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36 Comments
Margarita M.
November 20, 2019
I'm so glad I'm NOT the ONLY one hunting for this amazing fruit! If anybody knows how to order and ship to USA, let me know. I have tried twice with NO luck. I really miss the Salak!
I might have to go to Bali again.
I might have to go to Bali again.
Antoniabalonia
January 27, 2018
I’m originally from Hawaii, and most of the fruits you mention grow there as well. The jambu air fruit in your photo is called “mountain apple” in Hawaii and is best when a very crimson red. We also have what we call “rose apple”, but it is yellow and round and smooth-skinned and taste like roses.
Emily
January 27, 2018
I've also had snakefruit, and many of the others you mentioned (including the incredibly malodorous Durian 😱), in Bali and Southeast Asia. But take a shorter plane ride to any farmers market on the Big Island or Kauai and you can get many of the same fruits, including the elusive but even more marvelous egg fruit.
Allysa R.
January 17, 2016
oh my god, you were in Indonesia? Hohoho, there are a lot of (another weird) fruits here. If you're here next time, please try "Sawo" >.< (by the way, rambutan can caused coughing on a summer day)
Retoño E.
January 15, 2016
It' s funny, I' m from Ecuador, and we have them all here as well ;) diferent names though
Chau T.
January 15, 2016
rambutan can be found in asian grocery stores. more exotic fruits in vietnam. love mangosteen. and i eat pomelo all the time so not too exotic
Kitchen B.
January 15, 2016
We have the rose apple too in Nigeria. So interesting. Like the look of the snake fruit, or rather the sound of it.
Fifa A.
January 13, 2016
You must try Matoa, it's from Papua but nowadays relatively easy to find at fruitmarkets. Stone like durian. Skin: hard, smooth like passionfruit. Flesh texture: like rambutan or longan. Taste: like fruits mix, a bit like durian, a bit like longan although not as juicy nor as sweet. Smell like a faintest durian.
Darren P.
January 13, 2016
I remember tasting snake fruit in Birney, never would have thought to taste it if not for a local suggesting it to us. Very unique look and taste. I love mangosteen, it is so hard to find here in Australia, I would travel back to Malaysia for the fruit ☺
Sun.
January 12, 2016
You should try Nangka (Jackfruit) and my personal favourite, Cempedak, it's the same genus as Jackfruit, more mushy though and stronger smell (kinda like durian smell just sweeter), usually we make it into a fritter and serve it with palm sugar syrup.
Henry J.
January 12, 2016
I agree with Amanda. I am really glad that you are back. Nice hands, by the way. I really can't predict which durian camp you will end up in.
thedessertsnob
January 12, 2016
I bought Jambu air in Chinatown in NYC a few years ago. It was sold as "Vietnamese Apple". I've never seen it before so bought a few to try.
Alecta
January 12, 2016
I'm in Toronto, and I see rose apple/jambu air, rambutan, pomelo and many exotics at the local supermarket. Ihave seen the rare durian, tightly wrapped. I don't recall seeing Salak, but I'll keep an eye out.
PW
January 12, 2016
All of these fruits mentioned here can be found in any southeast Asian country, not just Indonesia!
missmixte
January 12, 2016
That "jambu air" you are holding is not quite ripe....wait for a deep pink/red color, and it's sweet with tart flair... once you taste it, you will salivate at the name or thought of it for years to come.
missmixte
January 12, 2016
Also, if you do decide to do a durian trip...head to Mindanao-Davao, Philippines, where it is not simply consumed but celebrated...sculptures, candy, gum, you name it.
Esther
January 12, 2016
Dear durian haters, no need for fruit-ist remarks (kidding, kidding, don't hate me). But on a more serious note, I'm assuming you guys have only tried the yellowish one. Give the red-fleshed durian (native to Kalimantan, Indonesian territory of Borneo) a try and see if you still detest it :-)
Yes, I'm a front-line defender of Durian.
x
Esther
Yes, I'm a front-line defender of Durian.
x
Esther
Alison M.
January 12, 2016
I've never heard of snake fruit before - both the appearance and your flavour description really intrigues me! I love rambutan, longan and mangosteen, but no durian for me thank you! I've tried and tried... can't do it!
The jambul air may not have been ripe - but would it ripen further off the tree once it's been picked? Seems such a shame if you weren't able to try it :(
The jambul air may not have been ripe - but would it ripen further off the tree once it's been picked? Seems such a shame if you weren't able to try it :(
Greenstuff
January 11, 2016
I haven't seen salak, but thankfully, rambutan, durian, and a number of the others are available at my local (San Francisco area) markets. And, just checking, I see you can even get fresh rambutan (my favorite) from amazon. Who would have thought?
Mary A.
January 11, 2016
jambu air--We call that MAKOPA here in the Philippines! and come to think of it, I can't find any fruit that taste like that.
foofaraw
January 11, 2016
Glad you seemed to enjoy the trip. Please write more!
- Have you seen Durian Medan? The one with smaller size compared to Thai Durian. It has stronger (more fragrant) smell. but not normally found outside Indonesia, or sometimes Malaysia.
- Jambu air is very seasonal (maybe 2x a year) and rarely sold in the traditional market because it is easily bruised. They are usually eaten as it is or in a Rujak Buah = Indonesian fruit salad with peanut +fermented shrimp+palm sugar sauce & with pineapple, jicama, starfruit, etc. This is one of the recipe though I never tried this one. http://dailycookingquest.com/by-cuisine/indonesian/rujak-buah-fruit-with-spicy-palm-sugar-sauce
- There are several type of salak actually, Salak pondoh is the majority that you find in the market. There are Salak Bali (from Bali), Salak Lumut (even less often found on market), and maybe other 1 or 2.
- Have you seen Durian Medan? The one with smaller size compared to Thai Durian. It has stronger (more fragrant) smell. but not normally found outside Indonesia, or sometimes Malaysia.
- Jambu air is very seasonal (maybe 2x a year) and rarely sold in the traditional market because it is easily bruised. They are usually eaten as it is or in a Rujak Buah = Indonesian fruit salad with peanut +fermented shrimp+palm sugar sauce & with pineapple, jicama, starfruit, etc. This is one of the recipe though I never tried this one. http://dailycookingquest.com/by-cuisine/indonesian/rujak-buah-fruit-with-spicy-palm-sugar-sauce
- There are several type of salak actually, Salak pondoh is the majority that you find in the market. There are Salak Bali (from Bali), Salak Lumut (even less often found on market), and maybe other 1 or 2.
Sarah J.
January 11, 2016
I saw some very pale, very large snake fruit! Do you know what kind that is?
foofaraw
January 11, 2016
Google search (lol) brings me Salak Gading/Ivory Salak http://www.bebeja.com/salak-salak-terbaik-indonesia/ . The problem/good thing/irony about Indonesia is that we have so many biodiversity (#2 in the world after Brazil), but the information about it is not well cataloged and easily accessible. Like my old neighbor brought us once a fruit that is usually used as cooking material - like how you use tomato for cooking - from Borneo island, but I never even see/heard about it.
Sun.
January 12, 2016
That's one of the main problem in Indonesia, we don't really have a good archiving system, it's kinda hard to find out/access the informations, kinda sad to know we got a lot of interesting biodiversity :-(
Malay
January 11, 2016
You MUST go back for the durian! It is a unique and fantastic fruit. However, for that particular experience, I recommend Malaysian durian over Indonesian ones. Also, be sure to try mangosteen, if you haven't already. Durian and mangosteen, the king and queen of fruits. (Forbidden in most Asian hotels, durian for its distinctive aroma and mangosteen for its propensity to stain.
Sarah J.
January 11, 2016
I didn't realize that there's a difference between Malaysian and Indonesian durian—very interesting! And yes, I had mangosteen. It was incredible and I wasn't even nervous about my clothing because I didn't realize its propensity to stain...
Jati J.
January 14, 2016
Actually in Indonesia there are a lot varian of durian, for every city that produce this fruit have different taste and little bit same with jambu air, there are some varian too...usually we using jambu air for 'rujak' its mix fruits with chilli and brown sugar sauce.
Robert B.
January 11, 2016
For all that is holy, do not eat durian. It is so vile, so disgusting, your taste buds will shrivel up and die.
Sarah J.
January 11, 2016
Ha ha wow! I think a whole lot of people would beg to differ with you—but it is a divisive fruit, that's for sure.
tia
January 11, 2016
Hahahah! I can sympathize! I had it in chocolate and it was fascinating. It had a creamy, custardy flavor with a lovely aftertaste of natural gas. I don't know that I'd want to eat it on its own but wow. What a crazy flavor!
Amanda S.
January 11, 2016
Love the taxi driver fruit spotting story! Cannot wait to hear all the other tales from afar—but we're really just happy you're back.
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