Chompoo Rose Apples are small fruits that have a round to oval shape and a slightly tapering calyx. The skin is smooth, waxy, thin, and taut, ripening from green to bright yellow with maturity. Underneath the surface, the flesh is white to pale yellow and has a crisp, spongy, and semi-dry consistency with a subtle, floral scent that creates a rattling sound when the fruit is shaken. Rose apples are light and crunchy with an initially sweet, fruity flavor followed by floral notes of rose.

Chompoo Rose Apple is best suited for both raw and cooked applications, such as simmering. When fresh, the fruit can be consumed straight, out-of-hand as a snack to showcase its delicate and sweet, rose-like flavor. The fruits can also be displayed on fruit platters, sliced and tossed into salads, or mixed with soy sauce, sugar, and chile peppers as a fresh side dish. In Southeast Asia, rose apples are often sprinkled with spiced sugar to enhance the fruit’s natural flavor. In addition to fresh applications, rose apples can also be simmered into jellies and jams, candied as a sweet, floral dessert, or used to flavor custards and puddings. The fruits impart a subtle rosewater-like taste and are sometimes used to flavor cocktails, lemonade, and water. Beyond sweet applications, Rose apples can be lightly stir-fried into rice-based dishes or stuffed with meat and baked in sauces for added flavor. Rose apples pair well with cinnamon, palm sugar, fruits such as mango, papaya, guava, and melon, tomatoes, tamarind, shrimp paste, garlic, chile peppers, and meats such as fish and poultry. Whole Rose apples should be used immediately for the best quality and flavor. The fruits bruise easily and will only keep for 2 to 4 days when stored in the refrigerator.

Chompoo Rose Apple is available nearly year round.