Welcome to the summary page for FabulousFusionFood's Wild Food guide to Medlar along with all the Medlar containing recipes presented on this site, with 18 recipes in total.

These recipes, all contain Medlar as a major wild food ingredient.

The wild form of M. germanica is mostly a thorny, more shrub-like than tree-like plant, which is between 1.5 and 4 m (5 and 13 ft) high. In the cultivated forms, the thorns are usually reduced or even completely absent. In general, the medlar is a small, deciduous tree with an overhanging, almost round crown. The trunk is irregularly shaped. The tree has a height between 1 and 6 m (3+1⁄2 and 19+1⁄2 ft), but can become significantly larger in culture. The diameter at breast height is usually between 20 and 25 cm (8 and 10 in), but in exceptional cases it can be up to 50 cm (20 in). The roots are heavily branched and far-ranging, with a somewhat fibrous root system.

Medlar flowers are 2–5 cm (3⁄4–2 in) in diameter, have a short stalk and are terminal and single on short side shoots. They have five elongated, narrow sepals and five free, white or pale pink petals. Compared to other fruit trees in the European latitudes, the medlar flowers very late (May or June). The flowers are hermaphrodite and pollinated by bees. Normally, self-pollination occurs in this plant. The flower then develops flattened, reddish-brown, hairy fruits with juicy flesh. The reddish-brown fruit is a pome, 2–3 cm (3⁄4–1+1⁄4 in) diameter, with wide-spreading persistent sepals around a central pit, giving a 'hollow' appearance to the fruit. In cultivated forms the diameter is even between 3 and 8cm.

The species requires temperate and sub-mediterranean climate conditions with warm summers and mild winters. Air temperatures of 18 to 20 °C (64 to 68 °F) are mentioned as favourable for growth, cold of as low as −20°C (−4 °F) is tolerated and late frosts hardly cause any damage. The wild form was observed in dry areas with annual precipitation of 700 mm (28 in) and at altitudes from 0 to 1,100 m (0 to 3,600 ft). The species grows in a wide range of soil types and prefers fresh, well-drained loamy soils with a pH that is between 6 and 8. It is found across southern Europe where it is generally rare. It is reported to be naturalized in some woods in southeast England, but is found in few gardens.

The species may have been cultivated for as long as 3,000 years. The ancient Greek geographer Strabo refers to a μέσπιλον (méspilon) in Geographica, Book 16, Chapter 4. The medlar was introduced to Greece around 700 BCE and to Rome about 200 BCE. It was an important fruit plant during Roman and medieval times. By the 17th and 18th centuries, however, it had been superseded by other fruit, and is little cultivated today.

However, M. germanica pomes are one of the few fruits that become edible in winter, making it an important tree for gardeners who wish to have fruit available all year round.

The fruit are hard and acidic even when ripe, but become edible after being softened, "bletted", by frost, or naturally in storage if given sufficient time by reducing tannin content and fruit acids, increasing sugar content, and changes in the content of minerals.

Once bletted, the fruit can be eaten raw, sometimes with sugar and cream—it has been described as being an "acquired taste"—or used to make medlar jelly. It is used in "medlar cheese", which is similar to lemon curd, made with the fruit pulp, eggs, and butter and can also be baked in cake batters and made into Christmas mincemeats.

Medlars, introduced to the UK by the Romans, used to be common and they were frequently consumed as a fruit in Medieval times (which is why there are a number of medieval recipes for them). However, the number of medlar trees have fallen dramatically and today they are most typically occasional plantings in gardens — which is a shame as this is a delicious fruit. They are best collected between late October and late November and bletted in a dark, cool and dry place.

When in season, specialist greengrocers might be able to source some and often they can be ordered on-line.

References:

[1]. David Evans Notes from field observations, tastings and cookery experiments.
[2]. Huxley, A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1999
[3]. Tanaka, T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World.
[4]. Lim T.K. Edible Medicinal And Non-Medicinal Plants, Vols 1–12.
[5]. Thomas, G. S. Perennial Garden Plants, 2004
[6]. Milner, E. Trees of Britain and Ireland, 2011
[7]. Rose, F. & O'Reilly, C. The Wild Flower Key (Revised Edition) — How to identify wild plants, trees and shrubs in Britain and Ireland, 2006
[8]. Streeter, D. & Garrard, I. The Wild Flowers of the British Isles, 1983
[9]. Clapham, A.R.; Tutin, T.G. & Moore, D.M. Flora of the British Isles, 1987
[10]. Phillips, R. Mushrooms, 2006
[11]. Jordan, P. & Wheeler, S. The Complete Book of Mushrooms: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Edible Mushrooms, 2011
[12]. Bunker, F. Seaweeds of Britain and Ireland, Second Edition, 2017
[13]. Facciola, S. Cornucopia II — A Source Book of Edible Plants, 1998
[14]. Hartford, R. Edible and Medicinal Wild Plants of Britain and Ireland: A Foraging and Photographic Identification Guide
(Note that the above book links are Amazon Affiliate links)