peewah

A peach palm (Bactris gasipaes), a South American palm tree.

The Pewa or Peach palm (Guilielma speciosa) was introduced from Trinidad, and seedlings raised for distribution. The fruits when boiled in water with salt are appreciated as a food.

This Guilielma [the peach palm or pejibaye (Guilielma gasipaes)] is prized in Trinidad, as well as elsewhere, for its edible fruits; by the natives I have heard it called piliwa and piwa.

The edible fruit of this plant, which has an orange or red skin when ripe, orange pulp which turns floury when cooked, and a single large seed.

Nicolasa had boiled a couple dozen peewahs. They were of a floury consistency. I cracked open the nuts and chewed them slowly, squeezing out the juice against my palate.

I start to remember Julie mango, how it sweet, and chataigne and peewah that me mother would boil up in a big pot a' salt water, and how my father always had he little kitchen garden, growin' dasheen leaf and pigeon peas and yam and thing.