Conquering Durian

I will eat pretty much anything and like it. Living in Korea has only reinforced this borderline obsessive personality trait. I think nothing of happily slurping what others may find repulsive- from fermented fish to congealed ox blood. Today's lunch soup featured at least a half dozen unidentifiable tentacled sea creatures. I loved it.

Naturally, when I first learned of durian, I knew I had to have it. Native to Malaysia and the Philippines, durian is also grown in Thailand and Cambodia. It is commonly referred to as "the king of fruits" due to its immense protein content. Some people are truly obsessed with it, and consider it a delicacy, as it is comparatively expensive.

Most find the taste and smell horrendously foul. A fellow sightseer at Angkor Wat compared his durian experience to "eating rotten onions over a ripe garbage pile."

We sauntered through each of the covered markets on Bar street looking for souvenirs for co-workers and ourselves- silk scarves, Angkor Wat t-shirts, handbags, flags and cutlery. We nervously attempted to improve upon our bargaining skills, eventually learning to just ask "one dollar?" for every item, and then meet somewhere in the middle of a buck and their asking price. I kept a wishful eye out for durian during each excursion.

When I saw what appeared to be durian, both whole and neatly wedged, I bought a hunk. Surprisingly, it was only one dollar. No bargaining necessary. We took the fruit outside to an isolated grassy area and I ordered Sami to film me taking my first bite. It didn't smell bad at all. In the video I described the taste as something very similar to banana laffy-taffy. I was puzzled. What is all the fuss about? Something ain't right.

When we got back to the hotel I did some quick research. It turns out I was eating jackfruit, not durian. I promptly erased the video and all evidence of my fake and foolish conquest.

These three two pictures are of jackfruit, not durian. The picture below is of me with a bag of jackfruit.

As with most things in life, if you really want something, ask someone who knows. I abandoned all thoughts of finding "the king of fruits" on my own and had a local take us there. I paid $5...or $10, I can't remember, the point is we found it. The woman tending to the stand was even kind enough to carve the flesh out for me.

Each section of meat is about the size of a twinkie, but not nearly as heavy to pick up. I remember the color being a light key lime pie green, but I guess pictures don't lie and it is yellow. Each piece has a large, flat, woody seed.

I took my first bite in the back of a thuk-thuk, riding through the dusty streets of Siem Reap. The outside was stringy, and more solid than the very thick, warm custard of the inside. It smelled sweet, like cantaloupe or some sort of melon, but the taste was completely different. The flavor immediately brought to mind that of canned corn. I could taste garlic and onions as well. It coated my mouth like something starchy would and left me thirsty. It wasn't that bad.

I stored the leftover durian in the fridge and when we came back to it, the whole room smelled like dog poop. I could hardly bear to choke down a few more pieces before, sadly, I discarded the remains.