Durian 02 (Jun 09 - Dec 27)

[kennynah]

a during trip at geylang

the result of a prolonged withdrawal from an addiction is, usually, overdosing....

and that's what happened to me with my durian escapade just now... i have to be typing this post, standing up...becos when seated, my bloated belly is blocking my arms from reaching the keypad

earlier, on my journey to gland..i contemplated on my approach to this feast... i decided that i should durian-hop, just like bar-hopping... one durian at each stall...

came upon the first stall situated opposite lor17... witnessed quite a number of customers enjoying their fruits..so, i explored the different categories... i specifically chose 1 medium size 山笆榴莲... i wasn't surprised that it tasted bland and tapioca like. it only reaffirmed my believe that not all durians are fit for consumption

山笆榴莲


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next stop.. was another stall opposite lor15... its D24 looked well shaped, healthy green coloured husks... so, ordered one .. it certainly tasted better...creamy as would any decent D24...but unexpectedly, a couple of seeds tasted rather bitter... i started having my doubts that what i ate was really pedigree D24, becos in the years that i had D24, never once did any of them tasted bitter...
i probably will not revisit this shop again... integrity in durian sellers is a major consideration factor for me... i rather pay a little more knowing that the seller ensures consistency in the quality of his fruits... this one...failed
D24


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feeling rather dissatisfied and craving unquenched, i went on to my one and favourite stall... none other than Ah Hung D24, located opposite lor13... saw the familiar young and hardworking durian hawker.. he was proudly and busy brushing his pile of durians... so i went up to him..."wah, zit bai, liew lian lu buay lu gui hor?" (wah..your durians are getting expensive hor?)..to which he replied.."no lah... this ones just arrived" (<< in polite hokkien, of cos)... so, i decided on another D24, although it cost 2 times more expensive than the one above... i knew i could trust this stall's quality, i had no qualms taking his recommendation...

and i was not disappointed at all.. this one had the smoothest of outer skin that coated each fruit... do you remember how we used to bite off a small hole at the corner of the 冰棒 (ice stick) and gently draw the melted liquid into the mouth... well, only on very fleshy and creamy D24 can one achieve the same effect... the skin has to be thin but yet firm enough not to break apart as one sucks out the creamy interior... this baby, offered me so much flesh enveloping such small seeds... by the time, i had the 3rd seed of this fruit, i was beginning to regret this indulgence...i really was getting quite full... but what am i to do? throw away a perfectly God given durian? no way man... i took a train to geylang...so, i cant possibly ta pow the remaining back home on train nor taxi...so, that meant, i had to finish it...don't get me wrong, i loved it...
this fruit was so good..let me rephrase...it was excellent ... easily one of the very best i had so far in recent memory... that despite reaching marginal disutility levels, i pressed on...and it still tasted so good...

D24 - not a huge durian, but within were 11 fruits...almost all core seeds were the shape of a convoluted 20cents...super meaty

[eauyong]

Today's lunch is D2, a tough nut to crack
It's worth all the effort. According to the durian seller, he prefer this to D101.
RM6 per kg. Flesh is fine, smooth and thick; taste a little bitter.
Got to eat every day now as next week will no longer be in this best land of fine Durian as compared to Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Sri Lanka where I have tasted fine durians before. Wonder how the aussie are doing with their durian plantations

[Cherry]

Health Benefits of Durian

Traditionally the durian fruit was seen as a powerful aphrodisiac, while women would eat the ashes from burnt durian skins to help them recover after child birth. But concoctions made from the leaves of the durian tree were also used to help reduce swelling and cure skin disease. More recently nutritionists have claimed that the durian fruit can help lower cholesterol and cleanse the blood as well as cure jaundice and alleviate fevers.

Experts even say that you can rid yourself of yeast infections such as thrush through eating the durian fruit. This is because of the durian's high iron content that helps the white blood cells in our body make specific chemicals that kill off the infection.

The durian is also packed with amino acids as well as Vitamins B, C and E and many people are even comparing the sweet custard like centre of the durian fruit to the goji berry for its high levels of anti oxidants. These anti oxidants help slow down the destruction of cells from free radicals such as pollution and smoking; in doing so, they decrease the effects of aging on the skin giving you a younger more refreshed look.

Among the amino acids found inside the durian is tryptophan. Tryptophan is essential for making and maintaining serotonin levels in the body. Serotonin is the hormone in the body that regulates our happiness and sleep ( Serotonin has various functions, including the regulation of mood, appetite, sleep, muscle contraction, and some cognitive functions including memory and learning.) People with low serotonin levels tend to have short tempers, are often moody and suffer from depression. This means that not only will eating the durian fruit help keep your body running smoothly but it will also increase your general happiness and well being.

[kennynah]

excellent reasons to makan durians.... not that i need one....

[kennynah]

sedap....

[eauyong]

Bang, memang sedap!

[kennynah]

bro eauyong...

what a nice durian...look slike 猫山王

[eauyong]

bro kenny,

just like a true blue durian connoisseur, you are spot on.

[kennynah]

this evening, my wife and i tried D99 after savouring a D24 at a new stall in geylang... the name of the stall is literally, "Wonderful"... the chinese name is 汪德福 located diagonally opposite lor 15/17 on the side of the mrt track....

being the first time tasting D99, i wasn't so accustomed to the viscosity of the fruit...and a heavy tinge of damp forest... in hokkien, we say "chow chngee", but the texture is overall quite good... we concluded that to enjoy the fruit, it is an acquired taste... we probably wont go for it again....

it is rather easy to spot this D99 breed... the husk is slightly elongated, the spikes are further apart than most other durians and the colour is dull green, very light hew of brown... it could be mistaken for thai durians, except that wide spikes are not so pronounced...

this is how it looks like

...

according to the durian seller, it isn't among the top 10 favourites, like 猫山王, 红虾, 葫芦王, etc...understandably.... but it isn't any cheaper than D24 though...

however, when it comes to durians, i'm generally adventurous to enough to try out lesser known breeds...

[kennynah]

at the same 汪德福 stall, we saw a small basket of 情人果 durians...and would you believe that it costs $38/KG...wah dao eh....talk about expensive....

so we asked the seller, why it is so costly...all he said was that it has its reasons; such as "jiu ji" (small seed) as a reason without elaborating further.... poor salesmanship that led to no sales

the fruit is rather small sized...like so...
。。

王中皇, again, a new breed i've never knew existed, was going for $28/KG sorry, no pictures for this...