A Thorny Love Affiar!
Yeah, thats what Singaporeans have towards this fruit - the other jackfruit - DURIAN! 
A typical Singaporean would lay claim on the durian as a Southeast Asian fruit — nay, not just a fruit but the “King of Fruits” — but it’s more than that. It’s an architectural juggernaut, a cooking ingredient, a Hongkong movie, a toxic substance that should spearhead the development of chemical warfare; and a dangerous odour capable of holding up a flight.
The King, like so many other kings, is many things to many persons. But let’s start with its basic identity — food. The word durian comes from the Malay word, duri, for thorn and was used to bait the animal which was believed to cause the SARS virus, the civet cat. Describing how a durian looks and smells is prickly business. Someone once said that the durian is to fruit what limburger is to cheese and pornography is to literature. Others have described it as “rotting onionsâ€, “unwashed socksâ€, and even “smelly armpitsâ€. It’s no wonder the durian is banned from hotels and subways in many parts of Asia.
Yet to those who love it, the durian is the fruit of the gods, the caviar of fruits.
In The Malay Archipelago, famed Victorian naturalist and evolutionary theorist Alfred Russell Wallace wrote, “To eat durian is a new sensation worth a voyage to the East to experience.†His hyperbole is just the tip of the iceberg. Proof of the durian’s greatness? In 2003, it made the Guardian’s ‘20 Foods You Must Eat Before You Die’ list, alongside delicacies like wild boar prosciutto, raw milk buffalo cheese and roasted beef marrow.
David Thompson, a chef and writer, pens these compliments in that list — “The durian is the most notorious fruit. You can smell it from 100m away. Some describe it as tasting like eating custard out of a toilet and as having the smell of New York in summer, but I love it. It is the most delicious thing - there’s a bit of garlic about it, and saffron too. I’d sell my mother to eat it.â€
The durian has about as many vitamins and minerals as the avocado but contains two-thirds less fat. And you won’t have to sell your mother because it’s very affordable in Singapore.
The famous strains of durians are the Mon Thong or Golden Pillow juggernauts in Thailand and the D24 from Malaysia. The Mon Thong has tiny seeds in proportion to the custard-like flesh surrounding them and is said to have the sweetest fragrance. The D24 — the de facto boutique durian in Singapore — is sweet with a slightly bitter taste and has been used to make durian puree, durian puffs and durian desserts. Just don’t drink alcohol after ingesting durians — the combination is thought to be deadly though it’s never been proven!!!! 
The durian’s firmly enthroned not just in the culinary world but in the pop-cultural landscape. Singapore loves the durian so much that they spent $600 million modeling their most famous landmark, The Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay, after it. :roll:
There’s a local TV show Durian King!! Elsewhere, Hongkong made a movie titled Durian Durian detailing a Chinese call girl’s life in the island and American reality show Fear Factor once inflicted the King on participants in a concoction made of durian, pig brains, rooster testes and cow eyes.
Inspite of all the love shown by the locals for this heavenly fruit, it is against the law in Singapore to take a durian on public transport. And it is forbidden to take the fruit inside most buildings.
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Here’s my contribution to JFI (the other)Jack fruit for the wonderful duo J and B of Jugalbandhi! :)Â
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Resource: Uniquely Singapore , thorny issues
Pics: Google search (I dare not go close to it!!)
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39 Responses to “A Thorny Love Affiar!”
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Coffee
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~ COFFEE!!
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seriously, coffee, this is the best contribution ever. thank you.
i esp. love all those rolling eyes.
:mrgreen:
:razz: 
oh my coffee, when Bee anounced JF i thought of this too what if use durian ! he he But did you ever make an effort to taste it! :roll:
A fantastic write up Coffee! This was really so informatiove and I love the pictures! You are amazing!
Coffee, I saw this in my friend’s place in London. The smell pervaded the whole house (or so it seemed, to me) and I couldn’t sit inside so we moved to the yard and sat there. I’m not sure I tasted it, either, though I’d be disappointed if I hadn’t because I don’t know if I’ll get to taste it again.
that was an informative contribution. i hate the smell of jackfruit too. :roll:
Hi Coffee,
:mrgreen: :twisted: 
:?: :oops: :razz:
What a wonderful article.I am curious to see that dreaded fruit from faaaaaaaaar.It does look like jack fruit. Oh I can smell it already
I just needed a reason to use your smileys
wohaaaa… now what better can be used shoo all unwanted guests from home :twisted: :mrgreen: smelly armpit? LOL
Loved reading this post!
medeling their famous landmark after “their king of fruits”, now that sure is called an omage!! :roll: :roll: :roll:
loved those pics, coffee, too funny
good one
i forgot to thank you for helping me select durian as the fruit of the month for AFAM july. :twisted:
and i will send durian by mail(if i can get hold of durian;) to bee for sure if she selects it for AFAM :twisted:
sure. my address:
bee
the white house
washington d.c.
i’ll give half to george and laura. :twisted:
Great write up Coffee and no recipe,very clever!!;D
Loved the photos.No Durian allowed?! Bummer!!:)
It looks way different from a normal Jackfruit though.What is that yellow banana like thingie in the middle?
Good one Coffee,applause:))
oh!!! for george i will send 1 dozen :twisted: :mrgreen:
hai coffee,
wonderful write up.though i have never seen or tasted a durain but i am able to imagine one with the write up.
About the MBP entry:i was not ableto send u because i am getting mailer demons it’s not getting to u.can u find a way out.
Thank u
ramya
A nice writeup. But coulnot see the photos coffee. Viji
I should’ve when I could’ve…
Loved reading about it though (regrets even more) - good write up, Coffee.
Good one , Coffee…..quite informative !
Shn
Hey, Lovely write up!!! Was really informative… Didnt know that S’pore had a whole structure designed after this fruit!!!!!
Thanx
Hi Coffee,
Nice rightup.
Even I stayed in singapore few months. Like you I used to run away just by the smell of this fruit. one week Before leaving singapore My H made me to taste it. I liked the fruit but smell YUCK!
Mamatha
Another learning day in the blogging world.. I have never seen a durain.. but readin yr post, I can even ’smell’ it >:)
great post…some much too learn so little time…~grin~….thanks for sharing ben
This is an exceptional post to such an event. Oh, thank you coffee.
6-hundred-million huh, got to love the Singaporeans - they “put their money where their mouth is”.
What a post cofeee….! Loved it !
That was a wonderful post Coffee. I have been listening to narratives of this fruit all thru my childhood and even now. My grandmother’s family were settled in Malaysia and Singapore until they came to India in the 40’s. Every time I sit down to talk with my grandma, she more often than not goes back to those days and a mention about this fruit is definite. Its like I know all about the fruit, but have never tasted it. I saw it in an International store here, next time will be courageous enough to buy it, it will make my grandma proud
great writeup coffe, it looks like a wonderful fruit to try. You know when I was a kid, I used to run away from Kathal and wouldn’t try it for anything. I started eating it a few years ago, and I can’t get enough!
Coffee… what a great entry for the event
love it…. I have seen these here in the Asian store, I’ve always wanted to buy it thinking it might taste like jackfruit… now I am definitely going to try it, it is not that i like smelly armpits or unwashed socks, but I have to taste everything once 
Sig carefull of it even if you like JF not sure you will love durian, it has very strong and i should like to call it pungent smell. even we and most indians like us who migrated don’t like the smell and taste of it. My whole family loves JF but dare not the durian we all run away from its smell but i bet the new generation like my daughter when given at an young age did like its taste may be if we had adapted for her she would have liked it now too. i have seen vegetarian people adapt to non-veg but not this fruit
. i have not come across any of my friends here who love this fruit except the locals
That was a nice twist and lovely write up Coffee. Loved those pics. I didn’t like ripe jackfruit much and haven’t tried one for ages but the green ones I like..you should try the green ones once
Hi Coffee,
I was in Singapore last year and was advised against trying the fruit out. I was told it would taste like a jackfruit gone bad and so on and so forth. I did take a whole lot of pictures during my stroll by the Esplanade Theatres by the Bay.
Cheers,
Raaga
Nice write up Coffee..I have heard of Durian, but never gave it much thought… Your post has been very informative..I am sure I would run 10 miles if there is a durian in the vicinity…
[…] at The Spice Cafe gives steamy details of her love affair with the durian - ‘the other […]
Nothing better for the Jackfruit JFI….Hahahaha…you are one too much, coffee..trust you to come up with an antithesis :mrgreen: and I loved the post..though I am not drooling :twisted:
Did you hear the recent NPR report on how a scientist in Thailand has developed new varieties of Durian without the signature Durian smell, but most people have pooh-poohed this new variety saying: without the smell, WHAT is a durian
. Indeed!!
Cofee that was a good post. We found this in our local Korean store and I saw atleast a few shoppers pick one each. DH thought it was the next best thing to JF and bought it. But Man the smell was awful. I did taste it, it was not bad but you had to somehow eat it without smelling it!!! We had fun eating it but was I glad when the thing was out of the house.
hahhaaa :razz: loved all the write up and comments you received on it. It is the most horrible smelling fruit. I am a gr8 lover of Jackfruit and the hatredness I have for Durian …. no words to write. :roll:
I was in Singapore on a business trip last year and my Singaporean colleagues made me taste some durian cake; it really wasnt so bad, I actually liked the taste
Simply the wittiest and fun piece i have read in days, blogs or otherwise
and what a fantastic entry this is, Coffee.
I haven’t ever seen or tasted this fruit and given the fact that i am not even so fond of ripe Jackfruit, i am sure that i won’t like this :twisted: