Durian is the most divisive fruit on the planet. This is because some might like it but some would hate it. In a matter of fact, durians are not created equally. Some are better than others. The big question is on how to choose a durian that stands out from the rest. If you love durian, here are ways in choosing the best durian in fruit stands.
During this particular durian season, there is going to be an abundance of durian that would be sold at one time. As a customer, it is pretty hard to choose which durian is the good one and customers also do not want to end up getting tricked by the sellers and buying the bad one. Luckily, these are 5 simple steps to choose the best durian to buy.
1) Shake And Listen
Hold the durian firmly with both hands, bring it near to your ears, and give it a shake. If there is a hard and loud or hollow sound, the fruit is not ripe. Most probably the flesh is dry, unripe or the seeds are too large. If there is no noise, the fruit may be unripe or overripe. That is because an overripe durian would tend to have waterlogged flesh which makes it feels heavy or it is no longer fresh. You would want to hear a clear and crisp yet a little squishy sound, that will be the durian with the ideal ripeness where the durian flesh is soft but not watery.
2) Smell
Durians possess a strong odor by nature, but not everyone knows that the smell of a durian actually says a lot too. The base of the husk is the thickest part of the fruit which makes it hard to sniff the aroma of the durian and make a conclusion. Instead, sniff along the split lines of the durian in the center where the spikes run parallel. If there is no aroma or it is very faint, the durian is still unripe. If the aroma is too strong and overpowering, the durian is overripe. The ideal aroma should neither be too faint nor have an overly strong smell.
3) Shape
The ideal durians usually are irregular, oval, or slightly oblong in shape. These imperfect-looking shaped durians are usually the ones that are more aromatic and creamier. A perfectly round durian may look nice and have more chambers in it but they tend to taste blender.
4) Stalk
This is the part of the durian that is most easily neglected. Take a closer look at the durian stalk/stem. A thicker durian stem indicates that the durian received a lot of nutrients from its tree, and therefore has fleshier and better pulp. Besides the thickness of the stem, it’s important to pay attention to the color too. The stem of durians which are older is darker in color while stems of durians that are freshly dropped are light brown. Durians without their stem or stalk most probably have it cut off by durian sellers who intend to pass off poor quality durians which are less fresh.
5) Spikes
The color of the spikes or thorns could tell you the ripeness of a durian. Bright green spikes indicate an unripe durian, while dry brown spikes show an overripe one. For the perfect ripeness, look for green spikes with brown tips.
Sources: Durians.com.