Starfruit is also known as carambola. Starfruit is native to Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka. The fruit in cross section is a five-pointed star, hence its name. The skin is green to yellowish, slightly waxy and edible. The juicy flesh is yellow, transparent with a single black edible seed. The flavour of the fruit is fresh and slightly sweet and comparable to a mix of papaya, orange and grapefruit all at once. The riper starfruit is yellow and can have some brown edges. The taste is much sweeter.
Starfruit do not need to be peeled or seeded before eating. Simply wash the fruit, cut crosswise to get the star shape, and eat.
Starfruit can be eaten out-of-hand because the fruit is entirely edible. The fruit is also commonly used in salads, cakes, jams, jellies, cocktails or to garnish food dishes.
Starfruit is ripe when they are firm and have a yellow skin. It will also have some brown ridges at the edges. The fruit can be kept at room temperature for a few days.
The carambola is a tropical and subtropical fruit. It can be grown at up to 4,000 feet (1,200 m) in elevation. It prefers full sun exposure, but requires enough humidity and a total of 70 inches or more of rainfall a year. It does not have a soil type preference, but it requires good drainage
Carambola trees are planted at least 20 feet (6.1 m) from each other and typically are fertilized three times a year. The tree grows rapidly and typically produces fruit at four or five years of age. The large amount of rain during spring actually reduces the amount of fruit, but, in ideal conditions, carambola can produce from 200 to 400 pounds (91 to 181 kg) of fruit a year.
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