Battle Hymm of the Republic

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord:
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored;
He hath loosed the fatal lightning of his terrible swift sword:
His Truth is marching on.

I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling camps;
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps.
His Day is marching on.

I have read a fiery gospel, writ in burnished rows of steel:
'As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal;
Let the Hero, born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Since God is marching on.'

He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before his judgment-seat:
Oh! be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant, my feet!
Our God is marching on.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me:
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.

Julia ward howe


Howe's First Manuscript Version

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.
He is trampling out the wine press, where the grapes of wrath are stored,
He hath loosed the fateful lightnings of his terrible swift sword,
His truth is marching on.

I have seen him in the watchfires of an hundred circling camps
They have builded him an altar in the evening dews and damps,
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps,
His day is marching on.

I have read a burning Gospel writ in fiery rows of steel,
As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal
Let the hero born of woman, crush the serpent with his heel,
Our God is marching on.

He has sounded out the trumpet that shall never call retreat,
He has waked the earth's dull sorrow with a high ecstatic beat,
Oh! be swift my soul to answer him, be jubilant my feet
Our God is marching on.

In the whiteness of the lilies he was born across the sea
With a glory in his bosom that shines out on you and me,
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
Our God is marching on.

He is coming like the glory of the morning on the wave
He is wisdom to the mighty, he is sucour to the brave
So the world shall be his footstool, and the soul of Time his slave
Our God is marching on.

Like lotus saying

There are too many lovely flowers in the world.
Tao Yuanming in Jin Dynasty loved chrysanthemum only.
People have been interested in peony since Tang Dynasty.
But I do like lotus that is clean even growing in the muddy pond.
It is so pure, delicate and bright.
The lotus is consistent, continuous and coherent deep inside.
It appears to be straight, proper and honest.



It gives a fantastically good smell and people could even sense its excellent smell far away.
It has no unnecessary branches.
It can be only appreciated distantly but not touched blasphemously.
I am convinced that the chrysanthemum is a recluse while the peony is a rich and the lotus is undoubtedly the sovereign.
We seldom find someone loves chrysanthemum like Tao.
Who show the enthusiasm in the lotus in the same way as I do?
Then who likes peony? Almost everybody!

zhou duiyi

Confessional

There was wine in a cup of gold
and a girl of fifteen from Wu,
her eyebrows painted dark
and with slippers of red brocade.

If her conversation was poor,
how beautifully she could sing!
Together we dined and drank
until she settled in my arms.

Behind her curtains
embroidered with lotuses,
how could I refuse
the temptation of her advances?

Li T'ai-po

Char hor fun

Ingredients
White Chinese Noodles
1 Chicken Breasts - sliced into strips
2 SquidsSquids
- cut into slices
20 Medium sized PrawnsPrawns

1 Fish CakeFish Cake
- cut into slices
1 cup Chicken Stock
2 Garlic ClovesGarlic Cloves
- chopped
2 cups Water
1 EggsEggs
- beaten
2 tbsp Light Soy Sauce
2 tbsp Oil
1 ScallionScallion
- chopped
Spinach or your preferred green vegetable
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Sliced pickled Green ChiliGreen Chili
- to serve on side


Directions
1] Put 1 tbsp of oil into wok and stir fry 1/2 of the chopped garlic.
2] Add noddles and coat with light soy sauce.
3] Remove from wok and unto serving dish.
4] Place the rest of the oil into wok and stir fry the rest of the garlic.
5] Add 1 cup of chicken broth, then 2 cups water. (add more water if you prefer a watery mixture)
6] Add slices of chicken breasts.
7] Add prawns, slices of fish cakes and squid.
8] Boil till everything is cooked.
9] Add in spinach.
10] Bring everything to a boil again then turn off heat.
11] Stir in egg.
12] Add in salt and pepper for taste.
13] Pour soup over noodles.
14] Garnish with green onions.
15] Serve immediately with pickled green chilies.

Note:
- If its possible, use chinese cabbagechinese cabbage
instead of spinach.
- You can substitute the green chilies with Jalepeno peppers.

sago pudding with gula melaka

ingredients:

200g sago (this is a starch made from the sago palm; you can substitute tapioca [cassava flour] if not available)
700ml water
200g gula Malacca (palm sugar), or substitute a good brown sugar
1 tbsp sugar
6 tbsp water
225ml coconut milk

Method:

Combine the gula Malacca, 1 tbsp sugar ad 6 tbsp water in a pan and heat until melted and combined. Strain through a fine sieve and set aside.

For the sago pudding, add the 700ml water to a pan and bring to a boil. Rinse the sago and immediately stir into the boiling water. Continue stirring until the mixture reaches boiling point the divide between 10 individual ramekins. Allow to cool then chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

To serve, place the coconut milk and gula Malacca in bowls and set these on the table. Serve the sago puddings and allow the guests to add coconut milk and syrup to their own taste.

mangoe and sago pudding

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups sago (colored or plain)
• 2/3 cup evaporated milk
• 3 cups water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 6 tablespoons coconut cream or thick coconut milk
• 1/4 cup mango nectar or mango juice
• 1/2 cup chopped mango

Directions

1. 1

   Bring water to a boil, add sago and simmer for 15 minutes.

2. 2

   Stir in sugar, mango nectar, evaporated milk and coconut cream.

3. 3

   Simmer for another 10 minutes, stirring once in a while to prevent sago and milk from burning.

4. 4

   Simmer until liquid has almost evaporated.

5. 5

   While still hot, stir in mangoes and scoop about 1/2 cup of the mixture into serving glasses/bowls and let cool.

6. 6

   If you like you can puree the mixture slightly with a blender or stick-blender before scooping into individual bowls.

7. 7

   Chill for several hours before serving, and serve with extra chopped mango if desired.

Mangoe pudding

Ingredients:

• 2 envelopes (1 tablespoon) unflavored gelatin
• 3/4 cup (175 mL) sugar
• 1 cup (250 mL) hot water
• 3 cups (750 mL) pureed fresh mangoes
• 1 cup (250 mL) 2 percent evaporated milk
• 8 ice cubes
• lime wedges, optional
• fresh mango slices for garnish, optional

Preparation:

Add gelatin and sugar to hot water and mix until dissolved and smooth.
In large bowl, mix mango puree, evaporated milk and ice cubes. Pour gelatin mixture into mango mixture and stir until ice cubes are melted.
Pour mixture into jelly mould and chill until set, at least 3 hours. To serve, dip jelly mould briefly in hot water then turn pudding out onto platter. Squeeze on some lime juice, garnish with mango slices if desired and serve. (Best eaten within a day). Serves 8.

chuang tzu and the butterfly

Chuang Tzu in dream became a butterfly,
And the butterfly became Chuang Tzu at waking.
Which was the real—the butterfly or the man ?

Who can tell the end of the endless changes of things?
The water that flows into the depth of the distant sea
Returns anon to the shallows of a transparent stream.

The man, raising melons outside the green gate of the city,
Was once the Prince of the East Hill.
So must rank and riches vanish.

You know it, still you toil and toil,—what for?

Li Po

mango and sago dessert

Ingredients
600gm mango (abt 2 honey mangoes or 1 big red/green skinned mango)
250ml mango juice (Peel Fresh)
125ml evaporated milk
3 tbsp sago pearls (original uses 300gm pomelo, split into small pieces)
250ml water
50gm sugar
1 tbsp cornflour/tapioca starch
1 tbsp water
extra 250ml water

Method
1. Boil water and sugar till sugar dissolves
2. Mix cornflour/tapioca starch with 1 tbsp water and pour into the syrup and stir over low heat until mixture is smooth
3. Take syrup and cornflour mixture off the heat and leave it to cool
4. Cut the sides of the mango and cube them
5. Scrap the remaining mango and put in a bowl, add 250ml of water to blend, put aside
6. Add blended mango, cubed mango, mango juice and evaporated milk into the syrup solution (from 1) then stir
7. Add sago pearls and stir, if too thick, add abit of cooled boiled water
8. Chilled before serve

To prepare sago pearls
1. Soak sago pearls in water till they turned abit translucent
2. Boil the pearls with water till it turns totally translucent
3. Pour the cooked pearls into a sieve and wash it with tap water remove the starch and now it's ready to be used

Tapioca pudding

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup small pearl tapioca (you can usually find it in the baking section of the grocery store, do not use instant tapioca)
• 3 cups whole milk (or skim milk with cream added)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

Method

1 Combine tapioca, milk, and salt in 1 1/2 quart pan on medium high heat. Stir until boiling. Simmer 5 minutes, uncovered at the lowest possible heat, adding sugar gradually.

2 Beat eggs in a separate bowl. Mix in some of the hot tapioca very slowly to equalize the temperature of the two mixtures (to avoid curdling).

3 Return eggs to pan with tapioca. Slowly bring mixture barely to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and stir several minutes at a low simmer, stirring constantly until you get a nice thick pudding consistency. Cool 15 minutes. Add vanilla. Serve either warm or chilled.

Note: If you want to make a more light and fluffy, but still rich, tapioca pudding, separate the eggs. Use the egg yolks to stir in first to the pan with the tapioca. Once the pudding has become nice and thick, beat the egg whites in a separate bowl to soft peaks. Remove the pan of tapioca pudding from the stove, fold in the beaten egg whites into the pudding.

+

taro and tapioca pearl

Ingredients:

• 300 gm taro, diced
• 1/2 cup tapioca pearls
• 400 ml coconut milk, or to taste
• rock sugar, to taste
• 1 liter water

Method:

1. Soak tapioca pearls over 3 hours. Add to the boiling water on medium heat. Stir them frequently and make sure that they don’t stick together. After cooking for 20 minutes, remove the pot from heat, cover and let sit for another 30 minutes. The tapioca pearls should be translucent, without any white dots in the middle. They are done. If they are not ready, turn on the heat again and cook for a few minutes more. And then let sit for a while again.
2. Drain tapioca pearls and rinse under cold water. All tapioca pearls should be cool to the touch.
3. Bring water and coconut to the boil, add diced taro. When the taro cubes are cooked half through, add rock sugar until melted, to your taste. Lastly, add cooked tapioca pearls. Done.

Serve hot or cold.

tow foo fah

Ingredients
· 300g soy bean, soaked for over night
· 3 liters (12cups) water
· 1 tsp calcium sulphate (sek koh fun)
· 120ml boiling water
· 3 tsp corn flour
· 1 tsp vanilla
· 300g sugar
· 120ml water
· Small piece of ginger

Method to COOK!

1. Blend soy bean with 5 cups of water and strain, squeeze out the milk from the bean, blend the bean again with the remaining 7 cups of water, strain and squeeze out milk from the bean. 2. Mix boiling water with calcium sulphate and leave to cool, mix with the corn flour. 3. Put soy bean milk to a boil, add in vanilla essence. 4. Quickly pour into a big pot simultaneously the boiling soy bean milk and calcium mixture, cover with the lid and a thick cloth on top to prevent it from cooling, leave for 30 minutes to set. 5. Cook sugar, water and ginger into syrup, leave to cool. 6. Spoon bean curds (tow foo fah) into a bowl with a thin metal rice ladle, so that it is smooth, serve with syrup.

Note

1. never stir the mixture after pouring in the boiling soy bean milk and corn flour mixture. 2. To make soy bean milk, you just need to do step no 1 and no 3.

nutmeg

The nutmegs Myristica are a genus of evergreen trees indigenous to tropical southeast Asia and Australasia. They are important for two spices derived from the fruit, nutmeg and mace.

The most important species commercially is the Common or Fragrant Nutmeg Myristica fragrans, native to the Banda Islands of Indonesia; it is also grown in the Caribbean, especially in Grenada. Other species include Papuan Nutmeg M. argentea from New Guinea, and Bombay Nutmeg M. malabarica from India; both are used as adulterants of M. fragrans products.

In low doses, nutmeg produces no noticeable physiological or neurological response. Large doses of 60 g (~12 teaspoons) or more are dangerous, potentially inducing convulsions, palpitations, nausea, eventual dehydration, and generalized body pain^[1] In amounts of 10-40 g (~2-8 teaspoons) it is a mild to medium hallucinogen, producing visual distortions and a distinct euphoria. According to some, the effects have a striking similarity to cannabis intoxication, except with a longer duration, and more side effects. Nutmeg contains myristicin, a weak monoamine oxidase inhibitor.

Comparisons between nutmeg intoxication and MDMA have been made, however this remains speculative.^[2]. This has recently been disproved by the 2006 paper "Abuse of nutmeg (Myristica fragrans Houtt.): studies on the metabolism and the toxicologic detection of its ingredients elemicin, myristicin, and safrole in rat and human urine using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry" by Hans Maurer et al at University of Saarland. However, use of nutmeg as a recreational drug is unpopular due to its unpleasant taste and its side effects, including dizziness, flushes, dry mouth, accelerated heartbeat, temporary constipation, difficulty in urination, nausea, and panic. A user will not experience a peak until approximately six hours after ingestion, and effects can linger for up to three days afterwards.

A risk in any large-quantity (over 25 g, ~5 teaspoons) ingestion of nutmeg is the onset of 'nutmeg poisoning', an acute psychiatric disorder marked by thought disorder, a sense of impending doom/death, and agitation. Some cases have resulted in hospitalization.

Fatalities occur with lower doses with children. An 8-year-old boy who consumed just two nutmegs fell into a coma, only to die 20 hours later.^[3]

Toxicity during pregnancy

Nutmeg was once considered an abortifacient, but may be safe for culinary use during pregnancy. However, it inhibits prostaglandin production and contains hallucinogens that may affect the fetus if consumed in large quantities.^[4]

Sapodilla or chiku

Sapodilla (Manilkara zapota) is a long-lived, evergreen tree native to the tropical climates. It is grown in huge quantities in Indian subcontinent, Mexico and was introduced to the Philippines during Spanish colonisation.Sapodilla was formerly often known by the invalid name Achras sapota. It is known as chikoo or sapota in India, sofeda in Eastern India & Bangladesh, chikoo (also spelled "chikku," "चिक्कू," "chiku," "चीकू," or "ciku") in South Asia and Pakistan, chico in the Philippines, sawo in Indonesia, ciku in Malaysia, hồng xiêm (xa pô chê) in Vietnam, sapodilla in Guyana sapodilla or rata-mi in Sri Lanka, lamoot (ละมุด) in Thailand and Cambodia, níspero in Colombia, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Dominican Republic and Venezuela, nípero in Cuba and Dominican Republic, dilly in the Bahamas, naseberry in the rest of the West Indies, and sapoti in Brazil. In Kelantanese Malay, the fruit is called "sawo nilo" which is closer to the original name than the standard Malay "ciku".

Sapodilla grows to 30-40 m tall. It is wind-resistant and the bark is rich in a white, gummy latex called chicle.

The ornamental leaves are medium green and glossy. They are alternate, elliptic to ovate, 7-15 cm long, with an entire margin.

The white flowers are inconspicuous and bell-like, with a six-lobed corolla.

The fruit is a large globose berry, 4-8 cm in diameter, very much resembling a smooth-skinned potato and containing 2-10 seeds. Inside, its flesh ranges from a pale yellow to an earthy brown color with a grainy texture akin to that of a well-ripened pear.

The flavour is exceptionally sweet and very tasty. The fruit's flavor has been compared to cotton candy or caramel. The unripe fruit is hard to the touch and contains high amounts of saponin similar to tannin which dry out the mouth.

The seeds are black and resemble beans, with a hook at one end that can catch in the throat if swallowed.

The sapodilla trees yield fruit twice a year, though flowering may continue year round. The fruit has a high latex content and does not ripen until picked. Some are round and some are oval with pointed ends.

Attap Chee or buah kabung

Nypa fruticans, known as the Attap Palm (Singapore), Nipa Palm (Philippines), and Mangrove Palm or Nipah palm (Indonesia, Malaysia), Dừa Nước (Vietnam), Gol Pata (Bangladesh), Dani (Burma) is the only palm considered a mangrove. This species, the only one in the genus Nypa, grows in southern Asia and northern Australia. Fossil mangrove palm pollen has been dated to 70 million years ago. Fossilized nuts of Nypa dating to the Eocene epoch occur in the sandbeds of Branksome, Dorset, and in London Clay on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent,^[1] testifying to much warmer climatic conditions in the British Isles at that time.

The Nipa palm has a horizontal trunk that grows beneath the ground and only the leaves and flower stalk grow upwards above the surface. Thus, it cannot be considered a tree, although the leaves can extend up to 9 m (30 ft) in height. The flowers are a globular inflorescence of female flowers at the tip with catkin-like red or yellow male flowers on the lower branches. The flower yields a woody seed, these arranged in a cluster compressed into a ball up to 25 cm (10 in) across on a single stalk. The ripe seeds separate from the ball and are floated away on the tide, occasionally germinating while still water-borne.

Nipa palms grow in soft mud and slow moving tidal and river waters that bring in nutrients. The palm can be found as far inland as the tide can deposit the floating seeds. It is common on coasts and rivers flowing into the Indian and Pacific Oceans, from Bangladesh to the Pacific Islands. The plant will survive occasional short term drying of its environment. Nypa fruticans is an endangered species in Singapore.

The flower cluster (inflorescence) can be tapped before it blooms to yield a sweet, edible sap collected to produce a local alcoholic beverage called Tuba. Tuba is also stored in Tapayan (balloon vases) for several weeks to make vinegar in the Philippines, commonly known as Sukang Paombong (pure vinegar made from the province of Paombong, Bulacan). Young shoots are also edible and the flower petals can be infused to make an aromatic tisane. Attap chee ("chee" meaning "seed" in several Chinese dialects) is a name for the immature fruits -- sweet, translucent, gelatinous balls used as a dessert ingredient in Malaysia and Singapore. On the islands of Roti and Savu, Nipah sap is fed to pigs during the dry season. This is said to impart a sweet flavour to the meat. The young leaves are used to wrap tobacco for smoking. Large stems are used to train swimming in Burma as it has buoyancy.

The immature fruits are white translucent and hard jelly-like. Called attap chee, they are a common ingredient in local desserts.

Kiwifruit or chinese gooseberry

The kiwifruit (or kiwi) is the edible berry of a cultivar group of the woody vine Actinidia deliciosa and hybrids between this and other species in the genus Actinidia. The Actinidia is native to Shaanxi, China.

The most common cultivars of kiwifruit are oval, about the size of a large hen's egg (5–8 cm / 2–3 in long and 4.5–5.5 cm / 1¾–2 in diameter). It has a fibrous, dull brown-green skin and bright green or golden flesh with rows of small, black, edible seeds. The fruit has a soft texture and a unique flavour, and today is a commercial crop in several countries.

Originally known as the Chinese Gooseberry, the fruit was renamed for export marketing reasons in the 1950s; briefly to melonette, and then to kiwifruit. This latter name comes from the kiwi — a flightless bird and New Zealand's national symbol.

It is not uncommon (outside New Zealand and Australia) for the fruit to be referred to simply as "kiwi".

Actinidia deliciosa is native to southern China, where it is declared as the "National Fruit" of the People's Republic of China.^[3] Other species of Actinidia are also found in India and range east to Japan and north into southeastern Siberia. Cultivation spread from China in the early 20th century, when seeds were introduced to New Zealand by Mary Isabel Fraser, the principal of Wanganui Girls' College, who had been visiting mission schools in Yichang, China.^[4] The seeds were planted in 1906 by a Wanganui nurseryman, Alexander Allison, with the vines first fruiting in 1910.

The familiar cultivar Actinidia deliciosa 'Hayward' was developed by Hayward Wright in Avondale, New Zealand around 1924. It was initially grown in domestic gardens, but commercial planting began in the 1940s. Italy is now the leading producer of kiwifruit in the world, followed by China, New Zealand, Chile, France, Greece, Japan and the United States. In China, kiwifruit was traditionally collected from the wild, but until recently China was not a major producing country.^[5] In China, it is grown mainly in the mountainous area upstream of the Yangtze River. It is also grown in other areas of China, including Sichuan.^[6]

When introduced to New Zealand by Isabel Fraser it was called yáng táo in China. People in New Zealand thought it had a gooseberry flavour and began to call it the Chinese gooseberry, although it is not related to the Grossulariaceae (gooseberry) family.

New Zealand exported the fruit to the US in the 1950s. Among the exporters was the prominent produce company Turners and Growers, who were calling the berries melonettes, because the name Chinese gooseberry had political connotations due to the Cold War. An American importer, Norman Sondag of San Francisco, complained that melonettes was as bad as Chinese gooseberry because melons and berries were both subject to high import tariffs. In June 1959, during a meeting of Turners and Growers management in Auckland, Jack Turner suggested the name kiwifruit which was adopted and later became the industry-wide name.^[2]

Kiwifruit can be grown in most temperate climates with adequate summer heat. Where Actinidia deliciosa is not hardy, other species can be grown as substitutes.

Kiwifruit is commercially grown on sturdy support structures, as it can produce several tonnes per hectare, more than the rather weak vines can support. These are generally equipped with a watering system for irrigation and frost protection in the spring.

Kiwifruit vines require vigorous pruning, similar to that of grapevines. Fruit is borne on one-year-old and older canes, but production declines as each cane ages. Canes should be pruned off and replaced after their third year.

Kiwifruit plants are normally dioecious, meaning that individual plants are male or female. Only female plants bear fruit, and only when pollenized by a male plant. One male pollenizer is required for each three to eight female vines. An exception is the cultivar 'Issai', a hybrid (Actinidia arguta x polygama) from Japan, which produces perfect flowers and can self-pollinate; unfortunately it lacks vigour, is less hardy than most A. arguta forms and is not a large producer.

Kiwifruit is notoriously difficult to pollinate because the flowers are not very attractive to bees. Some producers blow collected pollen over the female flowers. But generally the most successful approach is saturation pollination, where the bee populations are made so large (by placing hives in the orchards) that bees are forced to use this flower because of intense competition for all flowers within flight distance.

Durian

The durian (pronounced /ˈdʊəriən/)^[1] is the fruit of trees from the genus Durio belonging to the Bombacaceae. Widely known and revered in Southeast Asia as the "King of Fruits", the fruit is distinctive for its large size, unique odour, and formidable thorn-covered husk. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms (2 to 7 lb). Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species.

The edible flesh emits a distinctive odour, strong and penetrating even when the husk is intact. Regarded by some as fragrant, others as overpowering and offensive, the smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust. The odour has led to the fruit's banishment from certain hotels and public transportation in Southeast Asia.

The durian, native to Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, has been known to the western world for about 600 years. The British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace famously described its flesh as "a rich custard highly flavoured with almonds" in the 19th century. The flesh can be consumed at various stages of ripeness, and is used to flavour a wide variety of savoury and sweet edibles in Southeast Asian cuisines. The seeds can also be eaten when cooked. The name durian comes from the Malay word duri (thorn) with suffix -an.

There are 30 recognised Durio species, at least nine of which produce edible fruit. Durio zibethinus is the only species available in the international market: other species are sold in their local regions. There are hundreds of durian cultivars; most of them have a common name and a code number starting with "D". Many consumers express preferences for specific cultivars, which fetch higher prices in the market.

Durian trees are relatively large, growing to 25–50 metres (80–165 ft) in height depending on the species.^[2] The leaves are evergreen, elliptic to oblong and 10–18 centimetres (4–7 in) long. The flowers are produced in three to thirty clusters together on large branches and directly on the trunk with each flower having a calyx (sepals) and five (rarely four or six) petals. Durian trees have one or two flowering and fruiting periods per year, though the timing varies depending on the species, cultivars, and localities. A typical durian tree can bear fruit after four or five years. The durian fruit can hang from any branch and matures roughly three months after pollination. The fruit can grow up to 30 centimetres (12 in) long and 15 centimetres (6 in) in diameter, and typically weighs one to three kilograms (2 to 7 lb).^[2] Its shape ranges from oblong to round, the colour of its husk green to brown, and its flesh pale-yellow to red, depending on the species.^[2] Among the thirty known species of Durio, nine of them have been identified as producing edible fruits: D. zibethinus, D. dulcis, D. grandiflorus, D. graveolens, D. kutejensis, D. lowianus, D. macrantha, D. oxleyanus and D. testudinarum.^[3] However, there are many species for which the fruit has never been collected or properly examined, so other species with edible fruit may exist.

Dragon fruit or Pitaya

Dragonfruit (hylocereus) is a stunningly beautiful fruit with an intense colour and shape, magnificent flowers and a delicious taste. This ‘climber’ is also known as ‘the king of fruits’. The Dragonfruit originated in Vietnam and was once only available in the great restaurants of the world, but today it is grown through out Asia and is highly prized both in the East and West. It truly is a gourmet fruit. The sensation surrounding this fabulous fruit can be attributed to a legend created by ingenious Asian marketers. According to the legend the fruit was created thousands of years ago by fire breathing dragons. During a battle when the dragon would breathe fire the last thing to come out would be the fruit. After the dragon is slain the fruit is collected and presented to the Emperor as a coveted treasure and indication of victory. The soldiers would then butcher the dragon and eat the flesh. It was believed that those who feasted on the flesh would be endowed with the strength and ferocity of the dragon and that they too would be coveted by the Emperor. It is written that the dragon’s flame originates deep within its body near the base of its tail. The meat from this part of the dragon was the most desirable and most sought after portion. Only the officers of each division would be privy to this cut of meat. The ancient Chinese called this cut the “jaina,” which translates literally to “the sweetest and best tasting.” The jaina was treasured by all who were privileged enough to taste it, and it is believed that man’s thirst for the jaina is what led to the destruction and eventual extinction of all of the dragons.

The exact origin is unknown, but is likely from Southern Mexico through Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador and Costa Rica. It is cultivated around the world in tropical regions..

There are three species of dragon fruit in the genus Hylocereus and one species in the genus Selenicereus. Varieties of Hylocereus guatemalensis, Hylocereus polyrhizus, and Hylocereus undatus as well as hybrids of these three species are grown commercially worldwide. Selenicereus megalanthus is grown commercially on smaller scales in South America and is especially popular in Columbia.

The dragon fruit flesh can be white, red, or magenta all to varying degrees dependant upon variety. The red fleshed varieties contain lycopene which is a natural antioxidant known to fight cancer, heart disease, and lower blood pressure. Despite the health benefits and its spectacular appearance, the fruit has gone virtually unnoticed for centuries. Today it is the leading fruit export of Vietnam. It has even caught the attention of Snapple, Tropicana, and Sobe which are just a few of the major labels that have incorporated dragon fruit into their bottled fruit drinks.

A vining, terrestrial or epiphytic cactus, with fleshy stems reaching from a few inches up to 20ft long (in mature plants). The plant may grow out of, and over the ground or climb onto trees using aerial roots. Flowers are ornate and beautiful, and many related species are propagated as ornamentals. They bloom only at night, and usually last just one night where pollination is necessary to set fruit. In full production, pitahaya plants can have up to 4-6 fruiting cycles per year.

Longans

The longan (simplified Chinese: 龙眼; traditional Chinese: 龍眼; pinyin: lóngyǎn; Cantonese long-ngan; literally "dragon eye"; Thai ลำไย) is a tropical tree native to southern China. It is also found in Southeast Asia. It is also called guiyuan (桂圓) in Chinese, lengkeng in Indonesia, mata kucing (literally "cat's eye") in Malaysia, nhãn in Vietnamese (The Species: Euphoria longana Lamk. named "long nhãn" in Vietnamese- literally "dragon's eyes"), Mora in Sinhalese (Sri Lanka) and also "longan" in Tagalog.

The longan is a medium to large (10 to 20 m tall) evergreen tree with a dense canopy, brittle wood and corky bark which splits and peels. Tree shape depends on the cultivar and varies from erect to spreading. The inflorescences are large (30 to 50 cm long), multi-branched and leafless. They are borne on new growth produced during mid-summer or autumn. The flowers are small, inconspicuous and yellow brown. The fruit are similar to those of lychee in structure, but are smaller, smoother and yellow-tan in colour. The word 'longan' comes from the Chinese and literally means 'dragon-eye' which is an apt description of the fruit after the skin has been removed. The fleshy aril is white to off-white or pinkish in colour and surrounds a red brown, brown to black seed which separates easily from the flesh. The fruit are milder in flavour and less acidic than lychees.

The longan originated in China or in the area between Burma and India. Thailand, China and Taiwan are the main centres of commercial production. In Thailand, production is centred in the tropical monsoon areas of Chiangmai, Lamphun and Phrae at elevations between 300 and 600 m above sea level. The main production centres in China are in the Fujian and Guandong provinces. In Fujian province, longan is second in importance to citrus and is grown in cooler subtropical areas.

lychee

The lychee is native to low elevations of the provinces of Kwangtung and Fukien in southern China, where it flourishes especially along rivers and near the seacoast. It has a long and illustrious history having been praised and pictured in Chinese literature from the earliest known record in 1059 A.D. Cultivation spread over the years through neighboring areas of southeastern Asia and offshore islands. Late in the 17th Century, it was carried to Burma and, 100 years later, to India. It arrived in the West Indies in 1775, was being planted in greenhouses in England and France early in the 19th Century, and Europeans took it to the East Indies. It reached Hawaii in 1873, and Florida in 1883, and was conveyed from Florida to California in 1897. It first fruited at Santa Barbara in 1914. In the 1920's, China's annual crop was 30 million lbs (13.6 million kg). In 1937 (before WW II) the crop of Fukien Province alone was over 35 million lbs (16 million kg). In time, India became second to China in lychee production, total plantings covering about 30,000 acres (12,500 ha). There are also extensive plantings in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Burma, former Indochina, Taiwan, Japan, the Philippines, Queensland, Madagascar, Brazil and South Africa. Lychees are grown mostly in dooryards from northern Queensland to New South Wales, but commercial orchards have been established in the past 20 years, some consisting of 5,000 trees.

The following are the 15 cultivars recognized by Professor Groff:

'No Mai Tsze', or 'No mi ts 'z' (glutinous rice) is the leading variety in China; large, red, "dry-and-clean"; seeds often small and shriveled. It is one of the best for drying, and is late in season. It does best when grafted onto the 'Mountain' lychee.

'Kwa Iuk' or 'Kua lu' (hanging green) is a famous lychee; large, red with a green tip and a typical green line; "dry-and-clean"; of outstanding flavor and fragrance. It was, in olden times, a special fruit for presentation to high officials and other persons in positions of honor. Professor Groff was given a single fruit in a little red box!

'Kwai mi' or 'Kuei Wei', (cinnamon flavor) which came to be called 'Mauritius' is smaller, heart-shaped, with rough red skin tinged with green on the shoulders and usually having a thin line running around the fruit. The seed is small and the flesh very sweet and fragrant. The branches of the tree curve upward at the tips and the leaflets curl inward from the midrib.

'Hsiang li', or 'Heung lai' (fragrant lychee) is home by a tree with distinctive erect habit having upward-pointing leaves. The fruit is small, very rough and prickly, deep-red, with the smallest seeds of all, and the flesh is of superior flavor and fragrance. It is late in season. Those grown in Sin Hsing are better than those grown in other locations.

'Hsi Chio tsu', or 'Sai kok tsz' (rhinoceros horn) is borne by a large-growing tree. The fruit is large, rough, broad at the base and narrow at the apex; has somewhat tough and fibrous, but fragrant, sweet, flesh. It ripens early.

'Hak ip', or 'Hei yeh', (black leaf) is borne by a densely-branched tree with large, pointed, slightly curled, dark-green leaflets. The fruit is medium-red, sometimes with green tinges, broad-shouldered, with thin, soft skin and the flesh, occasionally pinkish, is crisp and sweet. This is rated as "one of the best 'water' lychees."

'Fei tsu hsiao', or 'Fi tsz siu' (imperial concubine's laugh, or smile) is large, amber-colored, thin-skinned, with very sweet, very fragrant flesh. Seeds vary from large to very small. It ripens early.

'T' ang po', or 'T' ong pok' (pond embankment) is from a small-leaved tree. The fruit is small, red, rough, with thin, juicy acid flesh and very little rag. It is a very early variety.

'Sheung shu wai' or'Shang hou huai', (President of a Board's embrace) is borne on a small-leaved tree. The fruit is large, rounded, red, with many dark spots. It has sweet flesh with little scent and the seed size is variable. It is rather late in season.

'Ch'u ma lsu', or 'Chu ma lsz' (China grass fiber) has distinctive, lush foliage. The leaves are large, overlapping, with long petioles. The fruits are large with prominent shoulders and rough skin, deep red inside. While very fragrant, the flesh is of inferior flavor and clings to the seed which varies from large to small.

'Ta tsao', or 'Tai tso' (large crop) is widely grown around Canton; somewhat egg-shaped; skin rough, bright-red with many small, dense dots; flesh firm, crisp, sweet, faintly streaked with yellow near the large seed. The juice leaks when the skin is broken. The fruit ripens early.

'Huai chih', or 'Wai chi' (the Wai River lychee) has medium-sized, blunt leaves. The fruit is round with medium-smooth skin, a rich red outside, pink inside; and leaking juice. This is not a high class variety but the most commonly grown, high yielding, and late in season.

'San yueh hung', or 'Sam ut hung' (third month red), also called 'Ma yuen', 'Ma un', 'Tsao kuo', 'Tso kwo', 'Tsao li', or 'Tsoli' (early lychee) is grown along dykes. The branches are brittle and break readily; the leaves are long, pointed, and thick. The fruit is very large, with red, thick, tough skin and thick, medium-sweet flesh with much rag. The seeds are long but aborted. This variety is popular mainly because it comes into season very early.

'Pai la li chih', or 'Pak lap lai chi' (white wax lychee), also called 'Po le tzu', or 'Pak lik tsz (white fragrant plant), is large, pink, rough, with pinkish, fibrous, not very sweet flesh and large seeds. It ripens very late, after 'Huai chih'.

'Shan chi', or 'Shan chih' (mountain lychee), also called 'Suan chih', or 'Sun chi' (sour lychee) grows wild in the hills and is often planted as a rootstock for better varieties. The tree is of erect habit with erect twigs and large, pointed, short-petioled leaves. The fruit is bright-red, elongated, very rough, with thin flesh, acid flavor and large seed.

'T'im ngam', or 'T'ien yeh' (sweet cliff) is a common variety of lychee which Professor Groff reported to be quite widely grown in Kwantung, but not really on a commercial basis.

In his book, The Litchi, Dr. Lal Behari Singh wrote that Bihar is the center of lychee culture in India, producing 33 selected varieties classified into 15 groups. His extremely detailed descriptions of the 10 cultivars recommended for large-scale cultivation I have abbreviated (with a few bracketed additions from other sources):

'Early Seedless', or 'Early Bedana'. Fruit 1 1/3 in (3.4 cm) long, heart-shaped to oval; rough, red, with green interspaces; skin firm and leathery; flesh [ivory] to white, soft, sweet; seed shrunken, like a dog's tooth. Of good quality. The tree bears a moderate crop, early in season.

'Rose-scented'. Fruit 1 1/4 in (3.2 cm) long; rounded-heart-shaped; slightly rough, purplish-rose, slightly firm skin; flesh gray-white, soft, very sweet. Seed round-ovate, fully developed. Of good quality. [Tree bears a moderate crop] in midseason.

'Early Large Red'. Fruit slightly more than 1 1/3 in (3.4 cm) long, usually obliquely heart-shaped; crimson [to carmine], with green interspaces; very rough; skin very firm and leathery, adhering slightly to the flesh. Flesh grayish-white, firm, sweet and flavorful. Of very good quality. [Tree is a moderate bearer], early in season.

'Dehra Dun', [or 'Dehra Dhun']. Fruit less than 1 1/2 in (4 cm) long; obliquely heart-shaped to conical; a blend of red and orange-red; skin rough, leathery; flesh gray-white, soft, of good, sweet flavor. Seed often shrunken, occasionally very small. Of good quality; midseason. [This is grown extensively in Uttar Pradesh and is the most satisfactory lychee in Pakistan.]

'Late Long Red', or 'Muzaffarpur'. Fruit less than 1 1/2 in (4 cm) long; usually oblong-conical; dark-red with greenish interspaces; skin rough, firm and leathery, slightly adhering to the flesh; flesh grayish-white, soft, of good, sweet flavor. Seed cylindrical, fully developed. Of good quality. [Tree is a heavy bearer], late in season.

'Pyazi'. Fruit 1 1/3 in (3.4 cm) long; oblong-conical to heart-shaped; a blend of orange and orange-red, with yellowish-red, not very prominent, tubercles. Skin leathery, adhering; flesh gray-white, firm, slightly sweet, with flavor reminiscent of "boiled onion". Seed cylindrical, fully developed. Of poor quality. Early in season.

'Extra Early Green'. Fruit 1 1/4 in (3.2 cm) long; mostly heart-shaped, rarely rounded or oblong; yellowish-red with green interspaces; skin slightly rough, leathery, slightly adhering; flesh creamy-white, [firm, of good, slightly acid flavor]; seed oblong, cylindrical or flat. Of indifferent quality. Very early in season.

'Kalkattia', ['Calcuttia', or 'Calcutta']. Fruit 1 1/2 in (4 cm) long; oblong or lopsided; rose-red with darker tubercles; skin very rough, leathery, slightly adhering; flesh grayish ivory, firm, of very sweet, good flavor. Seed oblong or concave. Of very good quality. [A heavy bearer; withstands hot winds]. Very late in season.

'Gulabi'. Fruit 1 1/3 in (3.4 cm) long; heart-shaped, oval or oblong; pink-red to carmine with orange-red tubercles; skin very rough, leathery, non-adherent; flesh gray-white, firm, of good subacid flavor; seed oblong-cylindrical, fully developed. Of very good quality. Late in season.

'Late Seedless', or 'Late Bedana'. Fruit less than 1 3/8 in (3.65 cm) long; mainly conical, rarely ovate; orange-red to carmine with blackish-brown tubercles; skin rough, firm, non-adherent; flesh creamy-white, soft; very sweet, of very good flavor except for slight bitterness near the seed. Seed slightly spindle-shaped, or like a dog's tooth; underdeveloped. Of very good quality. [Tree bears heavily. Withstands hot winds.] Late in season.