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Taati Munjalu (Toddy Palm Seeds)

 Taati Munjalu (Toddy Palm Seeds)

Taati Munjalu (Toddy Palm Seeds) ~ For this Week’s Indian Kitchen

Popular summer fruit of India (Andhra), the toddy palm seeds (Taati munjalu) are a delicate halwa/jelly like fresh fruits prized for their sweet, tender flesh and refreshing sugary water inside. They appear in the market in early summer and the season is usually short.

Taati munjalu (toddy palm seeds) are treasured similar way like tender coconuts for us. They are divine fruits!

Taati Munjalu (Toddy Palm Seeds) - Whole and Sliced to Quarters


Purchased at Viet Wah, Seattle

Posted by Indira©Copyrighted in Amma & Authentic Andhra,Fruits,Indian Ingredients,Indian Kitchen (Sunday April 8, 2007 at 8:18 pm- permalink)
Comments (55)

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55 comments for Taati Munjalu (Toddy Palm Seeds) »

  1. Oh my goodness, it’s been more than 3 years since I tasted these heavenly fruits.
    Enjoy Indra!!!

    Comment by Shri — April 8, 2007 @ 8:51 pm

  2. We also call them “Munjikayalu”. Oh, Indira, you have brought back such memories. My grandparents used to line their rice fields with these trees. And every summer when we visited, somebody would shimmy up the tree in the late afternoon with a sickle and get down bunches of these fruit.

    Do you know the other fruit – it is a root called “tatikayalu”?

    Comment by P — April 8, 2007 @ 9:04 pm

  3. oh my god. i loved these growing up! Its one of my favorites. I have to go to Viet Wah now.. hopefully they still have some there. Thank you thank you thank you for posting these images and info, brought back a flood of memories.

    Comment by archana — April 8, 2007 @ 9:17 pm

  4. OMG, i had even forgotten that such a wonderful fruit existed…..Lucky you are to have found them at the said store. I should go looking for these, really. Long time since i tasted these!

    Thanks a ton :).

    Comment by musical — April 8, 2007 @ 9:17 pm

  5. Hi Indira,

    i am a ner food blogger and new visitor to your blog. Really impressed and became regular visitor. I like these taati munjalu ver much. Really such nice and very tasty and healthy fruits. Really you are lucky to got these. And pictures are also beautilful. Thanks for sharing. Please visit my food blog and let me know your valuable advices and comments.
    Thanks

    Comment by Jyothi — April 8, 2007 @ 9:28 pm

  6. hi indira…
    nice pic………really mouth watering…i love munjalu alot…now i should search for all the stores in Los Anegels if i can get one……..if so i would be the lucky one….anyway enjoy it buddy…

    Comment by shanti — April 8, 2007 @ 9:33 pm

  7. These fruits are awesome. Why am I not living in Seattle? 🙁

    Comment by Seetha — April 8, 2007 @ 10:03 pm

  8. Indira,
    Mmm..mmm…mmm.. m…..!! They taste delicious 🙂

    Cheers,
    Mythili

    Comment by Mythili — April 8, 2007 @ 10:50 pm

  9. Wow, amazing that you found these in the US! I love this fruit for its mild flavor and soothing texture. In Mumbai it’s called “taar gola” (taar is the local word for the toddy palm).

    Comment by Uma — April 9, 2007 @ 2:29 am

  10. Yes ofcourse this is Tadgola. They look so fresh and have to be consumed fresh once dehusked deshelled. I’m surprised you got them in US. Try mixing bits in vanila ice cream they taste divine.

    Comment by Anjali — April 9, 2007 @ 4:18 am

  11. Boy Indira, you sure know how to bring back some fond memories….I haven’t had this since I left India. Can I come to Seattle and we can go shopping?? 😉

    Comment by Trupti — April 9, 2007 @ 5:10 am

  12. Though a frequent visitor to your blog, this is my first post. Had to reply to this amazing fruit. Its been 6 years since I even thought of this fruit!! We used to call it “taatilinga” in karnataka, I think:-) Brought back so many childhood memories, thanks! But, I am really jealous too:-) I could almost taste it looking at the photo!

    Comment by neha — April 9, 2007 @ 5:29 am

  13. mmm…Tadgola…
    And there was a drink called “neera” made from the same plant, I think. That’s the fresh juice before it ferments to form Toddy or Tadi.
    Divine!!

    Comment by sonali — April 9, 2007 @ 6:10 am

  14. Hi Indira,

    I’d share my story about toddy palm seeds. When I was around 9 years old, we visited India during one hot June. We visited many temples in south india by car. This was in late 70’s/early 80’s before A/C was widely available. My brother and I were cranky, hot, and thirsty. My dad had the driver pull over, and we whined more, since another stop meant further delays in reaching our destination. My dad brought back these cool slippery seeds, and we were delighted. We sat in the mid-day heat by the roadside, while the farmer husked more fruits for us. I still remember the smells and tastes of that day now, some 30 years later. Your photos brought back sweet memories.

    Thanks for your blogpost.

    Best,
    Padmaja

    Comment by Padmaja — April 9, 2007 @ 6:14 am

  15. Oh, I so miss eating these!
    Ps. Do you get them in Seattle? Maybe I should move there. The Pikes Market would be my favorite hang out.

    Comment by Sakshi — April 9, 2007 @ 6:51 am

  16. What ?? You got them here? ITs called Nungoo. You got them here ?? What ?? Oh my God !!!!!! I just loveeeeeeeee them… Thanks for capturing such a favourite here !

    Comment by Revathi — April 9, 2007 @ 6:57 am

  17. Thaati munjalu.. yummo! Brings back all the childhood memories.. getting them fresh from the grove and eating half of them along the way back to home 🙂
    May be we should plan on moving to Seattle atleast just for these, is that the idea behind this post??(just kidding)

    Comment by Arjuna — April 9, 2007 @ 7:30 am

  18. This is available in cans in most of the chinese stores. I dont know the name of it but it is available in canned sections. I have seen it in Ranch and Marina in bay area

    Comment by vanitha — April 9, 2007 @ 8:04 am

  19. Is this the real fruit or canned fruit.. Its too tempting . All I could find here in Dallas was canned one..

    Comment by Anitha — April 9, 2007 @ 9:24 am

  20. Hi Indira!
    I have been using the tiny bottled ones for some time now. I use them with diced tropical fruits like mango, papaya and pineapple, a spritz of fresh lime and a touch of a dressing of yoghurt and condensed milk. It is a quick and good dessert after a spicy Indian meal, and gets gobbled up. Very few guess what these toddy palm seeds are!

    Comment by devalinas — April 9, 2007 @ 9:30 am

  21. Ahh , its so un fair. 😉

    I was always proud that you could get any Indian food inBay area. Finally seattle beats us.

    Being from agriculture family, I used to love eating Taati Munjulu , just before the mango season. They are very delicate, but can be really tough on stomach. Do not forget to eat Avakaya after enjoying Munjulu.

    Comment by Balu — April 9, 2007 @ 9:54 am

  22. Nice pictures, Indira. God, I want to go to India and have them. Do you know if we can get fresh ones here in US?
    I never missed them when I was in India. Used to wait for them since start of spring. Two years back, I was excited to see the canned version of these here in Houston Hong Kong Market. My excitement was short-lived, as the ones I got were canned in sugar syrup, making these otherwise delicately sweet and mild flavored ones very sweet.
    Taati munjelu and Banginappali maamidikaayalu, kotha aavakaya…..way to enjoy Andhra summer. 🙂

    Comment by Vani — April 9, 2007 @ 11:28 am

  23. hey Indra
    you brought back my childhood memories…..i love this fruit very very much….
    thanks…

    Soumya
    🙂

    Comment by soumya — April 9, 2007 @ 11:42 am

  24. oooooo…this brought back memories of hot summer days in india. it used to be quite a task to eat it as a child. you want to break it such that you can consume all the liquid inside without dropping any.

    can you post a pic of the can? are they called ‘toddy palm seeds’ on the can or something else?

    Comment by anjali — April 9, 2007 @ 2:43 pm

  25. Could you pls tell where we can find this ? I have never tasted it after coming to US!

    Comment by Mishmash! — April 9, 2007 @ 4:34 pm

  26. Hey Indira, I’d just like to grab them off the plate and gobble ’em up. I do not have much reminiscences about tati munjalu except that we used to eat them once in a while in the summers. I’d definitely like to try them now though!

    Comment by Deepika Saripalli — April 9, 2007 @ 6:16 pm

  27. IVE BECOME NOSTALGIC NOW – I REMEMBER THE DAYS WE USED TO GET FRESH MUNJIS FROM THE VENDORS THAT COME AROUND DOOR TO DOOR – ABSOLUTE HEAVEN. I WAS ACTUALLY JUST TALKING TO SOMEONE AT WORK ABOUT THIS FRUIT – IM GOING TO LOOK AROUND THE STORES FOR THE CANNED VERSION NOW.

    Comment by radha — April 9, 2007 @ 7:29 pm

  28. I’m glad I’m not the only one who likes these divine fruits.:)

    They are canned whole in sugary syrup. Few washes in cold water, they are like fresh stuff that we get in India.

    I bought them at a Vietnamese grocery shop and I think you can find these at your local Vietnamese/Chinese stores in canned food (fruit) section. I also provided a link to cans/brand names avialable in the market under “Purchased” below the second photo. Hope this helps.

    Thanks!

    Comment by Indira — April 9, 2007 @ 10:07 pm

  29. that pic looks awesome!!!!! We also use the canned variety over here…… nothing compared to the fresh ones though 🙂

    Comment by Coffee — April 10, 2007 @ 12:18 am

  30. Indira, This is called “Taati bonda” in Tulu, “bonda” (not pronounced like the fried bonda) being the Tulu name for tender coconut.
    I love love love this and havent had this since my childhood

    Asha

    Comment by Asha — April 10, 2007 @ 2:39 pm

  31. Hi Indira,

    I love you :-)) You bring back so many memories of home. Now this, ‘Taati munjalu’ hold an important place in my heart…. summer spent in the back garden of my grandparents. Oh boy, was that heaven? They used to stay in vijayawada and had a huge garden which had many mango, guava, badam, amla trees,a large rose garden and my grandmom’s large kitchen garden where she grew many vegetables and herbs and we as kids would always hang out in the garden and feel like princesses, lol. Can you believe the maamidikaylu for avakaya and rasalu for the summer were all from our garden itself. They were so many that they would not only feed all the family members whole summer but we also shared baskets of them with the whole colony 🙂

    In summer we used to enjoy Maamidi rasalu, green mangoes, avakaya and taati munjalu which was my favourite part. My grandpa used to cut the top off from the taati kaaya (?) and put a spoon in it and we liked it eating that way rather than the loose ones.

    Hmm…sorry for the looong post but couldn’t resist sharing this beautiful childhood memory of mine after seeing the fruit which I haven’t had in five years!!

    Thanks for posting the pics Indira.

    Comment by sriya — April 10, 2007 @ 8:26 pm

  32. Wow Indira! Lucky you to have got them. Just the other day i was thinking about how long it has been since i ate these divine fruits! I still remember buying them from the guy who used to sell them on his cycle.. carrying them in a big huge wicker basket, covering them in a wet damp cloth yelling “Taati Nungu” (thats what they call them in Kannada.). I miss them! You have brought back such nice memories 🙂

    Comment by Latha — April 11, 2007 @ 6:21 am

  33. Indira, Just wanted to thank you for showcasing this here… I had no idea this was available here. After seeing the pictures I rushed to Uwajimaya and bought two cans of these (we call it Nonku). It was so yummy!!! Thank you thank you thank you!!! 🙂

    I am glad to hear that you are able to find and enjoy these lovely treats, Sig.
    I totally know the feeling.:) They are great, aren’t they? All thanks to Vietnam and Thailand.
    – Indira

    Comment by Sig — April 13, 2007 @ 4:58 pm

  34. Indira,

    Where did you get these, I am drooling.Such delicious fruit.Oh you have evoked childhood memories at their best.

    Love this fruit.Do you get them in US.
    If so please post address

    Thanks,
    Sreelu

    Comment by sreelu — April 13, 2007 @ 6:19 pm

  35. Hi! I accidentally bought a can of Toddy Palm seeds instead of a can of lychees the other day. The cans were right next to each other on the shelf. I’ve never eaten this fruit before,bBut I’m interested to try it. Can I eat Toddy Palm Seeds straight from the can or do I need to cook them?

    Thank you for your kind advices.

    Comment by Pablito — June 12, 2007 @ 5:48 am

  36. Really i too miss this fruit, its a heavenly fruit, waiting to go back to india to taste this fruit. lucky ones who r able to hav it. njoy.

    Comment by kate — August 3, 2007 @ 6:36 pm

  37. Indira,

    Thanks for sharing. For you and any of your interested readers, these Toddy Palm Seeds are available in 16 oz. cans in most Oriental grocery stores – Chinese, Vietnamese, Thai. Common brand name is Arroy-D. They come in light or heavy syrup. I like the light better. They’re almost as good as fresh, but hey, us exiles by choice can’t be picky.

    PS This company also sells canned Jackfruit, no seeds. Very scrumptious too.

    Comment by Terry D' — September 9, 2007 @ 12:49 pm

  38. When I was six/seven year old, we lived in Khulna (Bangladesh, former East Pakistan). We used to eat this fruit, which was called “Munjal” in the local language. But in 1971 we moved to Karachi, Pakistan. I am 43 now. Some period ago, I started collecting pictures of tropical fruits. At once the memories of ‘munjal’ came to my mind. After a tedious search of six months, I learnt that this fruit is produced by a palm called “toddy palm”. When I found picturs of this palms, at once flashed into my memories the site of these palms seen by me in childhood. Its a great tasting fruit. Thanks for providing info on it.

    Comment by Ikramullah Shah — October 18, 2007 @ 12:20 pm

  39. Good Lord, the thought of what it is called in english shook all us sisters now in US, from Chennai and made me go goole and found this site……Shook us all up in Chicago, Vegas, Ohio & Atlanta, GA with joy. Thank you so much.

    Wonder if anyone had a tip on where it is found either canned or fresh in Atlanta, Georgia. Which is where I am from.

    Comment by Romita Shah — October 29, 2007 @ 6:41 pm

  40. its been 2 years i tasted it. it was with my bf i tasted 4 d last time. mis him and fruit as well.

    Comment by honey — April 15, 2008 @ 5:30 am

  41. What are the nutritional value of this fruit (Munjalu)

    Comment by Mahesh — April 26, 2008 @ 2:53 am

  42. What are the nutritonal values of this fruit (munjalu, or koba in hindi). Also, can diabetics consume these and in what quantity?

    Comment by geetha v — May 15, 2008 @ 4:26 am

  43. I ate this fruit when I visited Hyderabad,India from Pakistan and my grandma made a heavenly drink from it “mungel sharbat” made with chunks of the gel of the toddy palm. In the hot summer, it provided a cooling affect that had a heavenly taste to it. I never ate the fruit again till 20 years later having a Phillipino dessert in Canada I recognized its taste and enquired my wife about it who found that the dessert had chunks of canned toddy palm in it. Now, after another 30 years living in Bahrain my wife and I discovered the fresh Toddy palm at an Indian grocery store. I am having this most delicious fruit in fresh form after 50 years and its a treat.

    Comment by mateen mirza — January 23, 2010 @ 2:03 pm

  44. I opened a can of palm seeds not knowing what to expect. I have never prepared or tasted them. The can I opened was Aroy-d palms seeds in heavy syrup. I strained the syrup away from the seeds, added a lot of dried coconut shaving, fresh lime juice, a bit of vanilla and sprinkled with cayenne. Frigging delicious. Nobody that I had for dinner has ever tasted them and everybody loved them.

    I have no idea what you typically do with these seeds but the mother of invention rules.

    I loved reading all of the comments and hope to someday taste these little tid-bits fresh.

    Comment by pat@mcn.net — January 24, 2010 @ 1:52 am

  45. Can anybody tell me where I can buy palm seeds (Talshahsh) in USA.

    Comment by Chandan Mallik — February 15, 2010 @ 7:21 pm

  46. can anybody tell me where I can buy palm seed [tatti munulu] in delhi.

    Comment by srinivas telu — May 12, 2010 @ 4:08 am

  47. Nothing like the fresh ones. The canned stuff tends to be hard. The fresh ones are soft as jello. Being from Chennai myself, I miss this fruit. The only canned lungus/nungus I see here are imported from Thailand. I wish they canned them in India. Could be a good foriegn exchange earner for my country of birth. Does anyone know what it is called in Malay. My wife is from Malaysia and does not know what it is called. Thanks for reading.

    Comment by Mohammed Aslam — July 12, 2010 @ 10:24 am

  48. I found these toddy palm seeds accidentally in chinese store in canned section. I stay in Utah saltlakecity. I kept these in water after removing from can to 2-3 hours and change water atleast 5 times. So you will get possibly the real taste without the sweetness when it is in can. If you try like this you will almost get the natural taste.
    hope this helps. I really miss these.

    Thanks for the tip, Swathi. Will do that on my next purchase.
    -Indira

    Comment by Swathi — July 26, 2010 @ 12:26 am

  49. Please let me know if it is still available in Seattle Washington. My aunt lives there and I will ask her to mail me. I am dying to eat that but fresh. I buy them in the can all the time like a greedy person whenever I go to the Chinese or Thai stores but nothing brings my childhood memories of the smell and taste that is stuck in my mind for last 40 years.

    Comment by asra — December 13, 2010 @ 9:23 am

  50. Oh my god it is awesome fruit in the world I wish I can buy it over here USA

    Comment by mansi — July 21, 2011 @ 3:04 am

  51. […] And lastly, this refreshing almond jelly and lychee dessert has always been a classic for summer (or spring, fall, winter…) It’s a comfort dessert for my family since we make it so much. I guess we tend to really exotic when we start to add other ingredients such as jackfruit, toddy palm and multi-coloured confetti tapioca. […]

    Pingback by Birthday à la good-and-tasty « hungry & foolish — August 16, 2011 @ 11:55 pm

  52. Amazing fruit. Tasted for the fist time today.

    Comment by Abhay — May 17, 2012 @ 4:14 am

  53. I live in Los Angeles and have not had this fruit in its fresh form (only canned) since I left India 42 years ago. Can anyone tell me if they are sold in the US and I will happily pay to have them shipped to me in LA on ice, I love them so much.

    Comment by Lakshmi — July 15, 2013 @ 10:08 pm

  54. bh

    dear sir, where can I get fresh tadgola (palm fruit)

    I urgently require this

    thank you

    Rachel +44 797 2222 136

    Comment by Rachel — August 17, 2014 @ 10:59 am

  55. It’s really a devine fruit. I love to eat them. 🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓😁😊😊😊😊

    Comment by K. Lakshman Mudiraj — May 18, 2017 @ 5:07 am

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