I Luv Marang

Another spiky fruit from the South has captured my palate_ marang . Similar to my first love durian, marang has also spiky cover and pungent odor but the latter is all timid compare to the king of fruits (durian).



Snap Facts :
The Marang/Johey Oak/Green Pedalai/Madang/Tarap/Breadfruit Cousin (Artocarpus odoratissimus) — also called Marang, Madang, and Tarap — is a tree native to Borneo. It is closely related to the Jackfruit, Cempedak, and Breadfruit trees. The appearance of the fruit can be regarded as an intermediate shape between the jackfruit and the breadfruit. It is round to oblong, 15–20 cm long and 13 cm broad, and weighing about 1 kg. The thick rind is covered with soft, broad spines. They become hard and brittle as the fruit matures. The fruit does not fall to the ground when ripe. It may be harvested while still hard, and left to ripen until soft. Marangs change colour to greenish yellow when ripe. The ripe fruit is opened by cutting the rind around, twisting and gently pulling. The interior of the fruit is somewhat similar to the jackfruit's, but the color is white and the flesh is usually softer. The core is relatively large, but there are far fewer "rags" and less non-edible parts. Arils are white and the size of a grape, each containing a 15 × 8 mm seed. Once opened, the marang should be consumed quickly (in a few hours), as it loses flavour rapidly and fruit oxidizes. The seeds are also edible after boiling or roasting.

It is an evergreen tree growing to 25 m tall. The leaves are 16–50 cm long and 11–28 cm broad, similar to the Breadfruit's, but are a little less lobed. The tree is not cold tolerant (as is the breadfruit). It can grow between latitude 15º north and south, and in coastal regions where temperatures never stay under 7 °C. It is cultivated for its fruit in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and southern Thailand. The species is largely grown for local consumption; the short shelf-life of the fruit limits its wider use.



I'd say it's also an acquired taste. I tasted it once and got addicted to it. I could easily finish a ball of it in one sitting. Couldn't describe the taste cos it's a fusion of many familiar local  fruits. It's like atis with banana with star apple with guyabano. .  it's marang !! Not everyone likes marang as opposed to the popularity of mangoes and bananas. It's exotic and not widely available. The shelf life is so short but I managed to bring home some for my loved ones in Manila. My eldest whose palate is perfectly molded like mine (Myka eats anything I eat. Kyla eats anything the dad eats), fell in love with it the way I did on the first taste. The following day, she was still looking for some to eat. Sorry, no more.



I was told the best  marang here in my country could be found in Cotabato . True enough, when I visited the South last week, I passed by a lot marang plantations seen from the road. On my way back to Davao City, there were lots of marang fruits for sale on the road sides.

It's in season and was so cheap. Selling at P10 each. That was wow! I could bring home sacks of it as pasalubong. But couldn't no matter how cheap. Remember the shelf life is so short. Ofcourse excess baggage was another hindering factor. So I just bought like few of them that I could manage to take home and was given another day to consume them. It was good I had my cuzin who was an expert on marang.



So folks, that's my marang story. Have you tried one?