If we tossed out names like Lulo, Mamoncillo, or Guanábana with no context, you might picture a troupe of zany, colorful, song-belting characters from the latest cartoon adventure: bright, bouncy, and ready to sing their way through the jungle.
Plot twist—they’re not characters at all, but fruits! Juicy, tangy, tropical “characters” that paint a delicious picture of Colombian culture. They’re part of daily life, woven into childhood memories, street markets, and traditional drinks. Each fruit carries its own story, and with names as vibrant as their flavors, we wanted to take you on a little journey through just a sampling of Colombia’s most beloved fruits—where they grow, what they taste like, and why they’ve been winning hearts (and taste buds) for generations.
Thanks to its equatorial location, year-round sunshine, generous rainfall, and dramatic range of landscapes—from snow-capped Andes to swamps, coastlines, Amazonian rainforest, dry forests, savannas, coral reefs, and wetlands—Colombia is a paradise for plant life. The country’s unique geography allows for year-round cultivation and an astonishing variety of crops. It’s the second most biodiverse country in the world (just behind Brazil), home to more than 22,850 species of flowering plants and two of the planet’s 36 global “hotspots” for endemic species. No wonder Colombian markets overflow with treasures.
A Stroll Through Colombia’s Fruit Market
Colombia’s markets are like treasure chests of tropical surprises—each fruit with its own personality, flavor, and story. Here are some of the most unforgettable characters you’ll meet:
Lulo (Naranjilla)
Looks like a persimmon wearing a golden-ochre coat, but inside it’s all jelly-like pulp and tiny seeds. Its flavor? A zippy mash-up of lime, kiwi, and pineapple—tart enough to make your lips pucker in the happiest way. Beloved in the iconic juice lulada, lulo is both refreshing and antioxidant-rich.
Guanábana (Soursop)
On the outside, it’s a prehistoric-looking, dinosaur-skinned beast. On the inside, it’s a softie—creamy, sweet flesh with hints of pineapple, banana, citrus, and coconut. Often blended into smoothies or desserts, this fibrous giant proves you can’t judge a fruit by its (spikey) cover.
Curuba (Banana Passionfruit)
A golden, oblong, slightly fuzzy pod with a glowing orange jelly interior. Its tart-sweet flavor lands somewhere between passionfruit, pineapple, and peach. Often blended, strained, and mixed with milk and sugar, curuba turns into a velvety juice that tastes like liquid sunshine.
Borojó
This is a truly unique one. Endearingly called “nature’s love potion,” borojó is a brown, delicate fruit with a sticky, paste-like interior. Its tart, apple-like taste pairs beautifully with warming spices like cinnamon and star anise. Beyond its flavor, it’s prized for aphrodisiacal drink concoctions and is rich in phosphorus and B vitamins.
Granadilla
Round and bright as a mandarin, Granadilla cracks open to reveal gooey, seed-studded pulp. The trick? Don’t chew—slurp it down whole. Sweet, tangy, and slightly bitter, this fruit is equal parts snack and experience.
Mamoncillo (Spanish Lime / Guinep)
They grow in clusters and look like tiny green limes, but inside is a tangy, gel-like orb of golden flesh (think lychee’s cousin). High in vitamins A and C, mamoncillo is perfect for popping open and snacking on the go. And don’t throw away the seed—it can be roasted and eaten, too.
Feijoa (Pineapple Guava)
A strange but wonderful little fruit, looking like a cross between a lime and a baby avocado. Slice it open and you’ll get creamy, pear-like flesh with a jelly center, flavored with notes of pineapple, guava, citrus, and even a hint of herbal minty-ness. Hard to describe, impossible to forget.
Tomate de Árbol (Tamarillo)
Shaped like a small egg with yellow-orange to red-orange skin, it’s the tropical cousin of the tomato. Inside is a tangy, orange jelly-like flesh that’s both fruity and tart. The peel isn’t for eating, but blend the interior with sugar and you’ve got a refreshing juice.
Uchuva (Goldenberry)
Peel back its delicate, papery husk to find a bright golden fruit inside. Tart, tangy, and packed with vitamin C, you can often find it dried into a chewy “superfood” snack. Fresh, it looks like a tiny yellow cherry tomato—bursting with edible seeds and zingy flavor.
Zapote (Sapote)
With its brown, sandpapery skin, Zapote looks like a rugged avocado. But scoop inside and you’ll find soft, orange, custard-like flesh with a flavor that lands somewhere between mango, pumpkin, and sweet potato pie. Comfort food, fruit-style.
Mangostino (Mangosteen)
The so-called “queen of fruits” wears a purplish-brown leathery shell. Inside are delicate, translucent white segments that taste like a blend of peach, strawberry, and lychee. A rare treat, and one that lives up to its royal title. Originally from Asia, this one-of-a-kind fruit has flourished in Colombia.
These are just a sampling of the wildly varied, almost otherworldly tropical fruits that Colombia has to offer.
Food has a special way of carrying us back through time. One bite, one whiff of something familiar, and suddenly you’re in your grandmother’s kitchen, or out in the fields picking strawberries, or laughing through a family dinner. Colombia’s tropical fruits hold that same magic: each bite a passport to memory, culture, and connection.
Take the feijoa, for example. More than just a quirky green fruit, it’s a keeper of stories.
Our Director of Marketing, Juan Niño, remembers the feijoa tree in his grandparents’ Bogotá backyard:
“My grandparents had a beautiful home. The backyard was lush and full of different plants and flowers. There was one distinct tree towards the back corner: a feijoa tree. I only lived in Bogotá until I was 6 years old, but I still remember going to that tree with my grandmother and aunts, picking fresh feijoa from its branches and relishing in the sour skin and sweet pulp. We left Bogotá for the United States when I was six and didn’t return to Colombia again until I was fifteen. My grandparents had since sold that home. When I visited them in their new place, my grandmother had some feijoas for us, and upon that first bite I was immediately transported to that magical tree in their backyard again.”
Stories like Juan’s remind us that food is never just food—it’s culture, memory, and place all wrapped into one.
So thanks for joining us on this little fruit market stroll. Every bite of our plantain or cassava strips is a small, joyful taste of Colombia’s biodiversity, and it’s our honor to share that richness with you. And should you ever find yourself wandering a market in our beloved Colombia, you’ll know just which vibrant, unforgettable fruits to seek out first.
This blog post was written by Ashley Castle
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