Durian, the King of Fruits, From Bud to Fruit.

The Durian has a very cloying, pungent smell but it has a taste which aficionados swear is  heavenly. You either love or hate the smell!! There are sweet durians and bitter durians.

The outer skin is very thorny and the experts can tell by its thorns the type of fruit you will find within. Durians now come as branded too!  The D24 used to be very popular but it has now been surpassed by the Musang King.  One is even known as the XO.

I prefer the bitter tasting durians to the sweet tasting ones.

 The durian is not harvested but left to fall from the trees as this indicates that it is ripe to eat.

The hot weather of the past few months has the durian trees coming out with prolific blooms and durian orchards are anticipating a bountiful harvest this season.

Although you can gain weight if you eat many durians, there are health benefits to offset this..
Nutritionists have claimed that eating durian can help to lower cholesterol levels as well as to cleanse the blood.

The durian also has high iron content and .amino acids as well as Vitamins B, C and E. Its high level of anti oxidants can also protect you from free radicals thus helping to minimise the effects of aging on the skin, giving you a younger look.

Tryptophan, one of the amino acids found in the durian, is essential for making and maintaining serotonin levels in your body. Serotonin is the hormone that regulates our happiness. Thus eating durian will also increase your general happiness and well being.

The only disadvantage of eating durian is the awful gas that comes out when you burp! The only way to eat durian is with your fingers. You will have to wash your hands using the durian seeds to get rid of any smell that clings to your hands. Some wash their hands with the water running down from the durian’s thorny skin.

To prevent getting a sore throat after eating too many durians, you need to drink water from the durian shell and lots of it.

One thing never to do is to consume alcohol together with durian.  It can prove to be fatal.