Destinking Durian
A rose by any other name will still smell as sweet, so goes the cliche, but is a durian still a durian if it doesn't stink? Thomas Fuller of the New York Times: "To anyone who doesn’t like durian it smells like a bunch of dead cats,” said Bob Halliday, a food writer based in Bangkok. “But as you get to appreciate durian, the smell is not offensive at all. It’s attractive. It makes you drool like a mastiff.” Nevertheless, a Thai government scientist, who after three decades of research is one of the world’s leading durian experts, now says he has managed to excise its stink."
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1 Comment:
Yes, I got interested in all the fascinating word descriptions for the smell of Durian on the net, and made a short list. Didn't make me want to try the fruit, but I did just order some Durian juice today which has the smell removed.
• garlic steeped in jet fuel
• turpentine and onions, garnished with a unwashed gym socks
• French custard passed through a sewer pipe
• rotten onions with limburger cheese and low-tide seaweed
• a city dump on a hot summer day, and
• carrion in custard
Durian does have a lot of health benefits, including increasing trypophan levels which is supposed to help with anxiety, depression and insomnia, or simply as a mood enhancer if that is all that is needed.
michigancj at 4:50PM on 04/13/07