Mangosteen: Foodies, Read It & Weep (unless you live in the tropics)

“‘This is like seeing a unicorn,’” Sherry Yard, pastry chef of Spago Beverly Hills, said after tasting a mangosteen & “‘I’d love to be able to put them on the menu,’” said Sébastien Rouxel, pastry chef of Per Se - NYT

The mangosteen is a luscious succulent fruit, and one of our favorites, which grows in tropical climates and is also called the “Queen of Fruits”. Its nickname may have come from a legend where Queen Victoria was said to have offered a reward or knighthood to anyone who could bring her the much coveted fruit. Alas, it was never recorded if she did indeed get her hands on one.

It is possible, since 2007, to find mangosteens in the US in very limited numbers and areas. However, most of the ones that are available are, or were at some point, frozen and the flavor is lost by the time they reach the markets. As of April 2009, they were selling at Dean and Deluca in Manhattan for $6 per mangosteen, which would be about $24 per lb. In Saigon they are $0.40 per lb.!!!! and of course they are fresh…

Print by Berthe Hoola van Nooten, 1880

Wikipedia describes the taste as “sweet and tangy” and we would agree with that. However, they further describe it as “citrusy with peach flavor and texture” and we couldn’t disagree more; its not acidic enough to be considered a citrus and it certainly doesn’t taste like a peach or have the texture of a fresh peach. Though I’ve tried to think of ways to describe the taste, I can’t; it’s completely different from any other food.

I must agree with Eric Mjöberg, Swedish zoologist & ethnographer from the early 1900’s who said of the mangosteen, "It would be mere blasphemy to attempt to describe its wonderful taste, the very culmination of culinary art for any unspoilt palate."

Now, foodie friends, come to visit us & try the forbidden (semi-fresh ones sell on the black market in Chinatowns throughout the US) and coveted mangosteen!

A couple of good NYTimes articles about the mangosteen can be found here: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/08/dining/08mang.html?_r=1 & http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/09/dining/09mang.html?pagewanted=1&sq=mangosteen&st=cse&scp=1