According to Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World 1976, the seeds of Rhaphiolepis umbellata are crushed, ground into flour and made into dumplings in times of famine (spelt Raphiolepis in the text).
I tried some seeds, with thin flesh still on. Raw they are really too hard to eat, but after brief boiling they become soft enough to eat. They are similar to a peanut in texture, slightly crunchy and firm. The taste is bland, a bit nutty. Not delicious but not bad. Skin can be removed easily after boiling. There were sometimes a few annoying little basically inedible bits left in the mouth after swallowing, from some part of the skin or stem perhaps.
Perhaps worth including in a coastal edible garden, mainly as shelter for less tough crops with bonus of passable snack or something to add bulk to a stir fry or dumpling.
It grows wild here in New Zealand, I gathered these seeds from a wild plant near the sea.
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