April 27th, 2025
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I’m currently tackling the truckload of feijoas falling from our trees. As much as I love this fruit, the sheer volume has me quietly cursing my past self for planting four trees—two would’ve been plenty. With most of my friends and neighbours having trees of their own, giving them away isn’t easy. So instead, they’re scooped, stewed, and cooked into jams and spicy preserves. The feijoa kasundi recipe below is an annual favourite.
Although not native to our shores, feijoas have become a uniquely Kiwi fruit. Like lemon trees, feijoas are a common sight in backyards across Aotearoa, from Canterbury to the North Island. I’m a firm believer in planting fruit trees at home. After the initial outlay, they provide essentially free food for years to come. The beauty of feijoa trees lies in their hardiness and reliability. Unlike stone and pip fruit, which can have off years, feijoas deliver a solid crop like clockwork.
Of our varieties, Anatoki ripens first with small, sweet fruit, followed closely by the larger Kaiteri. The season rounds out with the pointy-tipped Apollo, our favourite for flavour. Regular feijoa-scooping sessions happen around the whānau table, usually as an afternoon snack, with extras set aside for jam-making or the freezer.
Read on for more recipes and ideas for this unique and wonderful fruit, world-famous in Aotearoa.
More Feijoa Recipes on Homegrown Kitchen
- Apple & Feijoa Anzac Crumble—With acknowledgment of Anzac Day last week, I am sharing this Anzac biscuit-inspired crumble – and it does not disappoint. The sweet and crunchy topping pairs wonderfully with autumn apples and feijoas, and a touch of ginger. Also, Nana’s Anzac Biscuits here.
- Feijoa Sponge Pudding + Feijoa Compote—This is the kind of pudding that reminds me of my nana. Stewed fruit is topped with a simple sponge. The eggs and sugar are whisked until voluminous, and the dry ingredients are gently folded in for a light and airy sponge cake topping.
- Feijoa Cake with Lemon & Macadamia Icing—This recipe is inspired by a simple feijoa cake my friend Nadia makes every autumn. It is quick to prepare using 1 cup of scooped feijoa flesh, so it is a great way to use them up. Topped with a unique macadamia icing, or use a basic lemon icing.
- Feijoa & Ginger Ice Cream—Another use for excess feijoas, cooked into a sweet puree to combine with cream, ginger, and chocolate if you like. I often scoop and freeze feijoas into portions for thawing to make this creamy ice cream through the winter months.
- + Another chutney – Feijoa Pear & Ginger Chutney—My go-to chutney recipe that I often make in autumn when we have excess fruit on hand. Here I have used feijoa and pear as the base fruit; however, any combination of autumn fruit can be used.
Spicy Feijoa Kasundi
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (60ml) olive oil
- 2 teaspoons brown mustard seeds
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons turmeric powder
- ½ - 1 teaspoon chilli flakes, or 1 small red chilli, finely chopped
- 6 cm fresh ginger root, finely chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 5 cups scooped feijoa flesh, larger pieces roughly chopped
- ⅓ cup (80ml) malt vinegar or apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a large, wide-based saucepan or preserving pan, heat the oil over moderate heat. Once hot, add the mustard seeds, cumin seeds, turmeric, and chilli. Use a wooden spoon to stir over the heat for 1 minute to toast the spices. Add the prepared ginger and garlic and stir for another minute. Add the feijoa flesh, vinegar, sugar, and salt and stir well to combine.
- Bring to a simmer, then cook uncovered over a low heat for about 1 hour until thickened. It is important to leave the lid off for excess moisture to evaporate. Stir regularly to prevent the sauce from catching. The kasundi is ready when you can momentarily see the base of the pan as you run a wooden spoon across it – this is referred to as the ‘trail test’.
- Sterilise the jars and lids using your preferred method (oven, boiling or dishwasher) and fill the hot jars with hot sauce to within 5 mm from the top of the jar. Secure the lids and leave to cool on a wooden board.
- Once cool, check the lids have sealed (inverting into the jar). Name, date and store in a cool, dark place for up to 6 months. Once opened, store in the fridge and use within 1 month.
Notes
- This flavourful condiment is great in sandwiches or wraps with ham or leftover chicken, lettuce and cucumber. Or serve with cheese and crackers.
- Serve alongside a vegetable curry or lentil dahl with rice, flatbreads and natural yoghurt.
- Stir a tablespoon of the kasundi through hummus for a punchy dip with vegetable sticks and pita chips.
My in-law’s medium sized tree in Lower Hutt has yielded 100kg fruit this year – we are desperately trying to process some boxes! So will definitely add this recipe to the list – love kasundi 💚 also making your seasonal fruit Madeira cake and fruit muffins from Homegrown Kitchen, plus Lucy Corry’s feijoa icecream. (My partner freezes 2 cup containers of feijoa purée for making that!)
Wow, 100kg on one tree! I think we may remove a few of ours as it is proving to be far more than we need. When they were smaller it was manageable but now it feels overwhelming. We always get a good harvest but this year seems to be particularly abundant! Will have to try Lucy’s ice cream, too 🙂
Hi Nicola, before you remove any of your Feijoa trees, try this instead for one year at least.
Try fruit thinning when the Feijoa fruit are very small. Remove all, except one, in the current bunch. I used to use my thumb nail for this. This will allow the tree to put all its energy into these remains fruit. So you will end up with less in numbers of fruit, but a larger sized fruit. Hope this makes sense?
We used to grow Feijoas commercially in northland, and did this to all our trees. We sold “A” grade fruit only.
Hi Christopher, thanks for the suggestion. I will give this a go next year. The issue is that they were planted a little too close together so difficult to get the fruit at the back. Which is where the best varieties are! This year we ended up with a lot more smaller fruit than previous years too.
Many thanks, I appreciate your time in sharing this here.
Nicola
The title of this recipe excited me but malt vinegar isn’t gluten free. Can you suggest an alternative?
I have also used apple cider vinegar in this with little difference in taste. It is only a small amount. I will add it to the recipe as an option if malt vinegar is unable to be used. Not all of my recipes are gluten-free but often easy to substitute with something similar. Thanks for checking 🙂
I made the Kasundi yesterday. It’s delicious. I didn’t think the liquid would evaporate within an hour as it was so juicy. But magically the ‘trail test’ worked just after the hour. Your recipes are all very reliable and so easy to follow, apart from being yum.
I am making the ice cream now, waiting for the fruit to cool down. Interesting how it will work with just stirring. Your dairy yogurt is wrapped in the hot water cylinder too at the moment…
Hi Sigi, I know what you mean, it starts off very runny but with the simmering and a wide-based pan it is amazing how it comes together. Thanks for the feedback and happy cooking 🙂
Just finished bottling up a batch of this kasundi and had to keep one for right away as it is SO DELICIOUS. Thank you for such a rewarding recipe using my favourite fruit <3
Thanks Rachel, love to hear that. The kasundi has been a really popular recipe 🙂
Nicola