Malaysia Tropical Fruit-Durian, Mongosteen, Rambutan,

The rich Malaysia soil allows many of tropical fruits to grow in abundance and throughout the year. These fruits sweet fleshy and rich in vitamins. Wherever your travel in Malaysia you are bound to come across some stalls that sell fruits of the country.
Tropical countries have typical exotic tropical fruits. Many of those fruits can not be found elsewhere then in the tropics, even exporting some is difficult. The reasons can vary. It is sometimes difficult to keep the fruit fresh. Fruits like rambutan and mangosteen are little known in some western countries for this reason.


So, what do we have here in Malaysia on fruits? Here's a selection.



Durian (榴连 - 果中之王) is well known as 'the King of fruit', the fruit that smells like hell but taste like heaven. Each individual fruit is divided into five compartments, each containing a brown seed covered by a sac of thick, creamy pulp with an aroma that is legendary. To judge the quality of the durian, there are three important criteria to remember. The first is the appearance of the durian. The colour must be even ranging from pale white to golden yellow, and to orange. Second is the aroma. It must have a strong or a light smell. Thirdly, the texture – it should be creamy wet or creamy dry, sweet or bitter sweet. The flesh must be smooth and fully cover the whole seed. Aside from being eaten fresh, the durian fruit is made into durian flavored candies, cakes, biscuits, shakes, ice cream and (believe it or not) durian flavored condoms - due to it's reputation as an aphrodisiac. Forget the smell and the reputation and try for yourself, it's a great tasting fruit

Mangosteen (山竹－果中之后) is known as the “Queen of Fruits”, is considered to be a choice tropical fruit and like the durian, native to Malaysia. While the durian is seen as " heaty" for the body, the mangosteen is "cooling", The cooling, juicy fruit was so loved by Britain's Queen Victoria that she offered a reward to anyone who could import fresh ones to England. Shaped like round berries, the size of tennis balls, it has a thick fibrous outer layer that is usually maroon in color. It is easy to open by merely pressing between the palms. To eat it, you can crush the brittle yet moist rind with your palms to reveal the pure-white delicacy inside. The bitter rind is inedible, and the fruit comes in the form of variously sized wedged segments, the largest of which may hold a solitary seed. The number of segments usually varies from 4 to 8 which is matched by the number of points on the protrusion from the underside of the fruit; therefore, you can discover how many segments you are in for before you open the mangosteen. The mangosteen has flavors that range from strawberry, peach, vanilla ice cream - it is definitely sweet tempered with a very slight sourness.

The name Rambutan (红毛丹) is derived from the Malay word rambut (meaning hair). This hairy fruits hang on branches on woody stalk and is round or oblong in shape. This hairy fruits hang on branches on woody stalk and is round or oblong in shape. It is green at the beginning but ripen to various shades of red and yellow. Each fruit has a large seed surround with a white or yellowish pulp (flesh) of varying thickness. The flesh is translucent, firm and juicy but its flavor and quality vary enormously. In a good variety, it is sweet with an extremely pleasant, mild, sub acid flavor. In the best varieties the flesh comes away easily from the seed- this is referred to as Rambutan lekang. You have to cut through the skin to open the rambutan with your nails or bare hands. Rambutan is usually eaten in fresh and raw or can be added to fruit salads or made into jams.

How To Open Rambutan

Removing the rind
The opening of the rambutan can be accomplished by either cutting part way into the rind or, if fresh, biting into it as the spines are quite soft and pose no threat.

Opening the fruit
Once the rind is cut part way around the equator of the fruit it can be pried open. There may be some juice if the rambutan is really fresh that you should try to catch before it drips. It will be as sweet as the fruit you are about to enjoy.

Time to enjoy
The rambutan can now be removed from the rind by squeezing until it pops out. There is one seed in the center which you discard as it is bitter. The rest of the fruit is yours to enjoy and it is quite refreshing. Besides vitamin C, there are many other nutritional components to savor which you can read about on the nutrition page. The rambutan can now be removed from the rind by squeezing until it pops out. There is one seed in the center which you discard as it is bitter. The rest of the fruit is yours to enjoy and it is quite refreshing. Besides vitamin C, there are many other nutritional components to savor which you can read about on the nutrition page.