Lian Wu? (Wax apple/nose apple/etc.) available in LA?

[Mr Taster]

Has anyone ever seen these available for sale anywhere in LA? I've eaten them in Taiwan and Thailand, but have never seen them here.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia...

Mr Taster

[jkao1817]

I have seen them before (very rarely) at Hong Kong Market in Rowland Heights.....

[Mr Taster]

Do you recall at what time of the year you have seen them?

Mr Taster

[jkao1817]

I am sorry I do not remember when.

Next time I see them I will let you know.....

I do remember eating them during the summer in Taiwan.

[ipsedixit]

Typically, you can find these during the Autumn moon festival at many of the SGV chinese or vietnamese markets. Not always the red kind, however.

[mlgb]

How interesting, it is similar to a fruit we used to eat in Jamaica.

Everything you wanted to know about it, including the bearing seasons. I wonder if it could be grown in LA from a seed? Not sure exactly what they mean by extra-tropical, but if they grew it in Israel, maybe it would work here.

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/mo...

Also, I wonder if they would ever have it in Indian markets in Artesia.

[Das Ubergeek]

Mr Taster, do you know about the Vietnamese fruit and flower shop at Bolsa and Magnolia? I couldn't tell you what the name of it is, but it's in the same plaza as the gigantic Viet Market, the Banh Mi Che Cali and the hot vit lon place, on the (I think) SW corner.

When they're in season -- which, I seem to recall, is Septemberish -- they have them there. They also sell dragonfruit, cherimoya, durian, breadfruit and mangosteen in their various seasons.

[mlgb]

From my link

Season

In Ceylon, the fruits are ripe from March to May; in India, the tree blooms in March and April and the fruit ripens in May and June; in Java, flowering occurs from April to June and fruiting from June to August.

[Mr Taster]

Hm, no I don't believe I've ever been here.... thanks DU. I had thought that it was not possible to buy mangosteen in the US due to some sort of import ban?

Mr Taster

[Das Ubergeek]

The ban was lifted last year. The imports are not as fragrant as what you find in fruit stands in southern Asia but they are still very tasty.

[gsmoose]

Many family friends grow this fruit but I don't recall ever seeing them for sale in stores... sorry!

They can grow quite well here... one family friend has several trees that bear plenty of fruit.

[HKSM AUSTIN]

We have them available for sale in Texas right now, so they might be coming in season. In Hawaii we have them growing in our yard - red one s and white ones.

[renjake]

Can I get these fresh anywhere besides Central Market, I'm in North Texas

[Vince S]

Good post!! Man, I love lian wu. I had them recently in TW and they were sweet!

[rog]

I bought a couple lbs from the family who had a tree in Cerritos. Pretty sweet

[Mr Taster]

What is "the family" in Cerritos? Sounds like a lian wu mafioso ring.

Mr Taster

[shikio]

Heard of Lian Wu (red wax apple) was available in the Exotic fruit store in Toronto.

[silverlakebodhisattva]

So, going slightly OT, what are they like?

Are they so wonderful (like mangoes) or unique (like, um, durian) that they're worth seeking out at any price and distance, or are they more like, say cornelian cherries, (which made me think "hmm. These'd be OK, I guess, if you couldn't get any ACTUAL cherries, but once you could get THOSE, these would go by the wayside") or star-fruit ("OK;. Interesting LOOKING, but they don't really taste like much...")?

[Das Ubergeek]

The latter. They're not like mangosteens, which drive mortal men to madness.

Good to see you back, RGS.

[Mr Taster]

Replying to my own thread, 3.5 years later.

DU, I never did check out the fruit place you recommended at Bolsa and Magnolia (forgot about it, actually, until rereading it just now) but I was in Little Saigon this past Saturday (where I finally scored the youtiao and house special soup at the real Trieu Chau-- absolutely delicious) and found some lien ou at the fancy fruit shop near the back entrance of the Asian Garden Mall. The shop also had fresh durian and those Asian guavas (the green skinned, grassy flavored ones) which have the distinct benefit of sending my wife into throngs of euphoria.

Just ate one today. They were delicious. I had forgotten how the texture is crisp and lightly sweet, a little sour, a little astringent, with a crisp yet oddly spongy meat. The closer you eat to the core, the more astringent and sour the fruit becomes.

Would love to know where to find these closer to home-- say, somewhere in the San Gabriel Valley.

Mr Taster