Make Memories With Fruit?

Fruity Memories

In Southeast Asia, abundant opportunities to try various kinds of fruit come easy. When roaming around the neighborhoods, shopping centers, food markets, supermarkets and even tourist sightseeing areas, cut ready-to-eat fruit, fruit drinks and whole fruit are readily available. It's fun dealing with vendors, eating delicious fruits and then recalling that moment, years later, when you think about that fruit. I have so many fruity memories to share. Here are some:

Mangosteen – It is the most delicious fruit when it is in season. Just thinking about it, I remember that juicy, sweet, smooth and luxurious fruit in my mouth. I learned about this fruit while in a Thai language course and promptly, went out to buy some. Ummm.. How do you open it up? It has a very thick, impenetrable skin. Or so I thought. Put the fruit between your lower palms and squeeze to split it open. Take out the tender wedges and eat, but be careful not to chomp down on the wedge with the big seed. A taste explosion happens in your mouth!

Rambutan – Long ago, when we were new to Thailand, we were enjoying delicious Thai seafood in a restaurant in Phuket or Koh Samui and saw staff doing something with a red hairy thing. What is it? They gave us a taste. The white fleshed oval with a pit was deliciously sweet. To this day, we have not had any as good as the ones we tried that day!

Durian – During our first trip to Chiang Mai, we went off with a tour guide and driver – 2 hours on elephants in the jungle to visit a tribe, a look at the Golden Triangle, a longboat ride on the Mekong River and then the drive back in a van to Chiang Mai. As we got near our hotel, we saw a truck filled with durian. We mentioned that we would like to try some. So we stopped and bought one. I cannot remember how we got it partly open, but I do remember the yellow flesh. It was mushy, had a bad sulfur-like smell and I wanted to spit it out as soon as I bit down on it. We could not handle it. Our very happy driver and guide were please to take the remaining fruit off our hands!

Dragon Fruit – At a hotel breakfast buffet somewhere in Vietnam, we were delighted to see this magnificent, deep pink colored fruit with very white flesh and dots of black seeds. It was juicy, but really quite tasteless. It was a fun way to start a day of sightseeing.

Oranges – Not exotic at all, but these were green, not orange. We bought these in Chiang Dao after visiting a "home" for many children. They were very sweet and tasty.

Mango – at a house we rented in Chiang Mai years ago, we had the best mango – fresh off the tree in front of the house. Many varieties of mango are available in the markets in Chiang Mai. Some delicious, some okay. Yum. They rival the mangos from Pakistan. Get it already cut at a fruit stand or try the famous mango, sticky rice and coconut milk dish, "kâao-nǐao-má-mûang" (ข้าวเหนียว มะม่วง).

Papaya – The deep orange flesh of the papaya with a twist of lime is something we have often. At the Maehia market, we tell the vendor that we will eat it in a day or two and she helps us pick out the whole fruit. I have a tendency to pick them too ripe. It's great to have for breakfast or a refreshing snack. We even used the seeds to make an interesting, delicious salad dressing recipe once. Unfortunately, we lost the recipe and cannot make it again! Ugh…

Pineapple – Usually in January, we head to the Mae Sai/Tachilek border area. On the way there, many people have stands with pineapples along the road. We stopped once and, amazingly, met a vendor who spoke English well. She had large and small pineapple varietals. She recommended the small ones. These were juicy, sweet with a little bit of tartness. Good to eat or to use in a drink. Pineapples are a real pain to peel though so we, normally, take the easy route and pick them up already peeled at the market.

Jujube – Also, on the way to Mae Sai/Tachilek are fruit stands that sell these small green fruit. We'd always wondered what they were, but were too much in a hurry to stop. Surprise! The other day, a friend, just back from Chiang Rai, gave us a bag of this green fruit and said to put it in the fridge. It is delicious cold. I went online to find out the English name for this fruit. Jujube is very crunchy and juicy. Some are pretty tasteless and some are slightly sweet - very refreshing either way.

Pomegranate – In Mae Sai, just before the border crossing, there are many, many vendors along the road. Here, we bought a couple of kilos of pomegranates. These fruits are more yellow than the traditional dark pink I am used to seeing. These were just okay – not the same as the ones that turned my fingers red and that I took great pleasure in as a kid in San Francisco.

Avocado - In Mae Sai, one may also find avocados. Not the “Haas” avocado, but the bigger type with the smooth skin. The first time I had this avocado varietal, we were on a tour on route to Inle Lake, Myanmar. We stopped at a restaurant that seemed to be in the middle of nowhere to have a bathroom break and snack: an avocado. It was so delicious, rich and creamy. That avocado changed my mind about the "Haas" avocado being the best avocado.

Longan – We wanted something different when Dad and Daughter came to visit us in Chiang Mai. So we spied branches of these round, yellow-brown skinned fruit at the market. The peel is thin and inside there is a white flesh with a pit in the middle. These were sweet and juicy, but had a feel in the mouth that reminds me of dirt (earthy?).

Passion Fruit – We went to the House Restaurant in Chiang Mai many years ago and had their terrific “House Martini" -lemon grass vodka, passion fruit juice, syrup, basil, coconut rum and pineapple. This martini was so good that we tried to replicate it. It is a lot of work to make, but we can make a reasonable facsimile. We have made other drinks with passion fruit too and buy this fruit often. To eat, cut in half and spoon the insides into your mouth - seeds and all. There are sweet and sour types available at the stores. Both are good.

Fruity Dishes (or not so fruity)

Green papaya salad – It took us awhile to find out that we wanted the "Thai" version of this dish so now we order “sôm dtam Tai”. There are other versions with crab (bpuu) or fermented fish (bplaa ráa). In addition, we try to remember to tell them we like it spicy (เผ็ด – pèt). Here in Thailand, depending on your perspective, it can be frustrating or hilarious trying to get a dish the way you like it! Keep at it until you get it right!

Pomelo Salad – The papaya salad stands may also offer the refreshing pomelo salad or other fruit salads. We had a good pomelo salad from the food court behind the Tanin market the other day. The lady that took our order was not sure what to make of us. Pounded, right? Spicy, right? Thai style? Right. She wanted to make sure to get the order right. That was nice since we weren’t sure how to order it.

Green Mango Salad – There used to be a restaurant called “By the Banana Tree” (a waitress told me this) that was around the corner from the Maehia market. They had a delicious dish with deep fried fish fillets which came with a mango salad condiment and honey in a small dipping dish. The dish was so delicious. We've not found a replacement after the restaurant closed up. However, you can get green mango salad (no fish) from various places like the Kad Suan Kaew night market or at some food courts.

Jackfruit Curry – We were with a Thai friend at Kaeng Ron Baan Suan Restaurant. She or a waitress suggested jackfruit curry. It is a dish we probably would not have selected on our own. It is an interesting, tasty and slightly thick curry. We still order it now and then.

Hot and Spicy Shrimp Coconut Meat Soup – This Hot and Sour dish was another Thai friend suggestion. It is another dish that we would not have tried on our own as we are not that fond of coconut or shrimp. However, the coconut meat is quite tender and the curry quite tasty. We still order it on occasion from the Lemon Tree Restaurant on Huay Kaew Road.

Make Your Own Fruity Memories

I could go on and on, but this post is already too long. I hope I have somehow encouraged you and that you'll soon be enjoying the fruits of Southeast Asia to help trigger your own memories. However, don't forget to see a temple or two while you are here!

English (Thai - pronunciation) Notes:
Mangosteen (มังคุด- mang kút)
Rambutan (เงาะ- ngɔ́)
Durian (ทุเรียน- tú rian)
Dragon Fruit (แก้วมังกร - gɛ̂ɛo mang gɔɔn)
Oranges (ส้ม - sôm)
Mango (มะม่วง - má mûang)
Mango, sticky rice and coconut milk dish (ข้าวเหนียว มะม่วง - kâao nǐao má mûang) Papaya (มะละกอ - má lá gɔɔ)
Pineapple (สับปะรด - sàp bpà rót)
Jujube (พุทรา - pút saa)
Pomegranate (ทับทิม - táp tim)
Avocado (อาโวคาโด - aa woo kaa doo)
Longan (ลำไย - lam yai)
Passion Fruit (เสาวรส - sǎo wá rót)
Green papaya salad (ส้มตำ - sôm dtam)
Pomelo salad (ตำส้มโอ- dtam sôm oo)
Green mango salad (ส้มตำมะม่วง - sôm dtam má mûang)
Jackfruit curry (แกงขนุน – gɛɛng kà nǔn)
Hot and Spicy Shrimp Coconut Meat Soup (ต้มยำกุ้งมะพร้าวอ่อน- dtôm yam gûng má práao ɔ̀ɔn)

CNX Pub: 2017-Jan-16 11:30 Fruity Memories: Southeast Asia, Chiang Mai, Mae Sai, Myanmar, Thailand
CNX Pub: 2017-Jan-16 11:30 Fruit, Markets - Maehia, Tanin, Kad Suan Kaew Night Market
CNX Pub: 2017-Jan-16 11:30 Kaeng Ron Baan Suan Restaurant, Lemon Tree Restaurant
CNX Pub: 2017-Jan-16 11:30 Picture Wat Lok Molee, Chiang Mai - moat Northside