plant that’s the topic of the story is a flowering herb. The plant you are asking about is called Syzygium samarangense and what you’re describing are the fruits of trees. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syzygium_samarangense https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syzygium_samarangense
- earth_walker 4y ago"Jambu Air" (in Bahasa Malayu) is a juicy, sweet/sour fruit from South-east Asia. The Brazilian "Jambu" that the article describes is not the same thing - it's an astringent herb from the Amazon.
- jlg23 4y agoNo problems finding it in Belem 6 years ago. +1 on the "a little sip" - but I think that's true for any alcoholic beverage one drinks for yet another effect than the ones induced by alcohol (e.g. Absinthe).
- alecst 4y agoLove that tidbit about formiga. Same in Italian: formica (ant) and formicolare (“to ant” or “to tingle”).
- kaycebasques 4y agoYet another tidbit: your use of "tidbit" here is very appropriate given its etymology and the fact that we're talking about food! https://www.etymonline.com/word/tidbit https://www.etymonline.com/word/tidbit
- thedailymail 4y agoEnglish has "formiculation" as well, but it usually refers to the "bugs under the skin" feeling that comes from opioid withdrawal.
- jamal-kumar 4y agoOh hell, cachaça in general is such a strong liquor. I remember when I was in Brasil last I went to a restaurant where they had a bottle sitting in the front with little cups just to pour yourself a shot if you wanted one, almost like where you'd find free mints and toothpicks in many other countries. It took me by surprise that they'd have such a strong liquor sitting in the front of a place to drink for free after lunch like that, but when in Brasil... Would love to try some with jambu in it. Reminds me a little bit of salmiakki koskenkorva out of Finland [1], which is salty licorice vodka, salted with ammonium chloride, not NaCl, which definitely has a bit of a weird effect on your mouth. Amazing cuisine in that country and the people are incredibly nice and friendly. Would love to return some day again. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salmiakki_Koskenkorva https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salmiakki_Koskenkorva
- happyopossum 4y ago> Oh hell, cachaça in general is such a strong liquor In my experience it runs from ~80 to <120 proof (and most commonly ~80), which is in the same range as rum and bourbon, unless you're in a state/country with some crazy restrictions I guess? Everclear and Bacardi 151 are waaaay stronger than any cachaca I've ever seen.
- jamal-kumar 4y agoIt just has a kick to it that other sugarcane liquor doesn't seem to have as much, like it's got some extra flavor to it which I wouldn't describe as sweet like I would rum or guaro for instance. Maybe it's just the stuff I tried though.
- Zababa 4y ago> In other words instead of "pins and needles" they think of it as ants crawling on your leg. It's the same thing in French, we say "J'ai des fourmis dans les jambes" ("I have ants in my legs").
- Kaze404 4y agoNot sure if you’re still taking responses to that poll, but I’ve personally tried jambu in uh… other contexts. It’s great :)