Medlar. A medlar is a fruit about the size of a small apple which is harvested when it is soft, squashy and brown - almost rotten, said to have originated in Persia. It is most often used in making a dark red jelly-like spiced condiment. We picked these apparently rotting fruit from the ground under a tree one August near Sarlat in France. It took some courage to squirt the ripened pulp out through the skin, but such a surprise to taste the sweet, custardy flesh. Alys Fowler describes the flavour as “sweet like a date, a hint of lemon and a little apricot.”
