Thai Hog Plum: The Sour Fruit In Som Tam

Thai Hog Plum — มะกอก (ma-kok) — Spondias pinnata.

Bite the firm green fruit and it turns your mouth inside out, a resinous sour that Thai cooks pound into som tam when lime feels too soft. The fruit carries vitamin C, vitamin A, fiber, and potassium, and the tart young leaves get eaten raw beside chili dips. The parts on your plate are the fruit and the young leaves. For all its sourness, hog plum is really a cook's tool — pounded green into som tam when lime feels too gentle, its young leaves torn raw into a plate of chili dip. Bright, sharp, and endlessly useful in a Thai kitchen.

Som Tam Makok — ส้มตำมะกอก (som-tam-ma-kok)
Bai Makok kap Nam Prik — ใบมะกอก (bai-ma-kok)

Food and nutrients

Rich in: Vitamin C, Vitamin A, fiber, potassium

Research context

Antioxidant lab work on hog plum used the tree's bark, in vitro and in mice; the fruit you eat is a tart vitamin-C source — BMC journals, 2008-2016

Sources

Source: Hazra B et al. (2008). Antioxidant and free-radical scavenging activity of Spondias pinnata stem bark (in vitro). BMC Complement Altern Med. PMID 19068130. Iron-overload liver protection in mice: Sarkar S et al. (2016). BMC Pharmacol Toxicol. PMID 27459849, DOI:10.1186/s40360-016-0077-6.

Narration transcript

Opening

Bite this hard green fruit and your whole mouth puckers from a resinous, piney sour that lands sharper than lime. Thai hog plum — มะกอก, ma-kok. Cooks pound the fruit into som tam when they want more bite than lime gives, and the tart young leaves get torn up raw beside chili dips.

Som Tam Makok (ส้มตำมะกอก)

Thai cooks pound the firm green fruit into som tam makok where it layers a deeper, resinous sour under the lime. Eat it with sticky rice and grilled chicken.

Bai Makok kap Nam Prik (ใบมะกอก)

The tart young leaves, bai makok get eaten raw, dipped straight into a pungent chili paste as part of a fresh-vegetable spread with rice.

Nutrition summary

This tart green plum brings vitamin C, and unusually for a fruit, a good deal of iron.

Vitamin C

Vitamin C is used to build collagen and helps protect cells from oxidative stress.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A contributes to normal vision and helps maintain healthy skin and surface tissues.

Fiber

Fiber adds bulk to meals and can help with fullness.

Potassium

Potassium helps with normal fluid balance and muscle function.

Closing

Hog plum grows into a big shade tree that drops its sour fruit by the basketful in the rains. In the kitchen it is a cook's sharpening tool, green in the pounding bowl for som tam and its young leaves raw against a fiery chili dip. Follow Longevity Biome, and LIKE this video for regular updates.

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