Facts For Life: The Durian

Durian, the king of all fruits! Some consider it a stink bomb but some like me consider it a heavenly fruit. Spiky on the outside but the yellow tender meat on the inside is unbelievably delicious. Occasionally when I feel down, one D24 durian might just make the turn around.

10 facts about the king of fruits:

1. Sir Stamford Raffles who founded Singapore didn't like it a single bit.

2. The nation that has banned durians is Singapore. It is only banned on buses and the subway due to its overpowering odor.

3. Durians cannot be plucked from the tree. You have to wait for it to drop from the tree. The fruit usually drops at night for reasons no one knows.

4. Durians are fattening. To the South East Asian people, eating durians are almost equivalent to eating meat.

5. Thai durians are the largest in size. They have more flesh and are the most expensive.

6. Durian plantations are often robbed in Malaysia. During durian seasons, armed men often keep a vigil over their precious investments dropping at night.

7. Wild durians are more tasty than plantation grown durians. There are some pockets of rainforests in Singapore that grows durian trees. So it is open season for enthusiasts who venture to these places for the hunt.

8. The durian is crowned as the King of Fruits by the South East Asians.

9. After eating durians, your "durian breath" will linger for up to 6 hours. Durian breath is so bad, its ranked higher than garlic in terms of unpleasantness.

10. Durian is made into many forms besides durian ice-cream. There is durian candy which is called durian dodol, durian custard which is much sweeter and durian cake, much highly sought after by durian enthusiasts.

Nutritional Facts:

Durian per 100 grams (about 3 fruits with seed) are as follows: 150 calories, 3 grams of protein, 3.5 grams of fat, 28 grams of carbohydrate, less than 1 gram fibre. Durian is one of the few fruits that has a high fat content, so it should be eaten in moderation.