5 Star Lima Jari Durian Can Feed A Whole Family
In Malaysia, the typical size of a durian is frequently below 2 kilograms. Many are below 1 kilogram.
There are also famous cultivars like black thorn and tekka that can regularly approach and exceed 3 kilograms. But when in this part of the world, when we see huge durians at a considerable size, the first thought that comes to mind is that it would be a native durian of Thailand.
You only need to look at the 2 most widespread Thai durians of monthong and chanee to see why.
Moreover, since consumers in Malaysia prefers the durian totally ripe, smaller durians have a better chance of achieving full ripeness compared to big durians. So it’s no exaggeration to say that consumers in Malaysia, and also Singapore, mostly prefer small to average sized durians around 1kg-2kg.
It’s no surprise at all that at durian stores, for people to specifically request durians at below 2 kilos.
But as with everything durian, there are always exceptions in this mystical world of green spiky fruits.
For instance, some durians are best consumed as fresh as it can be like kasap merah. Others should be left for half a day before consumption like red prawn.
There is really no 1 rule to rule them all.
And contrary to this durian size paradox where small durians are generally more delicious, one reverable durian is lima jari.
Lima jari is Malay for 5 fingers. In Chinese, it’s referred to as wu ji guo (五指果) translated as 5 finger fruit.
The name is supposedly a reference to the fruit usually packing 5 lobes of fruitlets. 5 lobes being 5 fingers. It is also sometimes referred to as the rock, not to be confused with durian batu.
This is one giant of a durian to be reckoned with. And as mentioned before, it won’t be a surprise for people to instinctively point it’s origin at Thailand due to it’s size.
In fact, if you look at a picture of monthong. Then a picture of 5 fingers, there’s a good chance that you won’t be able to tell the difference between them.
More about that later.
The first lima jari tree was said to have set root in Ulu Piah in Ampang of Ipoh Perak. In the Liang family farm. But how the tree managed to get there or grow there is shrouded in mystery. Which is why the notion that it originated from Thailand cannot be completely debunked.
As the reputation of lima jari spread, people started needing to be put on waiting lists for it. One such customer was so annoyed by this that he instead chose to plant them in this own farm. His son Fang then took over the reigns. Which was then that Mr Chen came along and took a liking for lima jari as well. He planted saplings provided by Fang in his farm, entered the national durian championship, and promptly won first prize. Beating the top musang king and black thorn growers in the spectacular victory.
Lima jari has gone national.
Despite the win, there has not been widespread adaptation of five fingers durian. Partly because it’s rise to fame coincided with the musang king and black thorn gold rush when farmers were all trying to outdo each other in planting the most saplings.
Some people would say that its origin is Melaka. However, I’ve not come across any trail that leads to Melaka to an earlier period than Perak.
Features of lima jari durian
This is a rather big durian. Generally bigger than black thorn. Often going upwards of 3kg and beyond.
The overall shape is humpy with convex bumps along the horizontal axis. If you look at it from the top view, you’d see the shape of a flower with 5 petals.
Because this is a large durian, the thorns are understandably large.
The concave parts have dense smaller thorns. Indicating that the thorn arrangement and growth heavily depends on how large the fruilets develops into.
The stem is short and fat. And the bottom is pointed.
And as mentioned earlier. You might see an uncanny resemblance to monthong golden pillow.
It’s not a difficult durian to open due to the thin husk.
When you open this durian, you’d sometimes find that the stem is deep into the fruit like the stem of an apple. And since the fruitlets develop closely along the outline of the rind, the lobes can take on a shape resembling ears or butterfly wings.
If you are one who find the exterior appearance to resemble monthong, then the similarities start to disappear when you see it opened.
For starters, monthong flesh is usually less ripe and pastel yellow. The lobes of fruitlets also tend to be pointed at the ends. Lima jari is nothing like that.
At this point your jaw might have dropped at how humungous the fruitlets are. Some can be thicker and fatter than the palm of your hand. Which is why a 3kg fruit can very well be a meal replacement for a family of 4.
Lima jari flesh can come in 3 slightly different colours. Off-white like that of jinfeng, light yellow like tiansong, and also a little pinkish like red prawn.
The darker the tone, the more flavour the flesh packs. Smaller sized fruits with pale coloured flesh can remind you of XO.
I have to say that my experience with durians is that small ones are more likely to pack complex intense taste. 5 fingers is doing it’s best to buckle that trend.
It is definitely not as mild as something like dream lover. But it’s not as hard hitting as a grouchy gabai either. Yet it definitely embodies a complex flavor in the realm of jinfeng. But there’s no way it would be able to stand toe-to-toe with a good tekka.
The flesh texture is also surprisingly sticky and smooth. The seeds are mostly flat like MSW.
But because of the mega size this durian, and it’s soft aril, it can produce a considerable amount of water in a short time. Meaning it does not retain it’s quality well over time. Just leave the durian off the tree for as much as one day, and you would be able to observe a considerable deterioration of quality.
The contradiction to this is that a fully fresh one right after dropping from the tree can lack flavor. It has to be left alone to “ferment” for at least 6 hours. This leaves the window to consume it at peak flavor smaller than other durians. Eat it too early and it lacks taste, too late and it becomes wet.
Considering the formidable taste of this durian, and the size it usually comes in, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this will be a seller’s favourite. Since each fruit will sell for quite a considerable price. But this is not the case as we will discuss why next.
Lima jari harvest season
Lima jari is a late season durian. The time from flowering to ripe harvest is about 120 days. The same ball park as ganja.
So it enters the market around July-August.
A big reason why this is not a favourite of farmers is that the fruits grow in large clusters on the tree branch.
When you factor in how big each durian is, you’d see why so much weight concentrated on a single point on a tree branch can be a nightmare of a problem for farmers.
Many branches are just not strong enough to hold onto that weight. And we are just talking about normal circumstances here. We have yet to think about thunderstorms and strong wind in the mountains.
Further more, it is said that the trees will only start to produce commercial grade fruits when it approaches the age of 10 year. This is quite an extended period of time compared to that of musang king and black thorn.
The good news is that the number of lima jari trees has hit a significant threshold. Meaning that it will not face potential extinction in our lifetime. But the supply is also not high enough for anyone who wants to try it, try it.
You’d need to get to Ipoh for the best chances of grabbing a fresh one during peak season in the terrior where it grows best.