Durian
The durian is native to Southeast Asia, where it is known as the “king of fruits” – for its large size (it can grow larger than a foot and up to 8 lbs.s), strong aroma, and its fierce thorned armored like husk.
It’s somewhat famous that that strong aroma. It is so famous that it has in some cases been banned from appearing in certain public spaces. It can be quite penetrating and overpowering to some (is been described as smelling like deeply stinky cheese, turpentine, and prehistoric animal), while appetizingly fragrant to other. People usually fall into one or the other category. When it comes to durian, there’s hardly any middle ground.
While exploring what was then called the Malay Archipelago, the nineteenth-century British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace described its flesh as tasting similar to ” a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds.”
Durian can be eaten at various stages of ripeness, it is used Southeast Asian cuisines. When cooked, the seeds also can be eaten.
Durian contains a surprising amount of vitamins B-complex and C, potassium, iron, as well as essential amino acids.
Prepping and Eating Tips
– Always wash your durian well before eating.
– To cut, position stem side down and cut a slit at the top about 4 inches or so long, as you slowly cut, hold the skin back with your other hand. Then using both hands, slowly seperate the two halves with your hands into 2 complete pieces. With a spoon, remove the big pods of fruit inside of the shell. Remove the seeds from each of the pods. There are additional sections of flesh along the seams, don’t forget to remove and enjoy those too.
– To remove smell of durian from your hands: at the sink, run hot water through the durian skin. This will create a mildly soapy or lye water, add soap to this and wash hands thoroughly.
– Enjoy durian fresh as is.
– Ice creams, smoothies, and even baked goodies are made durian too.
Selecting and Storing Tips
Really fresh durian will still have a stem. Look for light-colored spikes, free of dark brown patches or bits of white between spikes, this would be a sign of overripeness.
Store durian in a cool place or the refrigerator if you need to hold off on eating it.
To store leftover cut durian, use an air tight container that is flat and wide enough to accomodate your durian segments without stacking, store in fridge for up to 3-4 days. It will store in the freezer, packed like this, for up to 2 months.