Pala sirup

The Banda Islands' forgotten treasure: sweet syrup made from the fruit flesh of the nutmeg tree, the one part of the world's most fought-over spice that colonisers never knew to want

Origin: Banda Islands, Indonesia

From the journey of Nutmeg/Mace.

The nutmeg tree produces a complete fruit: a yellow-green fleshy exterior (the pericarp), inside which sits the brilliant red mace (the aril), and within that, the hard brown nutmeg seed. European spice traders wanted only the mace and the seed: the fruit flesh, which is slightly astringent and intensely aromatic when fresh, was discarded. But the Bandanese people had used the whole fruit for millennia. Pala sirup; syrup made from the boiled-down nutmeg fruit flesh; is a specialty of the Banda Islands that remains little known outside Indonesia. It is sold in small bottles at the markets of Banda Neira. The flavour is extraordinary: deeply aromatic, faintly floral, with the warm, spiced quality of nutmeg but sweeter and more complex than the seed alone.

Ingredients

Base

500 g ripe nutmeg fruit flesh (the yellow-green outer pericarp, or substitute ripe apricot or mango with 1 tbsp ground nutmeg if unavailable)
300 ml water

Sweetening

400 g caster sugar

Acid

2 tbsp fresh lime juice

Spice

0.5 tsp ground nutmeg (for the adapted version)

Method

If using actual nutmeg fruit: peel away any tough skin. The flesh is slightly astringent when raw. Slice roughly and place in a saucepan with the water. Simmer for 15 minutes until soft. Strain through a fine sieve, pressing firmly to extract all juice. Discard the pulp.
For the adapted version: blend ripe apricot or mango with the water and ground nutmeg until smooth. Strain through a fine sieve. This gives a fruity, nutmeg-scented base.
Return the strained liquid to the saucepan. Add the sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Reduce to a medium simmer and cook for 15 minutes until lightly thickened to a pourable syrup consistency.
Add the lime juice. Stir and taste. The syrup should be sweet, intensely aromatic, and slightly tart.
Cool completely. Bottle in a sterilised glass jar. Refrigerate for up to 3 weeks.
Serve diluted with cold or sparkling water (1 part syrup to 4 parts water), over ice cream, drizzled over fresh fruit, or as a cocktail mixer with rum.

Notes

Pala sirup represents the whole, uncolonised story of nutmeg: the Bandanese people used and valued the entire fruit long before European traders arrived wanting only the mace and seed. The fruit flesh, the bark, and the leaves all had uses in Bandanese traditional medicine and cooking. European colonisers, in their single-minded pursuit of the spice's commercial value, never bothered to learn what the people who had cultivated the tree for millennia already knew.

The Gastrographer

Name: Pala sirup
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 10
Cuisine: Indonesia
Ingredients: 500 g ripe nutmeg fruit flesh (the yellow-green outer pericarp, or substitute ripe apricot or mango with 1 tbsp ground nutmeg if unavailable); 400 g caster sugar; 300 ml water; 2 tbsp fresh lime juice; 0.5 tsp ground nutmeg (for the adapted version)

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control