i present to you "the mangosteen". the mango’s jewish half cousin. ok, actually, there’s no relation whatsoever. and if there is, the newly-outed, anti-semitic mango is not owning up.
the mangosteen is typically advertised and marketed as part of an emerging category of novel "functional fruits" sometimes called "superfruits" presumed to have a combination of 1) appealing subjective characteristics, such as taste, fragrance and visual qualities, 2)nutrient richness, 3)antioxidant strength and 4) potential impact for lowering risk against human diseases. i stole that entire line from wikipedia and promise to return it the moment you finish this sentence.
oh, but you know how it can be… you read about some foodstuff… and then you start hearing more… and then it escalates into raves… and of course, said item is often both hard to come by – and expensive… and that’s usually about when i place my order.
but how could you blame me? the final straw came just as i happened upon a post over at ‘serious eats’ entitled "Delicious Mangosteens: Better Than A Hot Fudge Sundae?" I mean talk about roping in an already food obsessed person who constantly FRETS about her weight. i could even say that those words were borderline seduction. so being the susceptible woman that i am, armed with a newly received tax return in the bank, and an american express card in my wallet – not to mention a perpetual hankering for ice cream despite an ever expanding waistline, i was all about buying these fruits of the mercenary gods.
the case was overnighted from (guess…) california and arrived still cool at my doorstep the next morning. no matter what you might think from the pics, they’re small. like about the size of a clementine. i got 10. which with shipping averaged them out at about $7 each. which would have been ok because i was WILLING to go there. i just wanted to be wow’ed. i wanted to be the cyber messenger of the mangosteen.
but alas, i am here to say – save your money, kids. they’re good. but…
they’re not ’toe scrunching’ good.
they’re not ‘i have to call my best friend’ good. nor are they ’i feel good about spending the money’ good.
and definitely not ’i'll take these over sex’ good.
is anything that good?
50 responses so far ↓
1 Lesley // May 30, 2008 at 4:13 pm
And I thought a dollar each for a tiny forelle pear was expensive…
Those don’t even look like real things you should eat. They look like toys.
is anything that good?
Well, that really depends on who you’re having sex with, doncha think? But, you know, in my case, no, of course nothing is that good (hi honey!).
2 Chris // May 30, 2008 at 4:15 pm
Glad to see that you were able to open one without mutilating it… I was not so successful.
If only all the hype had been true…
Thanks for sharing.
3 Mari // May 30, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Those are some beautiful photos, Claudia.
4 cookiecrumb // May 30, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Well, at my house, probably the mangosteen.
5 Samantha // May 30, 2008 at 5:46 pm
GORGEOUS! That mother nature is something else. Well, now I don’t have to spend my money! Good to know!!!
6 Diana // May 30, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Thank you for saving me so much money! I was wondering how fruit could possibly top ice cream, myself.
I wasn’t wondering so much about the latter.
7 [eatingclubvancouver] js // May 30, 2008 at 6:52 pm
I was never one for these white-fleshed fruits. My mother likes mangosteens, star apples, cherimoyas, and the like, and does on occasion reminisce how good they are. I don’t think she’ll spend $7 bucks on a piece of fruit though, although she did mention spending $9 once on a ginormous cherimoya.
Thanks for the deflating the much-ado-hype of it.
8 elarael // May 30, 2008 at 7:43 pm
At least get some of your moneys worth by putting the husks in your vita-mixer with some water, because that’s where all the ‘powerhouse’ ingredients live.
9 Robert // May 30, 2008 at 9:28 pm
Fret,
Investment advice. Peru. Superfruit, not hype.
A box of Peruvian MANGOs would set you back about the same $$. Ok, so theyre not Jewish.
Pretty confident you would choose the mangos, they are ‘THAT’ good. At least for the first day or two anyway…………
10 Kate // May 30, 2008 at 11:28 pm
Um, no, nothing that good. Sex is always better, that’s just the kind of girl I am.
Thanks for letting me know. I’d been curious for a while, and the more I hear, the less I believe the hype.
11 Marc @ No Recipes // May 30, 2008 at 11:39 pm
Wow that’s pricey. I got a bag of 10 in Thailand for less than a $1, and at that price, they were mind-blowing… I guess I’d have to reconsider my stance on them at $7 a pop.
12 Traci @ Soup of The Day // May 31, 2008 at 2:28 am
They look like that Asian stinky fruit.
13 Denise Clarke // May 31, 2008 at 9:20 am
WOW! $7 a piece … I tried them in Austria of all places and they were delectable and had an exotic taste. Of course I paid less than 1 euro … for $7, I want a hunky pool guy to peel them and pop them in my mouth!!!!
14 nina // May 31, 2008 at 9:35 am
My gran always used to say that eating is the 2nd best thing to do. She died before she could tell me the best thing to do……I think I’ve figured it out by now and it is not eating!!!!!!
15 lucy // May 31, 2008 at 10:35 am
oh man
thank GOD you warned me before I clicked submit on my order for those tiny $7 fruits. that would’ve been a disaster.
obviously kidding. sorry you were disappointed by your mangosteens. sorry those food tricksters got the best of you.
16 LAARNI // May 31, 2008 at 11:14 am
i love mangosteen but i will not pay $7 a piece. in the philippines, i used to buy them in bunches of 12 and paid much,much less than that-fresh, tangy,sweet,delectable,sappy,juicy,tingly sensations all at once! i never tried the making juices out of the husk though.
17 diva@theSugarBar // May 31, 2008 at 11:48 am
I LOVE MANGOSTEEN. i used to sit in front of the tv with my dad eating these guys as a kid. had massive stains on my clothes from the red of the skins.
oh sure takes me back.
18 _ts of [eatingclub] vancouver // May 31, 2008 at 1:28 pm
We had mangosteens in the Philippines. Our sister-in-law drools at the mention of them. I was too young (haha) to remember what they tasted like. I get them confused with “star apples”. But, yeah, I don’t know if I’ve seen them cold anywhere here. And if they were, probably at crazy prizes. We’re not at that point yet to be “willing” to go that far, price-wise. ;D
As for the taste, maybe the ones grown in North America are just not as flavorful and sweet as, of course, the ones grown in the tropics. So perhaps you have to FLY to a tropical country then see. =D
19 _ts of [eatingclub] vancouver // May 31, 2008 at 1:29 pm
oops, that’s “seen them anywhere SOLD here”, not “cold” here.
20 jocelyn // May 31, 2008 at 3:03 pm
mangosteens are awesome!! but save your money for a trip to southeast asia instead where you can buy a giant bag-full for a dollar.
and _ts, you can find them in vancouver at TNT and other stores in chinatown but they aren’t always the freshest.
21 fluffernutter // May 31, 2008 at 3:45 pm
I’ve eaten them canned, and liked them, but until I saw your posting, I didn’t realize they were so adorable! Look at their adorable flower-shaped belly buttons!
22 Kim // May 31, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I want to know what you did with them after you opened them?
23 Mary Coleman // May 31, 2008 at 4:51 pm
I don’t know, Claudia, I think I’d put that 70 bucks towards some Sancerre…
wine is fruit, you know.
24 Laura @ Hungry and Frozen // May 31, 2008 at 4:55 pm
From the outside they look like passionfruit, from the inside they look like grapefruit…so what do they actually taste like? They certainly *look* pretty. Kinda sucks how all the raved-about superfruit stuff is so expensive…like $65 (yes!) for a bottle of Goji Berry Juice…beautiful photos, anyway
25 Rahdigga // May 31, 2008 at 5:14 pm
Hi
I had Mangosteens in Thailand about 7 years ago. They were slap your momma good. Call your best friend good. I had never tasted anything like them before–i think its the quality of the fruit in Asia at that time. The pineapple was several times sweeter than ANYTHING I have ever had in the States. Don’t knock them complete until you have had an opportunity to try them freshly picked in Asia.
26 Peter // May 31, 2008 at 6:30 pm
I feel the same way about sex.
27 Lauren // May 31, 2008 at 8:29 pm
man, there’s no way i can work yummy into my comment today. oh wait…i just did. seriously, those do not at all look appetizing, but they definitely win in the weird looking fruit category.
28 christey // May 31, 2008 at 9:53 pm
wow! okey. how disappointing then
but they look soooo
freaky?
cool?
i dunno.
i almost want to buy one or two just to shoot. i really like the skin and wickedly curious about the texture.
so what did ya do with ‘em?
29 democommie // May 31, 2008 at 11:41 pm
Claudia;
Excuse me for a moment, please.
Peter:
Do you mean to say that we should all go to SE Asia for sex? Boy, I hope not, I can’t afford a passport nevermind the trip itself!
Where was I? Oh, yes.
Claudia:
You are fearless. I heard Christopher Kimball from “Cooks Illustrated” talking on NPR for a few minutes the other day. I don’t always agree with his premises about food, but one thing he said in the piece rang the bell. He said he only learns how to cook by making mistakes–so, I must be a frikkin’ genius.
30 Cindy // Jun 1, 2008 at 12:36 am
OMG!!!
Do you know how much I miss mangosteen?!?!
Do you have any idea how…..good those mangosteen looks??!?!
Do you know how much I’ve been craving for them?!?
Arghhhh I want it badly!
31 robin // Jun 1, 2008 at 10:25 am
When I started your post I was soo ready to spend that much for the mangosteens… I’m glad I read all the way through!! Thanks for saving me money!
Your photos are great, Claudia.
32 RecipeGirl // Jun 1, 2008 at 11:39 am
Hmmm… I had been thinking about these too. i wonder if there are exciting things that you can do with them to make them good?
33 evil chef mom // Jun 1, 2008 at 12:02 pm
the only thing that might be better than sex is bacon and i’m not even sure about that!
34 Lynn // Jun 1, 2008 at 12:23 pm
No, nothing’s better if the sex is ripe. ;0
35 Donald // Jun 1, 2008 at 2:30 pm
Never had such a thing. Thanks for the information. What do they taste like?
Sex? Bacon might be better, but I dunno…
To me sex is like pizza; even when it’s bad, it’s still pretty damn good!
36 Kevin // Jun 1, 2008 at 3:13 pm
This is the first time that I have seen a mangosteen. They look pretty interesting. I will have to keep an eye out for them.
37 NOBLE PIG // Jun 1, 2008 at 4:03 pm
I have never had one of these but I’ve always wanted my last name to be Silversteen..he-he.
38 Adina // Jun 1, 2008 at 6:06 pm
Where did you order them from? I am interested to try them…even at $7 a pop.
39 Ethel // Jun 1, 2008 at 9:55 pm
photo’s are GREAT. Never heard of this fruit before. Live and Learn.
40 MichaelG // Jun 2, 2008 at 8:12 am
Jeez and I still haven’t yet figured out what a Langosteen is.
Seven bucks a pop? No thanks. I’ll stick with those lovely navel oranges they have at the farmers’ market.
41 Natalie // Jun 2, 2008 at 9:58 am
All I can say about $7 a pop is Holly Crap. Hole-E-CRAP, that is a lot.
42 We Are Never Full // Jun 2, 2008 at 7:45 pm
fois gras.
i may trade up some for sex.
thank you for this. never heard of these but at $7 each, i’d better be getting something that’s gonna make me feel like i’m having some sort of an orgasm.
43 canarygirl // Jun 3, 2008 at 4:37 am
Daaaaaaaaaaang. What a bummer. :/ I hate it when that happens.
44 kitt // Jun 4, 2008 at 3:28 am
I paid $7 for an avocado in Beijing once, and it was worth it. But I only bought one.
45 ponyboat // Jun 4, 2008 at 8:34 am
I buy the freeze dried mangosteens at Trader Joe’s. They are an awesome snack, less than $3 for a bag. They basically taste like mangosteen flavored Cheetos.
46 ntsc // Jun 4, 2008 at 2:05 pm
http://www.foodmuseum.com/mangosteen.html
47 naomi // Jun 4, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Could you dry out the cut shells and make mini percussion instruments from them? You know, like foley artists do with coconut halves to simulate the sound of horses hooves – clip, clop, clip, clop. Only they would be like tiny fairy horses or borrowers feet….
Just trying to help you feel like all that dollerage wasn’t wasted. You never know, you might find that your tiny mangosteen orchestra takes your mind off ice-cream?
x x x
48 Hillary // Jun 6, 2008 at 10:41 am
Haha…hmmm, $70 is a lot to spend but I’m surprised they weren’t good. Sorry you were disappointed! Maybe these weren’t the best of the bunch?
49 i eat padek // Jun 6, 2008 at 1:55 pm
maybe you had a not-so-good bunch. i just bought some from out local aisan mart and they were that good. i go to Laos just to eat these things. i search all day and hope they’re in season, and then i buy 30 and eat them til i get stomach cramps, and then i go to sleep so i can hit the fruit stands again the next day.
50 countrymouse // Jun 14, 2008 at 9:33 am
Your photographs are beautiful. I kept asking myself, are those real? They look carved by an artist. The happy star shape on the bottom,and the straight stick of the stem are charming and remind me of a child’s toy. I am truly amazed at their symmetry. What do they feel like? I sense leathery like a pomegranate. I would have spent seven dollars each just to hold them . But that those little balls are food?… I would spend 10 each for the experience of eating one.
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