''Canarium album''
is a tree species in the genus ''
Canarium'' and the family
Burseraceae, found in
Indo-China; the
Catalogue of Life does not record any sub-species.
''Canarium album'' produces a fruit commonly called Chinese olive or white olive, though it has no relation to ''
Olea''; it is consumed in Vietnam (
Vietnamese: ''trám trắng'', fruit ''quả trám''), Thailand (where it is known as ''samo chin'' () or ''kana'' ()) and in China ( zh, s=橄榄, t=橄欖, p=gǎnlǎn).
The pulp of the tree's fruit and its seeds are edible, with a strong resinous flavor when they are fresh. Culinary oil can be extracted from the seed.
Preserves can be made with the fruit, both sweet like
jam or pickled preserves. In China, a
pickle called olive vegetable
( zh, s=橄榄菜, t=橄欖菜, p=gǎnlǎn cài), made from a mix of ''Canarium album'' fruit and
mustard greens, is commonly used as a flavoring for
congee and
fried rice, with
Teochew people specifically being very fond of the pickle.
Mostly cultivated in Thailand, cultivation has been introduced on a smaller scale to
Fiji
Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...
and northern
Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
in Australia. Its fruit,
resin and seed are exported to Europe where they are used in the manufacture of
varnish and soap.
Cultures
Teochew
When celebrating
Chinese New Year (CNY), it is a custom for
Teochew people to keep green olives in one of the compartments of a
Chinese candy box.
In CNY, olives are also called diêng1 guê2 (珍果, literally precious nut) or
betel nuts (檳榔).
Though green olives may referred to as betel nuts in Teochew, they should not be confused with the betel nuts, fruits of the
areca palm, consumed in Taiwan, Southeast Asia and Fujian.
It was said that Teochew people used to have the practice of
betel nut chewing like the people in the neighbouring regions.
But by late Qing dynasty or early Republican period, they gave up on the addictive betel nuts and took up green olives as a substitute.
From then on, eating olives, both green and black, become a custom in Teochew.
Gallery
Khao phat nam liap.jpg, ''Khao phat nam liap'' dish (with rice) from Thailand
Green beans with olive vegetable.jpg, Hunanese stir-fry of green beans with olive vegetable
References
External links
*
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5157337
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...
Flora of China
Flora of Indo-China
Trees of Vietnam