HPE1013: Exotic fruits.

Malaysia is a country that rich in agricultural produce, including exotic fruits. There are a variety of exotic fruits that are difficult to find unless when in season. For example, there are several types of fruit such as engkalak fruit, dabai fruit, pakon fruit, terap fruit and so on. That fruits only can we have when in season. The following are some types of fruit to be told that there are in Sarawak.

Engkalak fruit, pink in color and this fruit was from a wild plant. It was a favorites dish to Sarawak people and actually this fruit is more to vegetable type rather than fruits like papaya or watermelon. Thus, people usually eat it together with their lunch or dinner. Before we want to eat that, we should to soak them in the warm and salty water until the fruits are soft enough to consume. Actually that fruit are softly itself, but without some simple process like soak them in the warm and salty water, they are still not suitable to eat. This fruit just has a little smell but it tastes mild sweet. When we applied with salt, it tastes a bit salty with little sweet just nice as dishes but delicious. Engkalak is a seasonal fruit, that is mean it just a certain time in a year to have chance to taste it and usually it is almost the same season with durian.

Dabai fruit is rich in antioxidant supplement to body health. Dabai are white in color when immature and will turn in black when ripe. They are oblong in shape like an olive and have thin and edible skin. The yellowish white flesh wraps around a seed. Before we want to eat dabai, soak the dabai in hot water until they are soft. The yellowish flesh tastes are creamy. We can preserve it just by soaking them with soy sauce or with salt without the seed. The best thing that comes out from this fruit is the nut inside the seed. Crack it open with a mortar and pestles set to get the nuts inside. At Sarawak, this fruit also used to special dish like fried rice with dabai that are very famous to Sarawak people.

If we first time see this fruit, we will think this fruit is durian. Actually this fruit are not durian but we called pakon or pakan fruit. Pakon fruit is easy to open, no need to use knife. It has smell like durian but not too smelly. Actually pakon is like durian but it color was orange. When we eat pakon, we will not get all fingers dirty as when we eat durian. The taste is creamy and delicious. Pakon is cheaper than durian and this fruit is seasonal. We only can have this fruit only once a year.

Lastly, this fruit is like jackfruit but not. This fruit we called terap fruit. It is contents yellowish white and taste is too sweet. To open this fruit is very easy does not require a knife, just open with our fingers. Terap fruit peeled and eaten fresh also can be made fritters or porridge. Terap also may be used to make delicious dish like curry. The seed of this fruit also can eat, just fried that seed and it tastes like nut.

Whatever exotic fruit in Malaysia, we should protect this exotic fruit and have knowledge to handle this exotic fruit. It is because these exotic fruit usually almost seasonal and difficult to have it. We should have some technology to keep this fruit in long time without change any taste and shape.