Pithecellobium dulce is a tree that reaches a height of about. Its trunk is spiny and its leaves are bipinnate. Each pinna has a single pair of ovate-oblong leaflets that are about long. The flowers are greenish-white, fragrant, sessile and reach about in length, though appear shorter due to coiling. The flowers produce a pod, which turns pink when ripe and opens to expose the seed arils; a pink or white, edible pulp. The pulp contains black shiny seeds that are circular and flat. Pollen is a polyad of many pollen grains stitched together. The seed is dispersed via birds that feed on the sweet pulp. The tree is drought resistant and can survive in dry lands from sea level to an elevation of, making it suitable for cultivation as a street tree.
Vernacular names
Depending on the region of its occurrence, Pithecellobium dulce is known by different names. In its native Mexico, the tree is known as huamuche, guamuche / huamúchil/ guamúchil / cuamúchil / deriving from its Nahuatl namecuauhmochitl. In the wider region, it is also called "pinzán"', or 'guamá americano'. In Colombia it is known as "chiminango" and "payandé". It is called "seema chintakaya" in Telugu. Other names include blackbead, sweet Inga, ផ្លែអំពិលទឹក , Makham thet i.e. Foreign Tamarind, opiuma, kamunsil, damortis or kamantiris, kamachile, கொர்கலிக்காய்/ கோணக்காய்/ கோன புளியங்கா/ கொடுக்காப்புளி / கொடிக்காய் kodukkappuli or kodikkai, ದೊರ ಹುಣಸೆ/ಸೀಮೆ ಹುಣಸೆ/ಇಲಾಚಿ ಕಾಯಿ/ಇಲಾಚ್-ಹುಂಚಿ ಕಾಯಿ dora hunase or seeme hunase or ilaichi kai or ilach-hunchi kai, વિલાયતી આંબલી i.e. Foreign Tamarind - "બખાઇ આમ્બલી" i.e. "Bakhai Ambli" or Goras ambli, जलेबी i.e. Jalebi like or गंगा इमली i.e. Ganges Tamarind or विलायती इमली i.e. Foreign Tamarind or "'Singri"' i.e. "सिंगड़ी", জিলাপি i.e. Jilapi meaning Jalebi, seeme hunase, चिंच बुलाई or विलायती चिंच i.e. Foreign Tamarind" or "फिरंगी चिंच and "Achhi gidamiri". , Pune, India In Odisha, it is called Seema Kaiyan ସୀମା କଇଁଆ. In central province, it is called जंगल जलेबी. In Pakistan, it is known as 'Jungle Jalebi'. In India, it goes by the name "Madras thorn", although it is not native to Madras. The name "Manila tamarind" is also misleading, since it is neither closely related to tamarind nor native to Manila. In Kuwait, it has the same name as in India but in Arabic; "Showkat Madras". Showkat meaning "thorn" and that would mean Madras Thorn. It appears to have been introduced in Kuwait in the 60's or 70's and maybe introduced by Indians. One can still see the remains of the tree or living trees in the public parks established during the 60's up until the 1980s in Kuwait City. The tree is rarely sold in commercial nurseries but the old gardeners seem to know it.
Uses
As food
The seed pods contain a sweet and sour pulp which is eaten raw in Mexico, the Philippines, Pakistan, and India as an accompaniment to various meat dishes and used as a base for drinks with sugar and water. The seeds are said to be eaten in the 'Revised handbook to the flora of Ceylon' edited by M.D. Dassanayake. A number of studies since the 1980s have investigated the composition and possible uses of the seeds; it has been demonstrated that the seeds can be processed to extract a greenish oil, which when refined and analysed constitutes of potentially edible fatty acids. Oils amount to 10-17% of the weight of the seeds. The seeds also contain 30-37.5-67.11% protein, which researchers suggest might in the future be used as animal feed.
The bark is used as an astringent for dysentery in India, It is said to have been used as an antipyretic in India, used for eye inflammation, although an anecdote from Sri Lanka claims the bark contains a substance that causes eye infections and swelling of the eyelids. The Huastec people of northern Veracruz and San Luis Potosí in Mexico used different parts of the tree to treat gum ailments, toothache and cancer. The leaves are said to be used in a poultice with alcohol to treat bile, as well as being used to prevent abortions/miscarriage, although the leaves are also said to be used to cause abortions. The pulp from the fruits is said to be astringent and hemostatic, and used for hemoptysis. The ground seed is sometimes traditionally used to clean ulcers. Non-specified parts of the plant are said to be used extract is also used against hemorrhages, chronic diarrhea, and tuberculosis.
