What's My Fruit? - Episode 2

[davidn]

We went to the big international fruit and vegetable market with my parents this weekend. I should say first of all that despite the weird and wonderful array of things on offer there, I still absolutely refuse to believe that this rainbow-coloured corn exists. I could accept that they might come in colours other than the traditional yellow, but not that they grew in a variety pack like a natural box of Fruit Pastilles.

The first time we went there, I said that each time we went I would bring back something that I hadn't tried before and describe the taste experience. There's no shortage of things there to choose from in that category, because most of them aren't even from this planet - this time, I was a little more adventurous and selected something that looked more likely to put up a fight.

These came from a box marked Rambutan, but it seems more correct to call them "Rambutan fruit" as this is the name of the tree they come from. Despite looking like they might eat you rather than vice versa, the spines on them are soft and non-violent, and you can cut into them with the same ease as your own fingers with a serrated knife.

There's a guide to preparing them here - underneath the thin skin, what you get inside is a round sticky translucent white sphere, a bit like a pickled onion and - now that I come to think of it - uncomfortably like an eyeball. The seed is inside this, and you can either cut it out or eat around it.

And it has a taste not incomparable to a plum, though slightly chewier - it has a nicely sweet taste, and I'd probably have them again. The only thing that I don't like about them is that even when you've got the seed out, a woody residue remains bonded to the inside edge of the flesh, but the site says that this is all right to ingest.

Comments

[kytheraen.livejournal.com]

Lychees are nicer :3

[davidn]

Lychees were mentioned by my parents, as well - though I had never heard of those, either! I looked those up, and the flesh looks very similar, though it seems the lychee is more... woody on the outside as opposed to indescribable, and it has a much bigger seed than the nut-like thing inside these. They're definitely related.

[kytheraen.livejournal.com]

It's a very thing skin as well... slightly nobbly/spiky. I find them sweeter and more flavoursome than the rambutans.

[tamakun.livejournal.com]

And for a moment what you had acquired were some hairy form of lychee (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/Lychee_600.jpg) (though apparently they have similar properties and tastes).

[kjorteo]

I turn my back on you for one second and you're eating Koosh balls. Sigh.

[davidn]

What are Koosh balls Oh, those... I'm actually familiar with them, but I never really considered that they had a name.

This makes me realize that half of these could just be engineered by people playing a joke on customers who haven't seen these before - I could equally just say to people that these are eaten on Christmas day and they're from Mars.

[tamakun.livejournal.com]

Admittedly, the first time that Stephen Fry referred to the "Christmas Cracker" I had no idea he was referring to those poppers.

The English Language is a strange one. :)

[davidn]

I'm very glad that we have someone as good as Stephen Fry as an international ambassador :) The first Christmas I was at university, the American students had no idea what those things were, and it had never occurred to me that they might be something that didn't exist throughout the world.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

I was also going to say Lychees too. They must be related again as you mentioned about the thin skin and translucent white flesh.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

I really should read the internet before posting as by clicking on your link above, they are from the same family as the Lychee. Interestingly, the horse chestnut also belongs to this family, and I also learned that these are called buckeyes in the US.

[davidn]

Another American-English word difference! There really is no end to them... I don't think I've even heard the word "buckeye" before, or had any idea what it might be referring to.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

I think they call it a buckeye, because the conker looks like the eye of a deer.

[gylcbondgirl.livejournal.com]

Rambutans grow on the trees locally around here, they're kind of our regular fruit as opposed to the traditional british apples and oranges :)

Next up - find dragonfruit :) One to avoid- jackfruit!

Hope you and Whitney are well!

[davidn]

We are! It's good to hear from you again :) It's odd to think that conversely, there are areas of the world where the fruit that we grew up with as... totally mundane are instead very exotic as well.

There are definitely dragonfruit at that market - I saw them in our exploration this weekend, though they're one of the fruits that I have the least idea about how to go about eating, just from looking at their feathery exterior.

[gylcbondgirl.livejournal.com]

I've been a bit (ok, totally 100%) rubbish with facebook, but I do lurk on here from time to time!

It's bizarre, good apples are difficult to get here, but bananas, pineapples, dragonfruit, rambutans and mangos grow freely.

Dragonfruits are easy, they just need cutting in half and scooping the middle out - but don't eat the skin!

[kjorteo]

I should add, as much as you joke about finding fruit that looks like it's ready to fight back and such, I was quite surprised to find that Deadly Durians are actually a real enemy in Etrian Odyssey 3.

[davidn]

I was trying to think of what the idea of threatening fruit in a game reminded me of - I think it's Keen Dreams, where you had to avoid marauding potatoes and carrots. But durians sound... much more formidable.

Even though the rambutan look like fairly effective weapons, the spikes are completely soft, more like... thick hairs, and serve not as protection but only to make the fruit look silly.

[kjorteo]

I was trying to think of what the idea of threatening fruit in a game reminded me of

Well, there's I Wanna Be the Guy, of course.

[davidn]

There are things I would rather forget!

[kjorteo]