• Foto Number: EPI-103B

A bundle of dried vanilla pods, with a fresh, not yet fully grown fruit above for comparison. The cylindrical capsule fruits, which can grow up to twenty-five centimetres long, change colour from yellow to brown as they ripen. After harvesting, the pods are left to ferment in containers, alternating between exposure to sunlight and sealing. During this process, they turn blackish in colour and the glycoside in the skin is broken down into fructose and vanillin. – Sri Lanka – 1990

• Keywords:
  Asia Sri Lanka condiment Vanilla Spice Route-D Spice Route