prickly treat
Right before J left for Bern, we decided that we had to have our annual durian feast before the peak season is over. We've been eating at the same stall, 717 Trading, near Yio Chu Kang road for several years now, and sentimentality and quality durians bring us back more than anything, especially since there are durians everywhere on the island at this time of year and you can get good ones for fairly cheap prices. 717 is not cheap since their durians are sold by weight (about $15/kg this year for Mao Shan Wang) but they always have good picks from various species and the men who run the stall have always made good recommendations and we usually leave lighter in the wallet but very satisfied. I even have a 717 staff singlet from the time we filmed Singapore Dreaming there. Now that was a set the crew were all happy to be on.
One year we ate a type of durian called 'Green Bamboo' which had flesh so soft, the stall provided us with plastic spoons to scoop it directly from the shell. If it had been frozen it would have been like eating pure durian ice-cream. A few years ago there was a Super D24 durian which J and I still talk fondly about. The guy who sold it to us warned us not to be too surprised because there were only three seeds inside (the average durian has about ten, I think) but he said that we wouldn't need to have more than three because it was so intense, using the exact words, 初恋 ['first love'] to describe it. We laughed at his description at the time but it turns out that he was utterly right. What we ate was soft, creamy, fresh and intensely sweet and bitter at the same time. Since then J has been hunting for a repeat experience in vain. There's a reason why it's like a first love, eh? Nothing really comes close again.
Durians laid out along the road.
This year, the Mao Shan Wang ('Cat Mountain King') were in peak form when we visited, so that's what we ate. We had one to share at the stall itself and took two home to enjoy slowly - I also love durians chilled in the fridge. The Bun actually didn't eat very much because we ordered the bittersweet durians and I think he generally prefers the sweet ones. No matter - it just meant that there was more for J and me. Right now, I don't expect The Bun to be any sort of durian connoisseur, but since our family loves the fruit so much, I just want him to acquire a taste for it, or at least not cringe with revulsion whenever he smells or eats it. He did eat a great deal of mangosteen though, which were expensive at $10 a bunch but were worth the price because each one was perfectly ripe and sweet.
By the time J returns, there will probably still be durians for sale but I think the peak season would have ended. He's eaten his fill for now, at least, and we've kept our annual tradition going. I think I'll still be able to squeeze in a few more durian sessions with my family - my sister often goes to Chong Pang Market to buy cheap and good ones and buys plenty home for us all to share. Even Tobey loves durian!
[Go here to read a bit more about different durian species.]
One year we ate a type of durian called 'Green Bamboo' which had flesh so soft, the stall provided us with plastic spoons to scoop it directly from the shell. If it had been frozen it would have been like eating pure durian ice-cream. A few years ago there was a Super D24 durian which J and I still talk fondly about. The guy who sold it to us warned us not to be too surprised because there were only three seeds inside (the average durian has about ten, I think) but he said that we wouldn't need to have more than three because it was so intense, using the exact words, 初恋 ['first love'] to describe it. We laughed at his description at the time but it turns out that he was utterly right. What we ate was soft, creamy, fresh and intensely sweet and bitter at the same time. Since then J has been hunting for a repeat experience in vain. There's a reason why it's like a first love, eh? Nothing really comes close again.
Durians laid out along the road.
This year, the Mao Shan Wang ('Cat Mountain King') were in peak form when we visited, so that's what we ate. We had one to share at the stall itself and took two home to enjoy slowly - I also love durians chilled in the fridge. The Bun actually didn't eat very much because we ordered the bittersweet durians and I think he generally prefers the sweet ones. No matter - it just meant that there was more for J and me. Right now, I don't expect The Bun to be any sort of durian connoisseur, but since our family loves the fruit so much, I just want him to acquire a taste for it, or at least not cringe with revulsion whenever he smells or eats it. He did eat a great deal of mangosteen though, which were expensive at $10 a bunch but were worth the price because each one was perfectly ripe and sweet.
By the time J returns, there will probably still be durians for sale but I think the peak season would have ended. He's eaten his fill for now, at least, and we've kept our annual tradition going. I think I'll still be able to squeeze in a few more durian sessions with my family - my sister often goes to Chong Pang Market to buy cheap and good ones and buys plenty home for us all to share. Even Tobey loves durian!
[Go here to read a bit more about different durian species.]