Durian appreciation session @ Durian King TTDI

Durian King TTDI partnered up with Fave to do a durian appreciation session last weekend with a flight of different durians. Yes, I’m calling it a flight, an appropriately atas word, like how high end artisanal coffee like to call their samplers “flights”. Hehe. I like the concept though, I believe this is the first time it’s been done in Malaysia.

There was a demonstration on how to open durians and how to tell a Musang King apart from the other cultivars. I already know this but I still picked up a few interesting things. Apparently if you hit a durian, it simulates it falling naturally and starts the ripening process. This is supposed to happen in a matter of seconds, so this is why you see some durian sellers smacking the side of a durian with the flat part of their parang before opening it!

The course reminded me of fine dining, and they had nice tablecloths and menus to complete the illusion too. The starter was Durian Cendol, one of the popular items Durian King sells. It’s usually RM 15 for this beauty topped with two D24 durians. I love how they use palm sugar from Sarawak instead of gula Melaka. It’s basically the same thing but we call this “gula apong” back home and it has a nice charred caramelized taste that goes very well with the cendol. Decadent. I’ll be back to eat this again.

Then came the selection (flight?) of durians. It’s neatly arranged from mild to intense, so I started out with the Durian Jantung. This is what Chinese call XO durian. It’s pretty good but I was blown away by the next two – one of my favorite cultivars of durian is D2 (Dato Nina) and this was a perfect specimen. Fruity flavors with a fibrous pulp. I also loved the Tekka (what we call chu kiok), it was intensely sweet and creamy. Musang King was the last and the best – very bittersweet and strongly flavored to bring a nice end to things. It’s an excellent way for people to eat a variety of good durian cultivars.

There was also dessert after that, a collaboration between Inside Scoop (who makes ice cream) and Durian King to produce a D24 durian ice cream. It’s delicious! Creamy, cold, with clear notes of the durian shining though. I was actually quite full at this point coz the two girls opposite me couldn’t finish their durians so I helped them wallop it.

Fave is an app which gives you deals and discounts but it also has an epayment option where you can use their FavePay to pay for purchases using your phone. I’ve been using it since I found out about it. They have a wide range of partners but I usually just go to llao llao, Auntie Anne’s and Cinnabon to satisfy my sweet tooth.