Riberries are a very unique fruit having a distinct clove-like flavour with hints of cinnamon and nutmeg and are mildly sour. They are a part of the lilly pilly family and are small fruits about the size of a blueberry ranging in colour from pale pink to bright purple. They’re often referred to as the clove lilly pilly.
The tree grows mostly up the east coast of Australia and is often seen in parks and gardens, especially throughout the Sydney area. They’re quite common and can be sourced from good nurseries. They have diverse growing conditions and can survive as long as they can get plenty of water. The berries are also available fresh or frozen.
The riberry, due to its characteristic clove flavour, naturally pairs up well with apples in cooking. You can’t go wrong with dishes like apple crumble, apple pies, or even an apple sauce. They’re also great in cakes or muffins and are commonly used in ice creams and sorbets, but they’re commonly used to make a sauce or chutney. The berries are also good just to eat on their own, either fresh or frozen.
APPLE and RIBERRY CRUMBLE
The addition of the riberries to this apple crumble are a true match made in heaven. They add an amazing clove-like flavour with a slight tartish hit which really balances out the sweetness of the crumble and omits the need to add cloves to the apple.
12 Apples
¼ cup sugar
1 cup water
100g riberries, lightly crushed
1. Peel, core, and chop apples into small chunks.
2. Place into a saucepan with the sugar and water and cook on a low heat for about 30 minutes. At first the apples may look a little dry but when heated a lot of juice will come out.
3. Add the riberries at the last minute and stir in well then place into an oven dish.
Crumble
1 cup flour
2 Tablespoons butter
½ cup dark brown sugar
½ cup rolled oats (optional)
1. Rub flour with butter until it resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Mix in the sugar followed by the oats.
3. Press onto the apple and bake for 25 minutes 180ºC.
RIBERRY SAUCE / JAM
This recipe can be served as both sweet and savoury and goes perfectly with warm puddings and fruit pies or over ice-cream. It’s also great with any game meat such as kangaroo or emu or any white meat such as chicken and is absolutely amazing with pork. The consistency can be adjusted using some warm water to use it as a sauce or as a jam and it will last for several weeks in the fridge.
250g Riberries
80ml balsamic vinegar
70ml red wine
1 cup brown sugar
1. In a saucepan, cook the Riberries with the vinegar and red wine until the liquid has reduced to ¼ of its original volume.
2. Add the sugar and cook slowly for a further 10 minutes until it resembles a thin jam-like consistency. You may need to add a couple of tablespoons of water if the sauce becomes too thick.