Celine Chiam | Singapore Lifestyle, Beauty and Travel Blogger: how to choose durian
I guess I have to say this is by far my most loved food tasting because it’s all about the king of the fruits: Durians!! Today’s review is to introduce you durians that I find quite interesting and of good quality.
There’s always a love-hate relationship with durians, and they can go two really extreme ends – either you love it or you hate it. Some people hate the smell (like my boyfriend -.-) while some can’t wait to sink their teeth into the soft durian flesh the moment they smell the pungent aroma of durian (like me).
I thought I’ll make this post more interesting than a normal durian tasting by teaching YOU how to pick a good durian! Honestly, I’ve never known the proper way to pick a good durian from the durian stack because no one has ever taught me before. The most straightforward and mythically mistaken way to test the quality of the durian is to smell and press gently on the durian flesh. But uh-uh, there’s more into it!
This tutorial is courtesy to Lele Durian Stall, which is located at 20 Ghim Moh Road #01-214. Lele Durian Stall is really more than just a simple durian stall. It provides durian delivery in Singapore free of charge if you purchase $150 and over, if not $15 delivery charge for purchase under $150. For example, your sudden cravings for durian calls for a durian party and you gather several friends to your house, durian delivery sure comes in handy and convenient.
Lele durian has in fact helped out with several durian parties held by ministries and community centres. The old folks love their durians!
How to pick a good durian?
Step 1: The look test (stem)
If it is soft and moist, it means the durian has came into contact with water. The durian may be slightly watery than usual.
Step 2: The smell test
By smelling through the durian shell before you open the durian, it reveals whether the durian is bitter or sweet. Sometimes it’s a little tricky to determine the taste.
Step 3: The shake test
Ah this is super tricky. I tried shaking the durian to determine if it is ripe. If it’s shaking inside the shell, it’s ripe. On the flip side, if it doesn’t shake, it means the flesh is still in tact to the shell.
Step 4: The press test
Pressing against the durian meaty flesh only tests the ripeness of the durian. A ripe durian does not mean it’s good or delicious.
Almost all durians have different characteristics. Be it the way they are shaped, the size they are and also how the ends look like!
Lele Durian Stall has a very unique type of durian that not many other durian stalls have – D100 Durian or ‘Hello Kitty’ durian. The name ‘Hello Kitty Durian’ was derived from the fact that D100 is a very rare durian, hence customers practically have to snatch for it, just like how we queued up for macdonald’s Hello Kitty Plushies. D100 Durian is rare and the stall owner claims that it’s only one in Singapore, but I’ll give my reservation for this. Since usually there’s only 10 D100 durian per day, it’s in a first come first serve basis for the durian lovers. In order to avoid disappointment, come down early and grab them!
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| D100 with a very uniquely shaped durian seed |
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| Mao Shan Wang, Cat Mountain King Durian has the tendency to break open, so there’s a need to tie the ends with an elastic band. |
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| The extremely sweet Mao Shan Wang, Cat Mountain King Durian |
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| Hu Lu, durian shaped like a calabash |
My personal favourite of all types is the D100 Durian because of the well balance between sweetness and bitterness. What I was told about the D100 durian is that its taste is slightly milder than for instance, mao shan wang durian.
Lele Durian Stall also provide durian puree to retailers/manufacturers and durian mooncakes as the retailer. If you are craving for durians now, you can call for delivery too!
Lele Durian Stall
https://www.facebook.com/Durianhee
Raymond: 96948584
20 Ghim Moh Road #01-214
(Ghim moh market will be closing in May 2013)
Love,
Celine