Durian for Sale

Durian (thurian, in Thai): the fruit that people either love or hate.

Unfortunately, many people hate it because they try one that’s not very good. People who eat a good variety, ripe, and a reasonably large portion to begin with, usually like it.

It’s a fruit like no other. I think if you were tasting it blind and had never had it before, you might not believe it’s a fruit: perhaps a custard of some kind. It is very rich.

Aw Taw Kaw Market in Bangkok is an excellent place to get durian. It can be pricey there; but you can also get very, very good durian indeed.

This picture shows one vendor’s wares at Aw Taw Kaw. She’s offering two varieties of durian: the sign to the left says (in Thai script) mawn tawng (“golden pillow”) while the one to the right says gan yao (“long stem”). Of the two varieties, mawn tawng is much more common; gan yao is the tastier (and more expensive) variety.

Vendors there are typically generous with their tastes, trying to rope you in: they hope you’ll buy a package. I’ve never seen them sell an individual piece, just a package, such as the three in front – those large yellow lumps are the fruit, which grow incased in the brown outer coverings above. Don’t ever sleep under a durian tree! They are as spikey as the look!

The gan yao variety is truly delicious. However, it can get expensive, even in Thailand. One time we bought a plate that had perhaps 6 or 7 of the fruits and it was 2,000 baht — at today’s rates (about 34.5 baht to a dollar), that’s over $50.00 U.S. And it was worth it!

For more on Aw Taw Kaw Market, see Michael’s blog entry Pad Thai at Aw Taw Kaw Market. For more on Durian (including photos), check out Kasma’s article on the website: Durian, King of Fruits.

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The Wednesday Photo is a new picture  each week highlighting something of interest in Thailand. Click on the picture to see a larger version.