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durian fruitFor those of you not up on your exotic (to most) southeast Asian fruits, let me introduce you to the durian. Known as the "king of fruits," the durian is a 2 to 7 lb. spiky oblong husk containing pods with seeds surrounded in a yellow custard-like fruit.

It's a notable -- and notably cool -- fruit for several reasons.

  • 1) Durian orchards are danger zones covered by a web of nets, because when the fruit falls from the tree it can strike with enough force to kill you.
  • 2) Look at it. I mean, that is crazy!
  • 3) The fruit emits an odor so disgusting (to some) that it is banned in many public places. What does the durian smell like? Travel and food writer Richard Sterling said of the durian: "Its odor is best described as pig-sh*t, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock."

Yeesh. So, why would you want to eat it? Many people think it's incredibly delicious. Here's a quote from British naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace, writing in 1856: "...its consistence and flavour are indescribable. A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes. Then there is a rich glutinous smoothness in the pulp which nothing else possesses, but which adds to its delicacy. It is neither acid nor sweet nor juicy; yet it wants neither of these qualities, for it is in itself perfect."

Wow. Naturally, the internet has reacted pretty strongly to the durian. Check it out after the break.

First of all, you probably want a close up look at this fruit. Here it is:


Craziness. You should also really read this story about how seriously illegal it is to have a durian fruit in certain public places in Asia. It includes the line "we have located the durian smell to this room, please step aside."

Of course, at this point, you're getting pretty curious about just how revoltingly stinky this fruit is. Thankfully, the intertubes has done its utmost to answer that question to your satisfaction. Some Brits give a good demonstration here:


This woman says that it "smells like sewer" and pinches her nose shut while she eats it:


But does it taste good? I refer you to Andrew Zimmern, of "Bizarre Foods" fame. Zimmern's Travel Channel show documents his trips around world, in which he eats the most revolting foods available, including giant grubs, rotting fish, goat heads, and still-beating animal hearts. How does he like durian fruit?


Yikes. This guy scarfs down bull testicles for breakfast and he can't handle the durian. In all fairness, though, a lot of people absolutely love durian. Cut to about the 5:30 mark in this video to see some people rapturously go to town on the smelly fruit:


I have to admit, I do have personal experience with durian fruit. Here's a picture of me, a few years ago, during a durian encounter:


It smelled...not revolting, but definitely unpleasant. It tasted...not awful, sort of like a creamy sweet peppery onion custard. I'd try it again, but it wasn't my favorite thing ever.