Cambodian Fruit MADNESS

Nate Dog in the house!!!

2009-04-28T19:42:00.000-07:00

Nate came for a visit and we got down on some of God's fruit (mangoes) and The Devil's fruit (Durian). This was the first time I had ever had Durian that was TOO ripe and it kinda tasted like this sweet, stinky oatmeal type thing. It wasn't terrible but we didn't finish it and my house smelled for hours. Anyway here are some photos:

Fruit Tasting Video Premiere

2009-04-24T01:31:00.000-07:00

Can you catch the Cambodian Fruit Madness bug?

Here's an exclusive video on Drew and Jeff's first fruit tasting extravaganza. Jenn also joins our fruit experts for some delicious fun

Place: Street 830, Phnom Penh - front porch
Time: Saturday? Sunday?
Music: The String Quartet's Tribute to Radiohead
Atmosphere: Perfect

Thai-like mango

2009-04-18T07:44:00.000-07:00

I'm not 100% clear on what the seller said, but I think she told me that this mango is common in Thailand, but she was selling ones that were grown in Cambodia. I do recall having one of these in Thailand, and it was pretty bad. She was selling these unripe mangoes at about 4 for $1.

Notes:

---Jeff---

This mango really exceeded expectations. It was firm, tart, sweet, and had a lot of interesting flavor. I could go for this again in the future.

Smell: Very "herb-like." Reminded me of the smell of the "Koh Rodeau," but with less fig and more tree-like smells.
Taste: Sweet with an excellent sour balance. Taste includes plant-y smell.
Texture: Firm and crisp. Also leaves a slightly powdery sensation on the tongue, but this is quite pleasant.
Color: A dark sea-green on the outside, and white (with a very very faint yellow tint) on the inside

Small durian

2009-04-18T07:31:00.000-07:00

This small durian was purchased in Koh Kong at a market for 7000 Riel ($1.75). It is much smaller than the previously tasted variety, and has tightly arranged small spikes. The color of the skin is bright green mixed with a yellow hue when riper. These seemed to be relatively fresh (judging by the look of the skin and the stems)

Notes:

---Jeff---

This durian was very disappointing. I think we were partially responsible for not insisting on buying a stinky one, but the lady selling it told us it was ripe, but it was not. There was hardly any characteristic durian smell, and the meat was tight and hardly sweet.

Smell: faint durian stink. fairly fruity
Taste: Not particularly sweet. Reminded me of a sweet potato in some respects (grainyness, dryness, sugar levels)
Texture: Firm and fibrous. Sort of vegetable-like
Color: a light, shiny yellow. Generally light in color

Plai P'new ("Guest Fruit")

2009-04-18T06:48:00.000-07:00

I forgot to ask the name of these small orange fruit (edit-- they are called Plai P'new or "guest fruit" for a literal translation). They were purchased for 3000 Riel/kg ($0.75) in Koh Kong, which seems to produce a large amount. The fruit contains one or more small, smooth, transparent, soft fruitlets inside the 3mm thick skin, which is soft and white. There is one rather large seed per fruitlet.

Notes:

---Jeff---

This fruit seems to be a favorite for Cambodians when snacking. It's very refreshing, with a good blend of sour and sweet. There is a slightly odd aftertaste which makes my teeth feel funny and dry. It's not a favorite of mine, but it's very "approachable"

Smell: faint flowery smell. Not too remarkable
Taste: Sweet and sour. Sweetness predominates, but strange aforementioned aftertaste also affects taste. The white part in the middle is sort of tasteless and slightly astringent.
Texture: Very soft, but with a fibery build that tends to cling to the seed. Somewhat tough to get a "satisfying" bite since the fruit has to be worked to get all of the meat away from the seed
Color: Outside is yellowish, inside is clear with white veins. Some varieties seem to have red insides.

Sey Moan

2009-04-18T06:32:00.000-07:00

These lychee-like fruits were purchased in Koh Kong (15 minutes from the Thai-Cambodia border) direct from the farmer for 2000 riel/kg (a very cheap price).

Notes:

---Jeff---

These fruits have a pleasant aroma, but the overwhelming feature is "tart." Very sour, but very refreshing. Not too similar to lychees, despite similar appearance. Has a large central seed

Smell: lightly fruity and flowery. Pleasant.
Taste: Intensely tart. Similar to the tartness of the strange orange fruit in that it begins to "burn" your taste buds after a while.
Texture: Juicy, watery, somewhat attached to the seed
Color: exterior and interior are same as lychee (red and clear/white)

Vietnamese fruit

2009-04-14T07:10:00.001-07:00

I recently came back from Vietnam. I have to say, Vietnam has nothing on Cambodian fruit. In the north they have decent mini-peaches, but they don't have mangoes or durian. Why even try, Vietnam?

Also, it should be noted that Thailand might have many varieties of mango, but almost all are bad. Way too sweet.

Vietnam had a couple of interesting fruit that Cambodia does not, including mini-peaches, weird green things that look like longans, custard apples (i think), and mini-mangoes with flat seeds. I tried a few of each, but nothing was very remarkable. I have a newfound respect for the quality of Cambodian fruit.

Until next time...

Swai Gaiu L'mee-ut ("[[find out meaning]] cup mango")

2009-04-07T03:35:00.000-07:00

(insert pic)

This large mango is the most frequently encountered in Cambodia. Cambodians eat it both raw or ripe. These were purchased at a price of $1 per kilo (which comes to 3 or 4 mangoes).

Notes:

---jeff---

This mango tasted fairly reminiscent of the bland-ish yellow mangoes I've eaten in America. Not bad (considering its good texture and acidity), but nothing special either. Plain mango.

Smell: dried, powdered mango, reminds of milky dessert
Taste: typical mango flavor with a bend towards "caramelized sugar" taste. Light acid present but not unified with sweetness.
Texture: fleshy, watery, and bouncy
Color: yellow-yellow-orange

Swai Bong Moan ("Chicken egg mango")

2009-04-07T03:30:00.000-07:00

(insert pic)

These small round mangoes were purchased for 500 riel (13 cents) a piece at the local market. The seller told me that it wasn't as delicious as "Wrong month mango."

Notes:

---jeff---

This mango was not very remarkable in any way, other than its relative "untastiness" compared to the others. Had a strong "stink" which wasn't very pleasant

Smell: a stinky, somewhat cheese-like smell. Also like old books or cardboard
Taste: intensely sweet and almost completely lacking in acid. Taste reminds me somewhat of bubblegum. Also reminds me of bad Thai mangoes. The others noted that it was not as juicy feeling as the others
Texture: somewhat denser, which helped conjure images of cheese. Felt more "packed," and was sort of to the point of "chewy"
Color: dark yellow+orange

Saturday afternoon fruit party

2009-04-06T07:17:00.001-07:00

(talk about overall experience, make somewhat funny?)

The King Himself (Tourenn, "durian")

2009-04-06T07:11:00.000-07:00

This durian was purchased at Orussey market for $2.50/kg (rounded down a bit after some haggling). It's difficult to tell where it came from, and I forgot to ask. The spikes had a broad base, were fairly sharp, and had a yellowish green color. It was somewhat unclear how old this durian was, but the seller assured us it was ripe by smelling it and then slapping it with the broad side of a knife (which gave a hollow sound).

Notes

---jeff---

As the final fruit, it was difficult to make any serious comparisons (I had eaten far too much sugar by that point). As usual though, the durian was a crowd pleaser.

Smell: Durian-like. Not too intense or particularly characteristic of anything. Felt like a middle of the road durian.
Taste: Sweet, custardy and delicious.
Texture: Excellent firmness contrasted with "melty" texture
Color: A good whitish-yellow

Kulen (seedless lychee)

2009-04-06T07:09:00.000-07:00

These small, seedless lychee (about the size of a grape) were purchased at Orussey market for $2/kg. It seems as though the lychee season might be beginning, because I haven't seen any before this weekend.

Notes:

---jeff---

A surprisingly delicious and refreshing purchase. Complimented the other fruit well. The pleasant acidity and gentle astringency made this fruit seem very "Khmer" to me.

Smell: Like a lychee and a grape
Taste: Refreshing and watery, with good acidity. Tasted fairly similar to a green grape. Also had a pleasant astringency. Khmer people seem to like astringent fruit, so I think this would be popular with them
Texture: juicy, watery, bouncy
Color: (inside) clear, slightly opaque.

Swai Koh Rodeau ("Wrong Month Mango")

2009-04-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

This mango was purchased for 1000R (approx 25 cents) at the local market, a relatively high price for such a small mango (about the size of a small fist). The name literally translates to "wrong month mango," which refers to the fact that it tends to ripen outside of the normal mango season. (I haven't seen any in the markets until now though, and mango season is just starting to pick up, so I'm not completely sure about the name).

Notes:

---Jeff---

This small mango usurped the throne from the previous king, swai gaiuw jeun ("Chinese cup mango"). It has incredible depth of flavor and complexity, and will be the mango of choice for some time to come. The seller did not lie when she said "number one in cambodia" (nou kompuchea leik muy)

Smell: Intense, complex, herbal and "dark" fruit smell. Specifically reminded me of smelling dried, high-quality Japanese green tea (sencha) from the bag. Also has minty character, and reminds me of a dark, ripe fig. Very intense
Taste: Intense. Sweet, acid, rich. Packs a powerful punch, and delivers what it promises in the smell. Very strong and rich mango. (good thing it's so small...)
Texture: Juicy but not watery. An excellent balance.
Color: dark yellow mixed with brown and green tints. Also had some interesting brown veins (reminded me of chicken meat)

Swai Gaiu Jeun ("Chinese cup mango")

2009-04-06T07:04:00.000-07:00

The price for this mango varies depending on ripeness and seller, but can range between about 4 to 6 for $1.

Notes:

---jeff----

This mango is probably the most purely floral of the four we tried today. Pleasant taste, fairly rich in sweetness

Smell: tropical flowers, coconut, coconut desserts
Taste: very full, round taste. Acidity is incorporated well into other tastes. Heavy sweetness would be overbearing if not for balance brought out by well-blended acidity. Tastes similar to pineapple (in both flavor and acid/sugar balance). In general, very rich. Also has a slight hint of powderyness.
Texture: Smooth and creamy feel. Low fiber
Color: yellow

Apple Sized Melon

2009-04-06T06:44:00.000-07:00

Maak Bprang

2009-04-06T06:41:00.000-07:00

Egg Banana!!! (Jeik Bong Moan, "Chicken Egg Banana")

2009-04-06T06:38:00.000-07:00