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Durian fit for a king

WHERE is the best place to have your durian? In a broom closet, critics suggest. Preferably with its doors shut tight.

This 'king' of fruits, which looks like an offensive weapon with its spiky surface, has a smell described as similar to cat dung.

Those who enjoy the succulent, creamy flesh of the durian are often forced to hide away when eating their favourite fruit, in case the smell offends anyone near them.

That may explain why Choisi Choi Chiu-chu chose Sheung Shui in the New Territories as the site for her new shop, Durian House.

'The reason we chose to open a shop in Sheung Shui is that we don't want to upset our prospective neighbours,' she said.

'You need large premises to store the durian. We also want to be close to China, to have a mainland market. Rent is also cheap out here.' Ms Choi fell in love with the fruit after she tasted some top quality durian in Singapore last September.

She enjoyed the taste so much that she abandoned her nursing career to open a business selling 'durian products'.

Durian House offers a choice of durian desserts - cake, ice-cream, pudding, sticky rice and pancakes.

Ms Choi, 30, who owns and runs the shop, has spent six months learning how to make durian desserts.

'That was after I tasted the real thing at a durian specialist shop in Singapore,' she said.

'For an hour, I spoke to its boss, John Hoe, a well-known durian trader . . . he is known as the 'King of Durian' in Singapore because he has been in the business for more than 23 years.' Since selling durian desserts was so successful in Singapore, Ms Choi thought the idea would catch on here.

She bought the sole rights from Singapore to sell vacuum nitrogen-packed durian, a packaging process that keeps the smell in a bag.

'So you can keep the durian in the fridge without the smell, you can carry them into any MTR, buses, ferries and other public transport without people staring at you,' Ms Choi said.

'I love eating durian but hate the way they are being sold by street hawkers.

'There is no guarantee customers are buying good durian off the streets.' She said durian-lovers had been put off by the quality of the fruit sold by street hawkers.

Ms Choi says the new vacuum nitrogen-packs produced in Durian House are a step forward in wholesaling the fruit to local supermarkets and to the mainland.

Durian House, situated on Fu Hing Street, Sheung Shui, also sells preserved durian snacks and drinks.

For people who do not like durian, Ms Choi also offers other fruit juices and desserts, among them black sticky rice porridge, a Thai coconut drink, iced gindo and iced red bean.

Ice-cream (durian-flavoured, of course) is available all year round.

The best time to eat durian is between March and June.

After October, Ms Choi says, the season is over for this tropical fruit.

But Durian House is open throughout the year.

If you are not a durian fan but would like to try the fruit, the pancake ($10) is a good snack to start with.

Many people still do not accept the smell of durians, but, Ms Choi says, more are willing to try it.

For those who worry about foul-smelling breath after eating the fruit, she offers the following advice: drink iced water afterwards.

Durian House, G/F 13 Fu Hing Street, Shek Wu Hui, Sheung Shui. Open 11am-11pm daily. Tel: 2673-3411; fax: 2668-5240

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