Rambutan - เงาะ

Rambutan Facts and Information

Commonly known as Rambutan it is known botanically as Nephelium lappaceum. The Rambutan is a tropical tree which belongs to the Sapindaceae family and also the fruit of this tree. Although it does not grow very tall, it produces an ample harvest. Rambutan is widely distributed throughout Indonesia, Malaysia and Southeast Asia and is identified in some countries, by different names. For example, in Nicargua, Costa Rica and Panama, Rambutan is identified as mamon chino while Thailand people call it ngoh. In Malaysia, another type of Rambutan is sold called wild Rambutan. Although the common color of Rambutan is red, the fruit of this particular type is yellowish. The hairy skin of the Rambutan fruit is removed to get to the whitish or pinky edible parts. They typically taste sweet though some are sour as well as sweet.

Appearance of Rambutan

The Rambutan tree grows to about 10 to 20 m in height. Its alternate leaves are 10 to 30 cm in length and pinnate and have three to eleven leaflets, each with an entire margin about 5 to 15 cm in width and 3 to 10 cm in breadth. Petal-less small flowers which are about 2 1/2 to 5 mm in size are disk-shape and they bloom cluster wise. The shape of Rambutan fruit is round or oval and it is about three to six cm by three to four cm in dimension.
Rambutan is borne in clusters, and about 10 to 20 Rambutan fruit can be seen. Its leather like skin has pliable thorns. Rambutan fruit is typically red though some are yellow or orange. ‘Rambut’ is a Malay word that means ‘hairs’, hence it gets its name because of the thorn like appearance of its fruits. Its brownish seed is about two to three cm in size and is basally scarred. It is soft and crunchy. Although the raw seeds are poisonous, they may be eaten after cooking.

Propagation of Rambutan

In some countries, the Rambutan tree is very common in gardens. They are also grown in medium sized estates for trading. Although Rambutan are widely seen in Southeast Asian countries, Sri Lanka, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, the Caribbean, Africa, Cambodia and Central America are also main countries for Rambutan plantations. It is one of the fruits that give out massive harvest in Hawaii as well. Rambutan trees are genetically male or female. Although female Rambutan trees are only with female flowers, the male Rambutan tree has both flowers although female blooms are less.
Fragrance of Rambutan flowers entices insects. Mostly, bees can be seen around Rambutan flowers. Many types of butterflies, flies and other types of insects extract a great quantity of honey thus fertilizing them. Since the female flowers lack pollen, they need cross pollinations to be fertilized. Although some cultivars are apomixes, Rambutan mostly depends on insects to be pollinated.
From the selected clones, a range of cultivars has been produced up to now. Some of them are highly suitable for harvesting and they are only three to five m in height which makes them easier to be cultivated. Seeds of Rambutan are now available that are developed to bear both the female and male flowers equally well. After removing the fleshy fruit, seeds are thoroughly washed before planting. It will take about nine to 25 days for sprouting. Seedlings give results after five to six years but genetic wise the duration may change. Patch budding is an effective way to propagate Rambutan trees. In this method, one and half month old seedlings are taken and planted in one quart cans with enough manure. Thereafter they are transferred to large containers and this type of trees produces flowers within three years after they are planted out in orchards.

Uses of Rambutan Fruit

Rambutan is a tasty fruit and it is very popular in many countries. Seed oil from the Rambutan is produced and in use to manufacture candles and soap. Although Rambutan trees are cut down rarely, their wood is used in the construction industry. Rambutan fruit is said to heal dysentery and diarrhea effectively. The leaves are also used as cataplasm to cure headaches. In Malaysia, the skin of the Rambutan fruit is used to prepare native medicines. Further, the roots of Rambutan trees are boiled and used as a medication to cure fever.

Nutritional Value of Rambutan Fruit

Rambutan fruit is rich in following components: Fat, Calcium, Iron, Protein, Nitrogen, Ash, Sodium, Zinc, Magnesium, Manganese, Potassium, Phosphorus, pH, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Fiber. Eating five fruit in a day can seriously decrease the chance of cancer. Rambutan fruit is also very effective in lowering blood pressure.

How to Eat Rambutan Fruit

Open Rambutan fruit by removing one part of its skin. Find the seam across the fruit and pull apart the leathery skin. You can also use the knife, but be careful, only cut through the skin. Then you can hold the fruit with your fingers and enjoy the sweet taste.
Rambutan fruit cannot be cooked; it can be eaten raw only.

Jackfruit - ขนุน

 

Jackfruit Information and Facts

The jackfruit tree is native to countries such as India, Bangladesh, Philippines, Thailand and Sri Lanka and maybe even East of Malay. It’s cultivated on Tropical conditions and the Jackfruit is believed to be the largest tree borne fruit in the world.

History of Jackfruit

The Scientific name of Jackfruit is Artocarpus heterophyllus and comes from the family of Mulberry family (Moraceae). Native to countries like Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and Bangladesh it was known to have originated from the Western Ghats of India. It is the National Fruit of Bangladesh and Indonesia. The Jackfruit was introduced to Northern Brazil in the mid 19th Century. It has been a major part of Indian Agriculture for Centuries. It’s believed that the great king Asoka in India encouraged cultivation of the Jackfruit. History shows that cultivation of jackfruit goes back to as much as 5000 to 6000 years.

Jackfruit’s Benefits

There are many benefits of the Jackfruit tree. It’s a very nutritional and tasty fruit and even the seed of the fruit is edible and very high in nutritional value.
The tree yields strong wood when mature and valued for its durable termite proof timber which can be used to build furniture. The leaves are one of the favorite diets of goats in these tropical areas.

Medicinal value of Jackfruit

Jackfruit is very useful when it comes to lowering blood pressure due to its very high level in potassium. The root of the Jackfruit is known to have many curative benefits. Its extracts are used by many native medicine makers to cure fever and diarrhea, it’s also found to be beneficial for asthma patients, and used to treat many skin problems as well.

Nutritional value of Jackfruit

In Addition, the Fruit contains a high amount of Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Sodium, and many more nutrients. It calorie content is very low and is used in diets for weight loss or even to gain weight. The Vitamin C in the Jackfruit helps to increase the body’s immunity system and keep gums healthy. It’s what keeps the cells in the body together. The nutrients in Jackfruit also stops cancer cells from developing within the body, keeps the blood pressure low, fights against ulcers and makes the skin look younger by slowing down the degeneration of cells in the body. There are many varieties of Jackfruit. The sweetest and best is considered as the Honey Jack.

Habit and Appearance of Jackfruit

The Jackfruit Tree is an enormous tree which is large and bushy found growing mainly in tropical areas which are seen to have Monsoon rains. The young branches contain sticky white latex which can be useful to make birdlime. The leaves of this tree are oval shaped and deep green and glossy and grow in clusters. Its unique male and female flowers are borne in separate flower heads and are mostly seen in February and March. The male flowers are on the new wood above the female flowers. You can tell the difference because the female flowers appear on short twigs from the trunk. Male Flowers has pollen and the female flower doesn’t and another distinctive feature of the female flower is that it begins to swell very soon.
The Jackfruit can become as large as 36 inches long and 20 inches in diameter making it weigh more than 80 pounds. These fruits hang from branches and trunks and sometimes you will also be able to see fruits hanging from the roots of some older trees. These large round or oblong fruit has a rough skin and is usually covered with a thick layer of pointed studs. Due to its very sticky white latex found inside the fruit its best if you dip the knife in vegetable oil before cutting the fruit. Within the fruit are many carpels which are small yellow pulpy pockets with seeds. This yellow pulp can be consumed raw when ripe and cooked when it’s not. It’s very starchy and fibrous which provides energy and has an abundance of dietary fiber. The seeds are also considered to be very nutritious and is consumed cooked by making curries or even fried, or just by drying and soaked in honey. It’s used as a cuisine in most parts of Asia and is the most popular fruit after mango and banana.

Mangosteen - มังคุด

History of Mangosteen Fruit

The Mangosteen is believed to have originated in Southeast Asia. Its botanical name is Garcinia mangostana and is grown in tropical areas of both the western and eastern hemispheres. Commercial plantations can be found in the Philippines, India, Malaysia and Thailand. A few other countries in South and Central America as well as Asia are known to be smaller producers of this fruit. It is highly valued because of the excellent flavour it gives. It is referred to as ‘the queen of fruits’ in Asia and in the French Caribbean as ‘the food of the Gods’.

Characteristics of Mangosteen

From the time that a Mangosteen seed is planted, it can take anywhere from seven to ten years to give fruit. While it is considered one of the slowest growing tropical fruit trees, it can actually reach a surprising seventy five feet in height.
The rind, also known as the exocarp, of the fruit is a deep, purplish red colour when it is ripe. The edible flesh is tangy and sweet. It is about the same size as a tangerine, and its rind is similar to the pomegranate in texture.

Mangosteen Nutritional Value and Benefits

The Mangosteen fruit is as functional as it is delicious. It is particularly rich in xanthones, which are known to help your body function healthily. In addition to this, each serving of this fruit can contain up to five grams of fibre.
Xanthones are the name given to a group of polyphenolic compounds, which are similar in structure to bioflavanoids and are biologically active. They are very rarely found occurring in nature, and the majority of them are found in just two different families of plants. So far, there have been two hundred xanthones that occur naturally which have been identified, and of those two hundred, forty were discovered in the Mangosteen fruit.
Xanthones, along with their derivatives, have been scientifically proven to have many benefits. Some of these are anti-inflammatory properties, anti convulsion abilities and anti-allergic properties. Other components that are found in Mangosteen also have some medicinal qualities, and examples of a few of these components would be catechins, sterols, polysaccharides and proanthocyanidins. While these compounds are not as nutritionally important or as biologically active as xanthones, they still go a long way in providing the Mangosteen with the medicinal benefits that it is treasured for, because many of these components are antioxidants.

How Mangosteen Fruit is Eaten

How to eat Mangosteen fruit? The bittersweet rind of the Mangosteen is not edible. To get past this, you can use the palms of your hands to crush the rind, which is quite brittle, and reach the white fleshy fruit inside. You can also try twisting the Mangosteen rind firmly until it gives way.
Once the rind is taken away, you can see that the inside of Mangosteen fruit consists of wedged segments. The largest wedge is most likely to contain a seed, while the smaller ones lack one. There can be between four to eight segments, and you can find out how many segments are inside the fruit before even opening it because the number or wedges showing on the protrusions on the underside of the Mangosteen represent the number of wedges inside it. Mangosteen is very sweet and should be consumed as soon as it is opened. Mangosteen juice is also very popular, and perhaps the most well known Mangosteen drink is XanGo, marketed by a company based in Utah and introduced to American consumers in 2002.

Other uses of Mangosteen

The medicinal properties of Mangosteen fruit mean that people use it as a home remedy or herbal remedy in curing several ailments. In many Asian countries, such as China, Thailand and India, preparations are made from the Mangosteen rind and then used to treat dysentery and many other types of infectious diarrhoea. The astringent qualities of the plant mean that it is useful when it comes to preventing the loss of important nutrients through dehydration. Thai people make use of the antimicrobial properties of the Mangosteen fruit by using preparations of it to treat tuberculosis, urinary tract infections, infected wounds, malaria, gonorrhoea and syphilis. It was well established in Asia for many years that the Mangosteen fruit has strong anti-inflammatory properties, and therefore it is widely used for treating hyperkeratosis, eczema and other related skin diseases such as seborrhoea and psoriasis.

Durian - ทุเรียน

Durian Fruit Information and Facts

The Durian’s complex taxonomy is a result of addition and subtraction of many species from the genus durio and the Malvaceae family. It was earlier mistaken to Annona muricata (soursop) as this particular fruit also has a thorny greenish skin akin to the durian fruit. Malaysian people who identify soursop by the name ‘Dutch durian’ emphasize the similarity of the two fruits. Another misidentification is known with the notes of Johann Anton Wienmann (1800) where he classified durian with the Castaneae plant.

History of Durian

Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia are native to the durian tree, though Western countries have known it for more than six centuries. Niccolo Da Conti, a Venetian merchant who traveled to China and Western Asian countries in 15th century had mentioned durian fruit in his documents. Garcia De Orta, a Portuguese physician, mentioned durian in his book named Coloquois dos Simples e Drogas da India launched in 1563. The book, Herbarium Amboinense published in 1974 by the Georg Eberhard Rumphius, German Botanist, also gives a detailed and well-researched account on the durian.
Durian Seeds
The Portuguese introduced Durio ziebethuinus to Ceylon in the 16th century. Many new types were also introduced later. In late 1800, Southeast Asian countries that were first familiarized with the plant started to grow it commercially in 20th century. Edmund James Banfield, a naturalist of Australian origin, got a durian seed in 2000 from one of his Singaporean friends and planted it in Queensland first introducing durian to Australians.

Habitats of Durian Fruit

Durian is a native plant of Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia but some highlight that it is native to Philippines as well. Thailand is one of the main countries that export durian to the international market. Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, West Indies, India, Hawaii, Polynesian Islands, Madagascar, China, Singapore, Northern Australia, and Malaysia as well as some parts of America are also well known as habitats for the durian tree.

Appearance of Durian

Nick named ‘King of Fruits’; durian is highly valued in Southeast Asian countries. Durian has a very distinguished smell and its skin is thorny and hard. The dimension of a durian fruit is about 30 – 15 cm and its weight is about three Kgs. Durian flowers bloom in a cluster and there are about three to thirty identical clusters borne on its trunk and large branches. Every flower has sepals and about five to six petals. Durian is round although the oblong shape is not irregular. The shells are green or brown while its flesh is a luminous yellowish or reddish color.
The odor of the edible parts of durian is so penetrating; it spreads a long distance even without removing the shell. Some like the aroma of durian very much while some others highly despise its scent. Durian trees yield two harvests per year, but it may vary in keeping with the various climates, cultivars and places. Durian trees bear fruit after 4 -5 years and they take about three months to ripe. From a great variety of durian, only the Durio ziebethinus variety is marketed internationally.

Benefits of Durian Fruit and Nutritional Value

Durian is rich in sugar. It is also rich in vitamin C, tryptophan, potassium, carbohydrates, fats as well as proteins. Health professionals frequently recommend it as an effective source for taking in raw fats. However, some point out that as the durian contains a high amount of fatty acids it is advised to limit its consumption. Malaysians use its leaves as well as roots to produce a decoction for fever. A research from University of Tsukuba reveals that durian fruit has significant powers to detoxify the body. Javanese people think that durian is a good aphrodisiac.

How to Eat Durian Fruit

The durian fruit is quite large. Its size is not a great problem as ripe ones fall in time. They may slightly crack when falling. By inserting a knife or a fair sized cleaver to such a crack, it can be opened very easily. Within, are about five parts and in each one of these, several seeds can be seen covered with an aril identical to custard. When durian is eaten immediately on falling, the pungent smell is bearable and the taste is also favorable. Durian fruit can be mixed with many flavors to increase its taste. Its seed can also be eaten after it’s cooked.

King of fruits - Durian Story

 
 
Durian is a fruit unique to Southeast Asia. This is sort-of strange, as almost any fruit or vegetable with a somewhat appealing taste has long become a universally cultivated crop. And not that the durian would be lacking in taste appeal. Those who like durian typically regard it as the king of fruit. And even in countries where, during the harvest season, there is a real flood of durians, prices never drop to dirt-cheap levels, as they do for pineapples and bananas.
Well, durians have a strong smell and a unique taste. Could be that those who haven't seen others indulging in durians have doubts as to the fruit's fitness for human consumption. Judging by the fruit's smell, its flesh moves straight from unripe to rotten.
But when good durians are available at reasonable prices I can, for weeks on end, make durian the staple of my diet. And I enjoy a good health doing so.
I haven't been to a hospital or physician for years, and I practically never take any medicine. Anyway, I have little confidence in medical science, and would never undergo an operation that requires full anesthesia.
(While I do not take any Western pharmaceuticals, I am, however, enthusiastic not only about Indonesian durians, but also about another Indonesian plant, the testosterone-boosting herbal tongkat ali. Never heard of tongkat ali? I can eat durian for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and I am confident that I can do so until an old age, without developing diabetes or hepatitis. Actually, I even believe that the durian has a magical power to keep me young and look young, without facelifts or other cosmetic or plastic surgery.
Only slowly, durians are catching on in other parts of the world. They aren't grown yet commercially on other continents, though the climate would be ideal in the Northern parts of South America, as well as sub-Saharan Africa. (I have been informed by a reader that there are a few durian trees on Zanzibar.)
Durians are catching on in other parts of the world primarily because Thailand now produces, on a large scale, exportable durian fruit of the Mon Thong variety. Mon Thong is the only durian variety that is suitable to be shipped (usually by plane) to far-away destinations because Mon Thong durian can be harvested weeks before they have fully ripened, can be stored for weeks, and have no tendency to rot prematurely.
Classical durian varieties as they are common in Indonesia (mainly Sumatra and Borneo) have to ripen on the tree and are harvested only once they have fallen off on their own. They are then best eaten within some 6 hours, or, at least, within a day. They will lose flavor and texture beginning on the second day after having fallen off the tree.
Thai agriculturists have also succeeded in minimizing the typical offensive durian smell. On Thai durian plantations, transplantation surgery on this cash crop is a common occurrence. By transplanting branches of grown trees onto newly growing trees of less than 70 cm in height, they keep the trees of their plantations low… a precondition for making the harvesting of unripe fruit an easy task. Naturally growing durian trees can reach an impressive height of up to 30 meters.
As a result of the efforts of Thai agriculturists, durian fruit now is exported to North America, with Western Canada a major destination (as Western Canada, particularly Vancouver, has a substantial population of Asian, especially Southern Chinese, origin).
Commercial Mon Thong durians are the most digestion-friendly sub-species. By this, I don't mean that in general, durians would be hard to digest. No stomach cramps and no excessive winds as with cabbage, and no discharge pain as with chilies. But with non-Mon Thong durians, there will be burping, and burps do smell like the durian fruit... socially not acceptable even in counties where durians are grown. Mon Thong is clearly the mildest kind of durian fruit. (But even in Thailand, durians are usually banned in offices and hospitals.)
However, Mon Thong durians are like Del Monte bananas. They are a neat agricultural product: they look good (no wrinkles, no age spots) on supermarket shelves, they stay young and can be stored with ease for quite some time, produce little odor, are of predictable, standardized quality. But they no longer have quite the original taste. OK, I don't mind what they do with bananas. But for the durian, it's a loss.
Durians are like grapes and wine, or like cheese. They are a food for gourmets, for connoisseurs. For genuine durian lovers, differentiating tastes in accordance to variety and region can be a true science.
Classic durians, as they are found on Sumatra and Borneo, come in as wide a variety and shades of taste as does wine, or cheese. Though there isn't a durian culture yet as there is a wine culture, there would be a good foundation for it. It's probably only a matter of Southeast Asia becoming sufficiently developed in economic terms to support food culture on a Western level.
Gourmet durian culture will have to be centered on Sumatra and Borneo, just as wine and cheese culture is centered on France.
Thailand may currently be the world's main durian exporter, and has the lowest prices (during the season in May), but Indonesia is the cradle of the fruit, and has hundreds of yet unclassified varieties.
Those who know only the standard Thai Mon Thong variety will be surprised in how many different flavors and textures durian can come.
Standard Thai Mon Thong durians have sweet fruity-tasting meat with a firm texture and of yellow color. It's the variety that is the least likely to be outright disliked. It's also a bit boring for the taste buds.
Indonesian durians come in a wide range of flavors.
My own preferred variety has white, wrinkled meat with a texture like whipped cream and a bitter-sweet, nutty taste.
When the meat is not wrinkled upon opening of the fruit, the taste will be less creamy, and rather fruity.
You are less likely to find bitter-sweet durians with yellow meat, but occasionally you will come across that combination, too.
Yellow-meat durians are usually just sweet, not bitter-sweet. They also are less likely to have a nutty flavor.
"Durian", by the way, is an Indonesian word. "Duri" translates as thorn, and "durian" means thorny. Therefore durian, by name, is the thorny fruit. Which indeed, it is. You can kill a person by throwing a durian at his head. It's just like a ball of spikes. (There is another Southeast Asian fruit, known by an Indonesian name: Rambutan, the "hair fruit", "rambut" being the Indonesian word for "hair".)
Indonesia has the best climate for durians (highly tropical), and in the chief Indonesian durian-growing area of North Sumatra, durians are available year round. Incidentally, during the Thai durian season of mid-April to mid-June, there is the least output on North Sumatra, and prices rise to threefold their peak season's level.
I am convinced that durians are good for health, not just because fruit in general is healthy.
The locals in all countries where durians are grown believe that it heats the body. You'll be told that if you eat durian before bedtime, you won't need a blanket. I haven't seen any scientific proof in that direction, and I have been feeling unusually hot only a few times after eating durians in the evening.
From my own experience of eating thousands of durian fruits, I know that in some magical way, eating durian (in sufficient quantity) will clear the lungs and breath pathways. After having consumed the flesh of two durians with a combined weight (not yet pealed) of about 4 kg, I always cough up phlegm from my lungs.

Durian - The 'King of Fruits'

When strolling through Thai markets or supermarkets passing the fruit section, you may notice an unfamiliar somewhat pungent smell. This is the unusual aroma of Durian.

Appearance:
In its uncut form, it can be recognized by its brownish green thorn like tough skin. Once opened, the flesh is typically a pale yellow or cream colour, but some species of the 'King Fruits', as it is locally nicknamed, can be red or bright yellow.

Taste and Texture:
The fruit is often referred to as tasting like a creamy almond custard. Upon eating the fruit, you will notice that it is soft, smooth and has no juice. Many also like to eat it due to its nutritional value as it is high in protein and carbohydrates.

Uses:
Durian fruit can be eaten raw just like any other fruit. It is common in Thailand for it to be mixed with pumpkin and transformed into a paste. The paste is a dark brunt orange colour and is sold in tubes. It is then used as fillings for foods such as moon cakes, cakes and biscuits. Western foods such as milkshakes and ice creams have been given a Thai twist with durian flavouring being added to them turning the fruit into drinks and desserts.

Customs:
It is not uncommon for high class supermarkets, restaurants and even hotels to have signs present that state 'No Durian'. This is purely due to its smell, as many westerners in particular do not like the fruit and find it off putting. People within Thailand and throughout other Asian countries such as Malaysia and China, also believe that to eat the fruit with alcohol is bad for you. An Asian Myth states it causes bad breath, which in turn reduces the body's ability by 70% to release harmful toxins.