Durian… you may have heard of it. Regarded by many as “the king,” and loathed by just about as many for its smell. There are over 30 recognized species, at least 9 of which are edible. I’ve tried at least three.
Because of the smell, durian has been banned from some busses, metro systems, and hotels across Southeast Asia.
Nonetheless, I’m in love. I tried durian for the first time in Vietnam back in June of 2014. At the time, I didn’t hate it, but I wouldn’t say that I loved it either. It was good, but my real obsession was with mangosteen (known as “the queen”… hmm, maybe there’s a theme here), another Southeast Asian fruit.
During this last trip to Asia, there wasn’t a lot of mangosteen around and I met up with my other durian-loving friend, Jeremy. Together with another friend I was traveling with, we purchased a whole, quite large, durian of the Musang King variety, said to be a favorite of durian-lovers. From the first bite I was hooked, and my durian obsession began.
Caroline with the Musang King durian
If you follow me on twitter, you may have seen a plethora of durian-related tweets.
I brought home some durian candy and durian jam. The jam is just about as good as it gets, at least until I make it back to Southeast Asia.
![Russia – Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Velicky Novgorod [VIDEO]](https://carolinelupini.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/russia-500x383.jpg)
![The Dead Sea – Don’t Miss It! [VIDEO]](https://carolinelupini.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Screen-Shot-2018-03-11-at-1.44.10-PM-500x383.png)
Had durian for the first time about 5 years ago in Singapore and I am TOTALLY hooked! My family thinks I am crazy as I’ve brought them durian cookies and durian ice cream to try and they despised it… I really do think there is some variation in smell/taste buds among humans which determines if an individual likes durian or not…. Last time I was in Singapore it wasn’t durian season but I did get some AWESOME durian ice cream (made in Malaysia).
It wasn’t durian season when I was there either, but I was able to find a few places selling it, just for slightly higher prices. I also had some durian ice cream in Singapore and it was delish!
Have you tried the Durian place that is landside at Changi? They have a ton of different baked goods with Durian, a little pricey but still tasty!
I didn’t try anything but I took a look when I was there, I agree that it was a little pricy. I really liked the durian-shaped ceramic things, but didn’t want to have to carry it home.
Ahh, durian is so good! I’m heading to Penang tomorrow–send me any tips you have? And of course where you found durian.
Enjoy! I liked Penang 🙂 An email is coming your way!