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On the trail of the king of fruits
The durian season begins in late April and ends in mid-September. At the beginning of the season, prized varieties like the D24, Thakar and Raja Kunyit can fetch a high market price of between RM28 and RM52 per kg.
Now, chasing a commodity when prices are high can put a sizeable dent in your wallet. So, like any good fruit speculator on a “Durian Watch”, I get my tips from Alvin Chong, a seasoned durian connoisseur.
The best of the best: Ah Wai showing off a premiumgrade Durian Raja Kunyit priced at RM14 per kg. Chong, who runs a pub in Petaling Jaya, said he had been following the durian trend for more than 20 years and found that mid- and end-season fruits were the cheapest.
“Eh, you don’t have to worry about supply because once all the durian-producing states are exploding with their large quantity of unsold fruits, you can expect prices of varieties like the D24 to dip as low as 50 sen a piece,” he said.
Since good advice is usually free, I took the cue. My fruit trail landed at David Ong’s durian stall in USJ14, Subang Jaya. His stall is a familiar sight because each time durians are plentiful, you will see people flocking to the scene.
It is not hard to spot Ong’s stall because it is located directly opposite the Petronas station in the neighbourhood. According to Ong, who has been in the business for seven years, prices of durian are now at their lowest and this is expected to last until early September.
“Wah, you came at the right time lah, bradder! Now, the D24 is priced at RM1 a piece. It is the best-selling variety in terms of volume and each day, I get at least three deliveries,” he said.
I met Ong at this stall after a quick lunch at Uncle Jimmy’s char koay teow stall near a Chinese coffee shop in the neighbourhood.
When I arrived, the stall owner was supervising his staff.
“Aiya! You should have seen the crowd yesterday evening lah! Our best variety – the Raja Kunyit – was sold out. The fact that it’s now at RM14 per kg has placed it in good demand,” said Ong.
To my delight, I found that there are at least 30 varieties of durian – both natural and hybrid fruits – here. But, when it comes to choices, I have narrowed it down to three.
Premium fruit: The ‘Chook Keok’ or Durian Thraka durian, which is second only to the Raja Kunyit variety. It is dry and bitter-sweet, with a medium texture. First, there is the familiar D24 variety which is commonly found. It has light yellow-coloured flesh, which is sweet tasting and has a smooth texture.
The D24 is also very suitable for making tempoyak or fermented durian. This is also my favourite ingredient for the gulai tempoyak lemak masak chili api.
At RM1 per fruit, you cannot go wrong with the D-24. It tastes better than the durian kampung which is now found in abundance.
Next, is the Durian Thraka or “Chook Keok” (Bamboo Base). This is now priced at RM10 per kg and is considered a premium variety.
It has yellow-coloured flesh which is dry in texture and tastes bitter-sweet. The Thraka is harvested from orchards in Perak, Pahang and Johor.
Now, the best-of-the best in the durian line-up is the Durian Raja Kunyit or “Mao San Wong”. This is a highly-priced fruit which has flesh that is a golden yellowish in colour with a creamy texture. It is bitter-sweet tasting and well, it is an acquired taste.
Ong the durian man said the Raja Kunyit had been featured in a Hong Kong TV food series called Sek Wong (Food King), which gave the fruit a two-thumbs-up rating.
I took the opportunity to snag four pieces of Raja Kunyit and presented it to Michelle, my wife and my two dogs, Sir Naughty and Dame Queenie. My wife said it tasted okay and the dogs wasted no time in licking the flesh clean from the seed.
From Ong’s stall, I moved on to another legendary durian outlet in Jalan SS2/65, Petaling Jaya. This place is managed by a fellah called Ah Wai.
Eat and go: Customers prefer to savour the ‘king of fruits’ at stalls for convenience. It is fairly easy to spot the guy because he is the tallest of the lot. When I arrived at this outlet, at least two tables were already occupied by customers having a durian-tasting session.
According to Ah Wai, it is all-you-can-eat at RM10 per head and this covers durians of all varieties. This is also very well stocked with a regular daily shipment from the orchard.
“People prefer to eat here rather than tah-pau (take away) because they don’t need to peel the fruit’s thorny shell and dispose of it. All is taken care of. Mineral water is given free.”
Ah Wai’s stall seems to be doing very well because he opens from 7am to midnight. Ong, on the other hand, opens late. He does his business from noon to midnight.
While I was at Ong’s place, I asked him about some popular urban durian myths, like whether it was all right to consume alcohol while eating the fruit.
Here comes the supply: The scene at Ah Wai’s stall when a lorry arrives with fruits from the orchard. “Aaaah, you can drink beer lah, it’s okay. But hard liquor like whisky and brandy is a no-no,” he said. For the hardcore durian lover fearing an overdose, Ong suggests mangosteen as the “antidote”.
Mangosteen has a cooling effect on the body, and is considered by the Chinese as “ice” while durian is “fire”.
For a small fee, the durian seller can set aside a bunch of mangosteen for those who want to overindulge.
Ong’s durian stall is located at row 11 and 12 at the USJ14 fruit stalls and Ah Wai’s durian outlet is in Jalan SS2/65 (behind the BP petrol station).
So, if you plan to have a durian party, head there early and the best times are 1pm, 3pm and 5pm because these are the scheduled durian delivery times. You can get the best fruits fresh form the orchard!
