Sometimes we do pretty silly things for durian. If you’ve been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know that already.
But this one takes the cake. Almost literally.
This time we spent $300 on one durian.
Yup.
Years ago, when Rob and I first went to Nonthaburi hoping for just a glimpse of the most expensive durian in the world, we wondered out loud who on earth would spend $300 on a durian.
Well. Um. Us apparently.
I got the call late Thursday evening, the night after Rob left for America to visit family. I was in bed already, and I almost didn’t pick up.
It was the translator we’ve been hiring on and off to help us make phone calls in Thailand. “So do you want it or not?” she asked. My heart started beating hard. I felt caught between fear of spending that much on a durian and intense curiosity. My mouth suddenly felt dry. I licked my lips and said. “Yes. I’ll be there tomorrow.”
Two years after first hearing about the famous durian, I was getting one. I couldn’t believe it.
A Ganyao from Nonthaburi is the most expensive durian in the world, unless the mythic Elephant Drop Durian actually exists. A Nonthaburi Ganyao can cost as much as 20,000 baht, or about $600. There are very few of them and you either have to be the right person or know the right person to get one. Usually, only top governmental officials and the very wealthy have the means and connections.
In fact, while I was at the farm blowing our budget, a royal servant came to pick up a durian for the King and Queen of Thailand. It was fun to picture the Queen savoring each morsel, her rubied fingers besmeared with yellow cream. Here’s a picture of the royal durian at the farm.
It was quite a crowd to be hobnobbing with for a girl whose sandals are held together with copious amounts of superglue.
I didn’t want to taste such a special durian alone, and since Rob couldn’t be there with me I emailed food blogger and durian lover Mark Wiens from migrationology.com. Mark loves durian so much when he got married last summer they served durian in place of wedding cake (brilliant idea). I hoped he could use his discriminating tasting skills to help me decide if a Nonthaburi durian is actually any better than the normal durian distributed to all you unprivileged commoners.
Mark, his wife, and our translator took a taxi to a specified meeting point where the durian grower would pick us up. As we sat at the small outdoor cafe, waiting for the farmer, we joked that it was like a drug deal, replete with a pocket bulging with bills. I had butterflies, it felt so unreal.
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Mark from migrationology.com |
When Rob and I first visited Nonthaburi two years ago, we were told that we would probably never even set eyes on the elite durian. Such durians are not sold at markets. They are reserved months in advance, when the durians are merely petite green potential. Big wigs (like us now) go directly to the farm to pick up the fruits, which can cost as much as 20,000 baht, or $617 USD.
That already sounds like a lot for a fruit, but let me put the price in perspective. According to Thailand’s National Statistical Office, the average monthly household income in Thailand is 25,403 baht per month, or about $785 USD.
It’s like if someone in the United States paid $2,657* for a really good watermelon. Would you do it?
*According to the US Census Bureau, the 2012 average monthly salary was $3,380. You can check my math if you want to.
Maybe if it was encrusted with edible gold, if this list of the world’s most expensive food gives any insight into human psychology.
A Nonthaburi Ganyao doesn’t come with extra jewelry. It’s just a durian. But there are a few reasons why it comes with that jaw-dropping price tag.
Durians from Nonthaburi have been famous for at least 400 years. It’s the place all commercial durian varieties – Monthong, Chanee, and Ganyao – originated. There’s something whimsical about Nonthaburi, like it’s some mythical durian Eden.
The orchards are quiet havens within the city, criss-crossed by green canals and narrow bridges. The canals are an unusual feature for a durian orchard – I’ve only seen them once elsewhere, in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam. But it’s not the canals themselves that make the orchard special. It’s the nearby Chao Phraya River, which is tidal. That means every day the canals are flooded with a mixture of fresh water and sea water, said to impart minerals and a special, slightly salty flavor to the durians.
The durians themselves are babied from their conception – covered in plastic bags and wire to keep out squirrels and rain, perfumed with mothballs to scare away insects, fed with homemade fertilizer concocted of fish parts, molasses, and yeast, and even covered with a pretty painted umbrellas to protect them from the intense tropical sun. They’ve never been touched with any kind of chemical.
But like $200 blocks of Swedish Moose Cheese (actual food, no joke), the main reason they’re so expensive is simply because they’re a rarity. Encroaching development from Bangkok, high land prices and my generation’s general disinterest in farming had already taken a toll when a massive flood in 2011 killed off 90% of the remaining trees.
Add the fact that the trees are thinned to only 3-4 durians per tree, in order to enure high sugar content and nutrient density in each fruit, and you can gather that there really aren’t very many durians grown in Nonthaburi.
At one point, Rob and I even wondered if Nonthaburi durians still existed at all, or if they were a myth, a residual memory from the days of the great Ayutthaya Kings. We’d never met anyone who’d eaten one. But then, how many people do you know who have eaten the $145 hot dog? Or, for that matter, the 5,000 Euro cantaloupe? (Still not joking).
Then in 2013 I got in contact with Nonthaburi’s Department of Agriculture. I was looking for some other information about durian varieties, and after being transferred a bewildering number of times found myself talking to the head of the department. He invited me to visit Nonthaburi to see their orchards.
That’s how I met Mrs. Maliwan. Standing barefoot in the orchard with a shy, sweet smile, she didn’t seem like a durian tycoon. She’d worked in the orchard all her life, leaving school in the 8th grade to help her family full time. As she explained how to make fertilizer, or talked about the hard work of scooping soil from the bottom of the canals to make the mounded rows for the trees, she
had an aura of rustic peacefulness that put me at ease.
Yet her farm supplies durian to the royal palace and is frequented by the upper echelons of Thailand, some of whom were already there when Mark, his wife, our translator and I arrived at the farm. Mrs. Maliwan was giving a short tour of the orchard, and the four of us trailed after them as they happily snapped photos of themselves with the plastic-wrapped durians hanging from trees, laughing, clutching their handbags and tripping over the uneven ground.
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See the durian’s pretty parasol? |
At last it came time to hand over the cash and get our fruit. As I counted out the shiny pink and silver 1,000 baht bills – all 10 of them – Mrs. Maliwan presented the durian to us. It was perfectly round, with the thick long stem typical of a Ganyao durian. It had been cut earlier that day, and the stem was still green and sticky with sap. She suggested we eat it in three days.
I was dismayed. I was leaving the next day for Malaysia. What would I do with an unripe durian? And more importantly, how could Mark help me determine whether or not a Nonthaburi durian tastes any different than a durian grown anywhere else?
Luckily, Mrs. Maliwan also had a few extra Monthong durians for the measly cost of 1,000 baht each. Sure, that’s what Rob and I normally pay for two or even three nights of accommodation, but after shelling out ten crisp bills just one felt like nothing.
Mrs. Maliwan cut it open while we hovered around in anticipation, Mark’s finger punching his camera’s button in rapid succession. Finally, someone who takes as many pictures of durian as me!
The durian was gorgeous. It was a nice pale yellow, just the way a Monthong should be. Slightly soft to the touch, with a firm, dry layer surrounding the gooey interior. It tasted buttery, and very sweet. And just slightly salty.
I don’t eat a lot of Monthong, because it’s not usually my favorite durian. So it was difficult for me to say just how great this one was compared to other Monthongs. It certainly was a good one. I actually liked it, something I can’t say for every Monthong I’ve eaten. Mark thought it was great. He’ll share his thoughts about the Nonthaburi durian tomorrow on his blog.
As for this pricey guy? My 10,000 baht Nonthaburi Ganyao? What did I do with him?
Check back on Friday to find out! (I know, I know, cliffhangers are so frustrating!)
EDIT: The follow-up story, in which I smuggle the durian on an overnight train to Malaysia, is here.
So for now, tell me: What was your most extravagant edible buy? And was it worth it?
Duiken Hurghada says
Wonderful page and article here, keep you the good work
norlan martinez says
in davao right now, the cost is 50-70 pesos a kilo, depending on the variety. that’s $1++ per kilo.
Edwin Tan says
Just had Kanyao durian over the weekend in Bangkok.
They finally has enough Kanyao to be sold openly in the public.
Had 7 seeds for a price of 250 bahts.
Big C has also imported Kanyao to their supermarket.
Clair says
Hmmm could the price simply be reflecting the length of that long sturdy stalk? I have never willingly bought a durian. As a novice in the early eighties staying in Cleopatras Palace (a small row of woven bamboo thatch huts on the then unspoilt and almost uninhabited idyll of Phuket ) I was taken on a dedicated durian search.
I hadn’t honestly shown much interest in durians primarily because of my mostly inherited Western olfactory sensory neurons telling me to stay away from their nauseating smell. My guide was the young naked but for a pair of tiny red cotton shorts and yellow flip flops coconut farmer and fisherman next door who owned a motorbike. He insisted I suspect because he wanted me perched up close on the back of his bike. A couple of hours sight seeing with a handsome local I thought wasn’t the worst deal either.
After many searches criss crossing the Island it became apparent a good one was quite difficult to find. Of course spectacular scenery, isolated beaches and stops to chat to pleasant strangers (to me at any rate) added to the challenge. Quite often he would simply pull up to a fruit stall or farmers orchard sniff around then leave, it seemed none of the durians where quite good enough. This delightful hunt continued until dusk when he suddenly turned his bike around in the middle of the road and headed off at great speed to Phuket’s then heart and where everyone arrives and mostly departs foreigners and locals, the bus station. He drove straight to a small fruit stall loaded with nothing but durians. It took all of five minutes to find the perfect fruit, the seller knocking each one briskly with back of a knife and displaying the magnificent length of that stalk for approval. Prices varied but we seemed to settle on the one with longest and straightest and thickest stalk and also most expensive and off we went he cradling the crown of thorns delicately between his smooth naked thighs.
When we got back he took his machete and with a few deft taps opened up the hard prickly shell excitedly revealing what looked worryingly like large jaundiced kidneys inside. Sure enough those olfactory sensory neurons again came between me and having good time and so after a nibble feigning delight I took as much as I thought I could get away with not taking back to my hut and buried it in the deep soft sand of the coconut grove.
Of course now I know exactly how to buy a durian should I never want to do that again. Look for the longest straightest (though I think this latter might be subjective) thickest at any rate stalk and expect to pay over the odds for it. The rest, like taste and provenance appear to be minor details one shouldn’t waste too much time on less you lose that long and straightest of stalked durian amongst the bunch to someone else at the the bus station.
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Musangking says
I’ve planted 30 trees of musang king in malaysia. It takes 6 yrs to bear fruits, so buying a durian fo 10 k bath a piece is fair becouse planting durian is not easy as abc.
Peter says
I once went to a Durian market in Singapore at night when they were all closing down and we bought all the opened durians and loaded the boot of my car with just over 100 durians. I don’t eat them but my family (and other relatives0 gorged on them for 2 days!
Anonymous says
A friend referred me to this post yesterday and I've spent a few hours reading many of your posts which I've enjoyed, but I've not yet come across to the conclusion to this post. Can you please give a link to it? I honestly don't follow blogs much but found it somewhat confusing since none of the articles are dated.
Lindsay Gasik says
Hi Anonymous,
Thanks for getting in touch! Yes, the lack of dates is annoying isn't it? It's a feature that's been broken on this site, and since I've been putting my energy into creating a new website (which will launch in about a week!) I haven't bothered to figure out how to fix it.
Here's the link: http://www.yearofthedurian.com/2014/07/tasting-worlds-most-expensive-durian.html
You can also use the search box in the right-side column to find specific topics and things you're looking for.
Jesmond says
Just read your post. You've definitely been conned. The best durian is in Malaysia and at the peak of the price, it's usd30 per kg.
Just like the old saying, tourists money is easier to make. Make up stories overpriced it and they believe everything.
Lindsay Gasik says
Hi Jesmond, it's not a tourist trap, no worries 🙂
Anonymous says
these are the few things in the worlds that is not sell in market and why do ppl go o ur blog and comment abt being conned because tourist. haha. ppl who love something dearly will know. and just imagine how hard it is to take care of the durians. we pay for the care service to have a good durian.
i believe in this bc my dad is a fish lover. and theres this one fish that only play around downpour of waterfall and u need to be there for whole day to catch it. day and night.its always the orang asli who catch it. n u know how high the price is> RM 30k. my dad shares with his friends- just to have a bite.~ Min
Anonymous says
I saw a 25 euro durian at the supermarket last week and already thought it was expensive 🙂
Lindsay Gasik says
That is expensive! Not sure I would do it, unless totally desperate cravings set in 🙂
Anonymous says
Noooooooooo, the cliff hanger
The Yum List says
Wow! No way would I pay that for a durian. Hee, hee… I might pay that to have them taken away from nose's reach of my home though. 😉
Anonymous says
Love to read your blog. Good job…
lerler Chan says
That is very expensive. The most expensice durian I ever eaten is red prawn durian. RM35 per kg. $300 per durian. So hard to believe
Sakaoduen I. says
This prize is considered normal prize for this Durian, it can be even more expensive than USD3,000 per a Durian and only from Nonthaburi can sell so high prize because their Durian taste is different from other place. I am Thai but still do not know how different the taste because it is too expensive for me ??
Jason King says
I've definitely bought more than my share of $50+ durians!