durian

[Ken Gargett]

durian. love them? hate them? don't care? 

thoughts? 

[JohnS]

Are you talking about the fruit?

[Ken Gargett]

8 hours ago, JohnS said:

Are you talking about the fruit?

i am. 

[Adisaputra]

Love it. Coming from Indonesia where you can easily find many varieties of durian, I can say that it’s one of the most delicious delicacy that you should try at least once in your lifetime. 

[anacostiakat]

Have only had it once here in ice cream.  Been quite a long time ago.  Loved it.

[gustavehenne]

I used to live in Malaysia and there were signs all over public transport indicating that one couldn't eat it. The smell of these things initially put me right off and until a nice Malay girl volunteered to take me on a Durian trip, I didn't bite...

We arrived at this fruit stall place and the guy cut open the durian - past the spikey interior lies the flesh. The smell is more intoxicating as you cut away but I muddled through. Once you have it in your mouth it can only be described as very creamy and less overpowering than the actual smell... I wouldn't rush to have it again.

p.s. (and sorry in advance) - I find the smell of the durian worse once its been digested. Sadly I had to bid farewell to this girl as she ate durian all the time and I just couldn't put up with the smell in the house, and more specifically, the bathroom!

[SCgarman]

This is something generally not available in the USA. Never had it and likely never will.

[SirVantes]

Singaporean.  Love them.  End of.

But seriously:

1. I think the taste of durian is so assertive, complex and unique that no one is ever truly prepared for it.  So a visceral first impression may be the end of the road for most people.  

2. It's good.  It's more than good.  But maybe you have to want to like it, and keep trying until you do, like uni, or Laphroaig, or sherry.  Then you're hooked.

3. There's a common opinion that the taste does not agree with Caucasians [pre-emptive defence: nothing racist about it.  Like saying milk does not agree with Italians, because they are commonly lactose intolerant ie. no cappuccinos after breakfast.]   And apparently it's the aroma that's the worst of it.  Having said that, see #2 above - I know some who have seen the light.

4. There are different varieties of durian.  When I see durians outside of Asia, they tend to be Thai durians - these are generally considered durian-lite; sweeter, less bitter, less pungent.  Aficionados swear by Malaysian durians, and there are strains/varieties like Black Gold, Maoshanwang, D24 that have their devotees.  Come durian season, trucks race from the plantations to export points like what used to happen with beaujolais nouveau.  Now there's apparently big demand from China [cue ominous music]. 

5. I won't try to describe the taste.  The usual descriptors of heavy custard, cream cheese, sweaty socks and downhill from there just don't get close to it.  But to me a good durian is as fine an experience as a great cigar.

[Hollywood Ninja]

I love this place! Discussion about durian on a cigar forum, hahahaha. Love eating this and it is possible to get at some hole in the wall asian groceries in the US (especially ones that specialize in SE Asian food). I'm part Thai so grew up eating the stuff. Funny to see all of the "No Durian" signs in hotels in Thailand.

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[Ken Gargett]

posted originally as i am a fan but rarely see them. have picked one up from the Asian supermarket on my way to the coast and looking forward to it.

i don't think there is anything about not agreeing with caucasians. simply that they are so unused to anything like it. i know plenty who love them. the smell certainly puts many off but i think that it is more that it is completely different to what we think of as fruits. takes some a while to get used to it. others never do. some good from the start. i first tried them when i went through asia back in the mid 80s and loved them (the bloke who introduced me to them was our truck driver at the time and now one of my editors and i am doing an article for him on them).

the best description i ever heard of them, and i have no idea where it came from, was 'like eating custard over an open sewer'. 

[Islandboy]

Isn’t this the fruit that brought us the joke line “Mother always told me, never eat anything bigger than your head”?

Personally, I can’t get past the aroma, it’s like a dense sweetness that’s on the verge of fermentation.

[Bill Hayes]

I was the same with Sambal, Kimchi and stinky dank cheeses but now love them. Will have to try it. Does it have that same kind of earthy, mouldy profile but exaggerated? Cheers

[...]

I've had it in Thailand and Malaysia and enjoyed it!

[smokeyjoe01]

Tried it in Singapore 2005…

 

…never again! 

 

[Fuzz]

Pre-Covid, I was asked by someone if I could source Musang King durian and import it into Aus. Had it all lined up; reefer container, import docs, all cleared with AQIS, and then it fell through because the customer failed to stump up the $250k for the container. Would have been a sweet deal and we'd undercut most of the other suppliers, but just not to be.

As for how I personally feel about eating the stuff? I don't mind it. The smell never bothered me too much. Having lived in my father's home town (Teluk Intan, Perak) where they had open sewers, I've smelt worst things than fresh durian. If you want to dip your toe in, try durian flavoured ice cream. Being frozen, the flavour and smell is muted. Costco here in Aus are now selling frozen Musang King pieces.

Be wary of buying durian. Everyone says they sell Musang King, but there are so many cultivars and clones, you can be easily fooled into paying big bucks for junk.

Oh, and before anyone says it, yes I know about Black Thorn durian (D200). Yes, it is more expensive than Musang King (D197), and some say it is better. But you get more consistency in quality with Musang King than you do with Black Thorn, especially across the life of the tree. Unless the Black Thorn durian is coming from an older tree, the quality just isn't as good as Musang King.

[SCgarman]

Is eating this fruit a rite of passage of some sort? Seems that way. Doesn't really sound like it has a great taste, and apparently smells like a rotting human corpse. I cannot understand the fascination

[BoliDan]

I like strange food experiences. Even looks gross. I'm in. 

[rolaand]

Im just glad this isnt about durianrider

[Reverb]

The first bite of a fresh Malaysian durian is pure vanilla marshmallow custard sweetness that quickly includes a very strong onion flavor that soon overpowers. My experience anyway…


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[westg]

On 10/27/2022 at 10:03 PM, Fuzz said:

Pre-Covid, I was asked by someone if I could source Musang King durian and import it into Aus. Had it all lined up; reefer container, import docs, all cleared with AQIS, and then it fell through because the customer failed to stump up the $250k for the container. Would have been a sweet deal and we'd undercut most of the other suppliers, but just not to be.

As for how I personally feel about eating the stuff? I don't mind it. The smell never bothered me too much. Having lived in my father's home town (Teluk Intan, Perak) where they had open sewers, I've smelt worst things than fresh durian. If you want to dip your toe in, try durian flavoured ice cream. Being frozen, the flavour and smell is muted. Costco here in Aus are now selling frozen Musang King pieces.

Be wary of buying durian. Everyone says they sell Musang King, but there are so many cultivars and clones, you can be easily fooled into paying big bucks for junk.

Oh, and before anyone says it, yes I know about Black Thorn durian (D200). Yes, it is more expensive than Musang King (D197), and some say it is better. But you get more consistency in quality with Musang King than you do with Black Thorn, especially across the life of the tree. Unless the Black Thorn durian is coming from an older tree, the quality just isn't as good as Musang King.

Now that is interesting 👍🏻👍

[Ken Gargett]

something rather interesting i have discovered. take a guess, sans googling, as to what plant, according to genome testing, the durian is most closely related. 

a clue - apparently the durian and jackfruit are not related at all. 

[ha_banos]

A Chinese colleague brought back some durian sweets PC (pre COVID). Nasty things. Not going anywhere near the fruit. Which looks suspect to.

[Ford2112]

I think the fruit looks like a banana slug

[Ken Gargett]

22 hours ago, Ken Gargett said:

something rather interesting i have discovered. take a guess, sans googling, as to what plant, according to genome testing, the durian is most closely related. 

a clue - apparently the durian and jackfruit are not related at all. 

for those who might be interested, apparently according to tracking genomes etc, durian's closest relative is cotton. how the hell does that work?

[MrBirdman]

If you can’t even find hipsters eating this in America, I figure I’m probably not missing out on much, at least for a US palate. 😉