Fill-a-Bowl

We know this locally as "Pung Tai Hai" in hokkien which to me, literally mean "expand to fill a big sea". The English name is "Fill-a-Bowl" and is a direct translation from its Malay name "Kembang se-mangkok". The plant is Scaphium macropodum. It is a large forest tree with the most unusual fruit. The fruit forms as a large green thin-walled pod. When ripe, it turns brown and splits on one side to form a boat-shaped membranous structure with a pearl-shaped seed sitting at the end (see top picture). This year was an exceptional fruiting year for our tree and heaps of fruits littered the ground around the tree.

When the seed is soaked in water, it will produce a brown jelly that will "fill-a'bowl". Actually the jelly came from the thin outer wall of the seed. This jelly is actually an adaptation to help the seed with its germination as the jelly absorbs water when it rains and retains the moisture for a couple of days at least.

Traditionally people drank this jelly to treat fever, cough, asthma and dysentery. Today it is a popular addition to local deserts.