Corfu is famous for olive oil, kumquat and traditional dishes, but the island also has a fascinating world of old-fashioned fruits that many visitors never notice. Some still grow in village gardens, beside country roads or in small family orchards, while others have almost disappeared from local markets. As someone who grew up in Corfu, several of these fruits immediately remind me of older gardens, grandparents and the days when people simply picked whatever was ripe from the tree. Here are 12 Corfu fruits you may never have tried.
8Koumara – Strawberry Tree Fruit
The strawberry tree, Arbutus unedo, grows naturally in Corfu’s countryside and produces one of the island’s strangest-looking fruits.
Koumara are round, reddish-orange fruits with a rough surface covered in tiny bumps.
When fully ripe they become soft and sweet, with a slightly grainy texture and a distinctive sweet-tart flavour. If you eat them too early, they can be disappointing, so look for fruit that has developed a deep orange-red or red colour.
Health benefits: Koumara contain vitamin C, fibre and antioxidant plant compounds. As part of a varied diet, these nutrients contribute to normal immune function and help protect cells from oxidative stress.
They can be eaten fresh, but koumara are also traditionally used for homemade jams and liqueurs. Very ripe fruit can begin fermenting naturally, which is one reason you should not eat large quantities of overripe koumara at once.
A homemade koumara liqueur is another traditional way to use the fruit, although of course once alcohol is added it should be enjoyed as a drink rather than treated as a health food.
When to look for them: Autumn.
