Mali: Saba Fruits
Besides mango all along the Sikasso to Bobo Dioulasso road, there were occasionally some other fruits for sale, known as “wild mangos”. These are completely wild and not cultivated, and while they do somewhat resemble mangos, they are from liana-like climbing vine trees, completely unrelated, and taste nothing like mangos. The fruits are oval and have rough surface and yellowish color. The inside has seeds in bright yellow pulp. They are extremely sour, somewhat like “bitter lemon” drink jacked up 10x in intensity. Fantastic! Saba is extremely rich is C, A, and B1-B3 vitamins. Imagine dropping these into a glass of vodka-soda for an insane mix! The fruits are not commercially grown or harvested, just a local specialty.
