We thought cutting into the durian outside would be best. I said we should do it in the back yard so the neighbors wouldn't know where the smell is coming from just in case it was as horrible as we've heard.
The spiny outside is pretty nasty.
Aaron strapped on the ove' glove and dug in
We cut into it, and realized the inside was still partially frozen (after a few hours of sitting in the trunk and an indeterminate amount of time in a crate in the produce section of 99 Ranch).
Individual pods had their own seeds and a custardy, stringy pulp.
The custardy, stringy, pulp.
Aaron tries it first...
and he likes it.
I'm a little scared of it..
but it's not so bad.
The final verdict?
It's really not bad.
Aaron thinks it tastes like a mix of honeydew and avocado. He likes it and would eat it again if it weren't for all the work you need to put in to eat it! I don't think it's yummy or gross. It did get better the more I ate. To me, it tastes like unripe cantaloupe. I would eat it again, but only to test if maybe I like it more or less under different conditions.
We think one reason it wasn't so bad maybe have been because it was partially frozen. At room temperature, we think it would be much worse. Some portions of the durian we had were defrosting and seemed a little more pungent in taste and smell. We saved a little of it and plan on trying it a few different ways, i.e. room temperature and in a smoothie! We'll see how that goes.
In the end, though, the fury in the durian caught up with me.
*side note: I asked Aaron for a few Title suggestions, and he came up with:
- The Beast from the East
- The Stink from the Chink
- Spiky on the Outside, Stink and Creamy on the Inside
- The Good, the Bad, and the DURIAN
I'm going to make sure to show this one to Chad. He is OBSESSED with the Durian and trying it. There's this place in Chinatown (by my work) that makes a Durian shake and he REALLY wants to try it.
ReplyDelete-Kat
Yay!!! You finally tried it. Honestly, I don't know what you consider to smell bad. I've eaten it when I was younger but don't really anymore. It's just too sweet. Looks like yours wasn't too ripe. If you it was bright yellow, I highly doubt you will touch it. In the Asian markets they sell it frozen. Go that route if you want to make it into a smoothie - condense milk and ice will do the trick. I'm so proud that you are guys are experimental. Next step... stinky tofu which just taste like tofu but smells like a pig pen. ho ho ho
ReplyDeleteliz- i'm pretty sure you put the stinky tofu on ong choy(sp?) for dinner one night when we were roomies! it was yummy. I've bought some and used it a couple times since then..
ReplyDeleteDon't put the durian anywhere near air conditioning. A cab we were riding in Thailand almost kicked out a lady because she purchased some durian on a roadway market. The cab driver was extremely afraid of getting fired because the smell of the durian is increased and also lingers when combined with air conditioning.
ReplyDelete