The King of Fruits

Crates of durians

There are two kinds of people in the world. One that doesn't like durian and one that does. Dad and I are alike, we both love durian. But, not Mom. According to Mom, durian has this repulsive odor that make her feel as if she was in her second trimester pregnancy: endless cycle of sickness and vomiting. True, for some people, durian does stink. But, to me, the strong scent is amusingly pleasant - and a calling that tells me to spend some rupiah on the king of fruits. 

Durian is very popular in Southeast Asia, including Jakarta, Indonesia. During durian season, you can definitely find this gem at every corners of the streets. The price varies from Rp10.000,00 to Rp100.000,00, depends on its' kind and quality of the fruit - in this case, the price does determine the quality. 

This fruit is well known for its' role as the King of fruits. Other than the fact that it has a very strong stench that makes people either love it or hate it, it is big in size and it has thorn all over its' husk. It's a bit tricky to crack open durian if you're not used to it. You can get hurt by the thorns from not holding the fruit properly. 

Despite the fact that I often munch on durian, I still can't crack them properly. So, every time I'm buying durian, I always ask the seller to get rid of the husk. Like today!

A worker at All Fresh cracking the husk open

I stopped by at a fruit store named All Fresh, located in Tebet, after I finished church this morning. I was only going to get me some durian pancakes, but I got caught up in the durian section and ended up buying some of the fruits as well. I bought one durian that weights for almost 2kg. It costed me around Rp70.000,00, but it was worth it as the flesh was very very sweet and custardy. 

The texture of the fruit is very creamy and custardy. It feels like as if you are eating a spoonful of heavy custard that tasted super sweet and rich in flavor. The strong aroma is rather stupefying, but it's nice nonetheless. 

There is a possibility for you to get a headache after you consume too many durian. The ultimate way to get over the headache is to pour some water into the inner part of the husk and drink from it - the husk has this layer inside that works as an antidote that heals you when you fall ill after over consuming durian. You can also get rid of the durian stench that lingers on your fingers and in your mouth by doing the same thing. 

The inside of a durian

Just look at those creamy and custardy flesh

I used to hate durian. I hated the stench, I hated the weird texture of the flesh, and boy did I hated the flavor of the fruit that made me nausea. But then, out of nowhere, I developed a big curiosity towards the thorny fruit and gradually grow fond of it. I don't know why and how, but I just did! I ended up betraying Mom and teamed up with my Dad in devouring durian. 

For those who have never eat durian, you ought to try it. True, the fruits stinks so bad and the taste of the flesh can make you go tipsy-wipsy. But, it's worth to try! You will either love it, or hate it. There's only one way to find out. 

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