5 Fun Fruits to Discover in Southeast Asia

April 25, 2013 - Asia, Food, Travel Tips - Tagged: ,
Bangkok Fruit Market

Bangkok Fruit Market

After being “home” for roughly a year since our year of travel in Asia/Southeast Asia I’ve begun to really miss the ready availability of inexpensive exotic fruit.  I guess they aren’t so exotic if you are from Asia (oh, ho-hum I guess I’ll have some dragon fruit as a snack).  I suppose apples and blackberries might be more interesting for folks there.  Below is a list of fruits that hold some very fond memories from our travels, and that are nearly impossible to find in the United States. If you do, they are prohibitively expensive.

Dragon Fruit

Dragon Fruit

Dragon Fruit

If memory serves correct, our first dragon fruit purchase was in Luoyang, China.  We’d seen them for sale plenty but weren’t quite sure how to go about eating one.  After watching a fellow traveler cut open and consume a dragon fruit in our hostel kitchen we were inspired.  Dragon fruit is lightly sweet with hundreds of tiny seeds that add a little crunch.  It is similar in consistency to watermelon.  It’s great for tossing into your day bag with a knife because you don’t eat the outside so there is no need to wash it.

Jackfruit

Jackfruit

Jackfruit

At a glance it can be easily confused with the (some say) foul-tasting durian.  While they do have some resemblance outwardly the tastes couldn’t be more different.  Jackfruit is very sweet. It’s often used in smoothie-type drinks.  To eat the fruit itself you have to cut it into swallowable-sized pieces because it is so chewy it won’t really break down.  The picture above was taken in Queensland, Australia.

Longan

Longan (Photo courtesy of emrank via Flickr)

Longan

This fruit reminds us of of riding bicycles through the Angkor Wat area while passing a longan-laden branch from our bike baskets to one another.  Siem Reap was the first place we had a Longan.  The woman at the market gave us one to sample and we were sold.  They became a staple of our Cambodian diet.  They are similar in size, shape and flavor to their more well-know cousin the lychee.

Snake Fruit

Snake Fruit

Snake Fruit

The salak palm of Indonesia produces the snake fruit. Our introduction was on the island of Lombok (Indonesia) at. once again. the local market.  A snake fruit can be peeled by pinching the tip and then pulling its snake-like skin off.  There are usually three or so cloves or bulbs inside, one of which contains a large seed. The fruit is not as sweet as a longan and is a bit more dry by comparison. Once again these make great travel snacks as the are wrapped by mother nature and need no washing.

Rambutan

Rambutan

Rambutan

Last and probably my favorite is the rambutan.  Whether it’s their appearance or their addictive sweet flavor,  these were certainly bargained for at any market we visited.  These easily recognizable fruits are widely sold throughout Southeast Asia.  We were first given a sample in Pak Khlong Talat, Flower Market in Bangkok.  The closest I’ve come to finding these at home has been a canned version at the Asian grocery store here in Atlanta.  By now I’m sure you’ve noticed a theme: these fruits come in their own single-serve packaging, which makes them great for traveling.  To eat and peel a rambutan you push your thumb nail into its skin and then peel much like an orange.  Then, pop the whole fruit in your mouth being careful not to bite hard onto the large seed within.

What fun fruits have you discovered?

Share your favorite or most unusual finds with us so we can look out for them on our travels.  There is nothing better than finding a tasty local treat–especially a fruity one!

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About the author

A 30 something traveler with insatiable wanderlust. Veteran of 2 RTW trips now focusing on slow travel.