{"id":7718,"date":"2019-01-31T15:25:18","date_gmt":"2019-01-31T20:25:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/?page_id=7718"},"modified":"2021-01-18T15:11:04","modified_gmt":"2021-01-18T20:11:04","slug":"durian-pizza-in-flushing-for-edible-queens","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/?page_id=7718","title":{"rendered":"Durian Pizza in Flushing (for Edible Queens)"},"content":{"rendered":"

It was my pleasure and privilege to write this piece for Edible Queens Magazine.<\/em><\/p>\n

(Click on any image to view it in high resolution.)<\/em>
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There\u2019s an old adage about durian: \u201cSmells like hell, tastes like heaven!\u201d<\/p>\n

Whatever you may have heard about this fruit, it probably wasn\u2019t encouraging. Some regard durian with mild amusement, some with outright disdain, while others have come to appreciate its unique personality. My objective is to disabuse you of any prejudices you may harbor about the \u201cKing of Fruits\u201d (as it\u2019s known in Southeast Asia) and direct you to a local restaurant where you can indulge\u2014fearlessly\u2014in its charms.<\/p>\n

As to the aphorism: What, exactly, does hell smell like? It isn\u2019t feasible to characterize sensory perceptions much beyond generalization\u2014for example, other than sweet, what does a banana taste like? Any attempt to communicate the overpowering aroma of durian without getting uncomfortably graphic would be fruitless. Literally.<\/p>\n

If ever you\u2019ve run up against a colorful epithet for some sort of repellent stench, it\u2019s probably been applied to durian at one time or another. Its odor is pungent and pervasive but it appears to defy meaningful description; part of that may be due to the fact there are numerous cultivars and each has its own individual scent that further varies with its degree of ripeness. It is for this reason that durian is forbidden in some hotels and airports and on many forms of public transportation in Southeast Asia, where signage cautions aspiring felons against even considering a violation. In fairness, many people no longer find the scent of durian objectionable after a few encounters, and some find it rather agreeable.<\/p>\n

But back to the second half of our Stygian\/Elysian paradox, the part about heaven. Durian\u2019s flavor is complex and delicious, not overly sweet, but definitely tropical, the texture so rich and creamy that I call durian the fruit that makes its own custard. I suspect that all cultures champion some domestic delicacy that on first blush is anathema to a newcomer, but once acclimated to it, will take its place among their personal inventory of special treats: think anchovies, bleu cheese, scotch, kimchi, stinky tofu, natt\u014d,<\/em> Vegemite and Marmite, and the list goes on. It\u2019s logical to posit that if no one craved these foods, they simply wouldn\u2019t be available, and durian is decidedly commonplace throughout Asia. In Indonesia, it is even reputed as an aphrodisiac.<\/p>\n

Durian is deployed in countless forms of tasty edibles, mostly sweet but some savory as well; even the seeds, when properly prepared, figure into a number of Asian dishes. There are durian cakes, pastries, pancakes, drinks, candy, ice cream, mochi and even freeze-dried chips\u2014and that brings me to the crux of this piece: Flushing\u2019s C Fruit Life, 135-29 Roosevelt Ave, might just be holding the gateway drug for durian novitiates, durian pizza.<\/p>\n

Pizza in its many guises is a crossover phenomenon itself\u2014neither entirely Italian nor American\u2014so introducing a Southeast Asian element is fair play. If one can top pizza with pineapple, why not durian?<\/p>\n

Founded in Hong Kong in 1987, C Fruit Life is a chain of casual restaurants with over 800 venues worldwide that serve Hong Kong\u2013style desserts and snacks, some more salubrious, some just fruity-sweet. The Flushing location opened about two years ago and it\u2019s their durian pizza that engenders the most buzz.<\/p>\n

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\nThey offer two types of durian on their pizzas: the smaller, creamier, slightly sweeter and more popular Malaysian variety Musang King, and the less expensive Monthong, from Thailand. Each personal pizza is delivered to the table on a wooden paddle, its six small slices serving one or two people as a snack. While identical, the two versions differ in intensity, Musang King manifesting the more robust (and in my opinion, righteous) flavor.
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\nThe thin, supple crust plays a supporting role to the layer of sweet, pale yellow, custardy durian pur\u00e9e topped with gooey mozzarella cheese. Peel back the cheese for a peek at the lusciousness that lies beneath. The Monthong rendition is a mite less potent, and is a bit saltier than the Musang King.<\/p>\n

Do durian and pizza play well with each other? Most assuredly. I detected no daunting smell\u2014as a matter of fact, the aroma is rather appetizing\u2014only the inimitable ambrosial flavor. After all, it\u2019s warm bread, delectable fruit and beautifully blistered melted cheese. What\u2019s not to like? Both kinds are delicious: If you\u2019re circumspect, you can always opt for the mild Monthong; if you\u2019re bent on trying something closer to the real deal, do the Musang King\u2014as they say, if you\u2019re gonna dance, dance.<\/em> Either way, don\u2019t succumb to misplaced neophobia\u2014head over to C Fruit Life and experience durian pizza for yourself!
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Stalking the Wild Durian<\/strong>
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\nIf you\u2019re keen on hunting down the fruit itself, you can catch it outside almost any large Asian market. Durian is vaguely oblong, sometimes up to a foot long, weighing in at anywhere from two to seven pounds and sporting a brownish, greenish, spiky husk. You\u2019ll generally spot them enclosed in yellow plastic net bags and from a distance, looking much like an angry pineapple. <\/p>\n

Rather than splitting the husk yourself (it\u2019s best left to professionals so don\u2019t try this at home, kids), you can often find Chinatown street vendors who have already done the work and sell the fruit pre-sliced in plastic containers.
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Inside the markets, you\u2019ll sometimes come across frozen, whole durian…
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\nand you\u2019ll almost always see boxes of frozen, ready-to-eat sections of the husked fruit, imported from Southeast Asia.
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Note that the price per pound varies radically depending upon the variety. Don\u2019t skimp: You get what you pay for.
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\nBonus!<\/strong> Here\u2019s a post I had written previously, \u201cDurian\u2019s Best Kept Secret\u201d,<\/a> recounting the story of a little known venue in Brooklyn where an assortment of durian cultivars can be purchased and enjoyed \u2013 and I did both, of course. Read on….<\/a><\/em>
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It was my pleasure and privilege to write this piece for Edible Queens Magazine. (Click on any image to view it in high resolution.) There\u2019s an old adage about durian: \u201cSmells like hell, tastes like heaven!\u201d Whatever you may have … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3336,"featured_media":0,"parent":12453,"menu_order":40,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7718","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7718","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3336"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7718"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7718\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12466,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7718\/revisions\/12466"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/12453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ethnojunkie.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7718"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}