What do you call these?

by // // 25 Comments

My husband and I were craving for sourish food the other day after taking oily stuff, and so, when we came across a stall that sells pickled fruits, or locally known as jeruk, we bought these.

I wonder what you call these fruits in English. I know the sliced ones are pickled mango, but I don’t know what the rest is known as in English. I just know the local names.

The small, yellowish pickles are known as ‘cermai’ while the bigger brown fruits are ‘kelubi’. Do you know what it’s called in English? I don’t have a single clue on what they’re called in English.

All I know is that I adore these pickles. I like to eat them. They’re very appetizing. And they have sentimental value, as when I was a little girl, my grandfather used to make pickles out of these fruits.

Yes… he made them himself, and there would be huge jars of them in his house, and he would pass it to my parents as well as all his other children so that we could enjoy it.

I was quite a tomboy when I was a little girl, and learned to climb trees when I was nine, and was on par with boys my age when it comes to doing nasty stuff. Climbing trees, fishing, bathing in the sea almost daily as well as playing in the paddy field is a norm to me.

My grandparents live in Perlis, a place where is abundant with paddy fields, just like Kedah. And when there’s paddy fields, they will surely be cermai trees. I used to climb the cermai trees nearby the paddy field to gather some cermai fruits so that my grandfather could make pickles for us.

I had my fair share of getting bitten by those nasty fire ants while climbing trees and falling flat on my butt. But those things did not stop me from climbing trees again and again while I was growing up. Nasty falls and scrape on the knees are never regarded as a major health problem or major injuries.

Those were the good old days. I  did not even need to be afraid when I play in the village all alone, cuz all the neighbours would keep an eye on me, unlike now where everywhere is very dangerous and children cannot be let loose on their own, and parents no longer allowed their children to do such things.

Instead of frolicking around in the sun, children these days are sent to kindergarten so that they could compete with children their age as early as two years old. Sometimes, I do wonder if time took away our children’s childhood? Are we depriving them of good memories and the fun way of growing up?

Those good old days are indeed over, isn’t it? Children are no longer safe outside and we’re forced to be parents who deprived children from their share of fun in the mud, just because it’s what expected of us these days. Are you that sort of parents? Are you depriving your children of their childhood?


Cleffairy: What wouldn’t I do to give my kids the same childhood and environment that I had? For what it’s worth, it’s certainly a better childhood to experience.

25 comments

  2. Caroline says:

    i always craving for pickled fruits before period. lol. my childhood so bi8g different with urs. 🙁 i never climb trees all those de. only stay at home study all the time. :S

    Reply
  3. Cynthia says:

    I only like the mango jeruk.. others, not in my liking.. :p and ya, we can’t bring our kids to climb trees nowadays compare to time we had… danger.. :p

    Reply
  6. mnhl says:

    Ohh….I don’t even know the malay name. haha…always named them as JERUK. I don’t like to eat them but I love asam boi so much.

    Reply
    • Cleffairy says:

      Yalorr… jeruk… LOL… but I know the Malay names…some jeruk stalls will write the names there. But I dunn o the english name. Haizzz…. asam boi? I love asam boi too! *grinZ*

      Reply
  7. kathy says:

    Use to eat that went I was young.

    Now still love papaya and mango jeuk

    You wait ah..one of these days when I got the mood, will make you my “specuial” herbal mango jeruk kekekeke

    Reply
  8. Gratitude says:

    Ooer I’d like to know their english names too. I love the lil freen one. Many Indian houses have the tree. Nice to peck at them when they are ripe from the tree too although they can be very sour.
    +Ant+

    Reply
    • Cleffairy says:

      🙁 unfortunately, I don’t know their names in English. LOL… just know their local names. 🙁 And I’ve been asking around, nobody knows what they’re called.

      Yeah, the cermai… very nice to pluck and eat when they’re ripe, even before it’s made into pickles, but it’s very sour… LOL…

      Reply
  11. Christopher says:

    errr…I still cannot recognise the fruits but I love these jeruk stuffs. Maybe I describe my jeruk stuffs of dipping a slice of guava in sour plum powder ….. or enjoying a glass of sour plum and lime juice.

    Reply

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