However, beyond the unpleasant smell, the toe-shaped fruit – known as 'Locust' in Asia and 'Carao' in Central America – is actually very tasty. Ask the average Jamaican and the popular response would be, “It too stink man!” How much do you really know about Stinking Toe?
In natural medicines of Central and South America, Stinking Toe fruits have been used as an aphrodisiac and mild laxative. The fruits are also valued for their antibacterial, antimicrobial, and antifungal properties, used to reduce symptoms of illnesses, headaches, and asthma.
Stinking Toe fruit, also called Jatoba, or Guapinol, is the fruit of the West Indian Locust tree (Hymenaea courbaril) which is indigenous to Jamaica. This tropical delicacy has a cream-colored, powdery flesh that tastes similar to vanilla milk powder.
Stinking Toe fruits are also known as West Indian Locust, Locust fruit, Jatobá, Jatobazeiro, Courbaril, Brazilian Copal, Amami-Gum, Jatoba, Brazilian Cherry, South American Cherry, Old Man's Toe, Stinktoe, Jamaican Locust Fruit, Jamaican Stinking Toe Fruit, Guapinol, and Koubari.
Stinking Toe Fruit, also known as locust fruit or jatobá, is the fruit of the West Indian Locust, the largest tree in the Caribbean. A popular fruit throughout Latin America, it is known as Stinking Toe Fruit as its shape is similar to a big toe and its pungent smell is like a sweaty foot.
In the middle Eastern country of Israel, locusts and grasshoppers are considered the only halal insects in local diets. Farms in Israel were gripped by locust invasion as the pests gobbled crops by numbers. So some people took up the novel approach of, if you can't beat them, then maybe eat them!
And as they come up they look like Triffids or weird man-eating plants. I've had some growing for over a year so they seem to do ok in Melbourne. But if you are gonna grow stinking toes, you'll need to know how to eat them. You have to smash the pods with a hammer and then you can eat the powder straight out of them.
And just what does the stinking toe taste like? The pulp inside is very dry, with the consistency of a clump of flour. The flavor is thankfully much better than its aroma; it tastes similar to dried milk, with hints of parmesan cheese and herbs.
The star apple tree Chrysophyllum cainito is a native of the Caribbean and Central America. It is a member of the Sapotaceae family which includes over 150 species of tree found in tropical and sub-tropical regions. In Jamaica, it is fairly common and well known for the luscious fruit and its use as a shade tree.
Durian is known as the “king of fruits”. It is the size of a watermelon and is distinctive for its strong smell and prickly skin. Some people find durian has a pleasant sweetness, but others find the odor to be overbearing and unpleasant.
As Jamaicans, we know it as apple but the Jamaican apple is actually called Otaheite apple or Malay apple or rose apple depending on where you are in the world. The botanically known as syzygium malaccense.
Ackee – Jamaica National Fruit
It is also one half of the country's national dish – ackee and saltfish. Ackee is originally from West Africa, but has been in Jamaica since the 18th century and is now found throughout the island. It is a large fruit with black seeds.
The sweet, edible, but strong- smelling pulp gives it the name 'stinking toe' in the Virgin Islands. Its native range extends from southern Mexi- co through Central America and south to Peru, Brazil and Bolivia.
Durian may help combat skin pigmentation and wrinkles
Durian contains more vitamin C than many tropical fruits. Vitamin C has antioxidant properties that help to fight free radicals in your body, which can help reduce the appearance of pigmentation and wrinkles.
An acquired taste, some people regard the durian as having a pleasantly sweet fragrance, whereas others find the aroma overpowering and unpleasant. The smell evokes reactions from deep appreciation to intense disgust, and has been described variously as rotten onions, turpentine, and raw sewage.
Durian taste is subjective. It's been likened to rotten eggs due to its pungent smell. Yet others describe it as a strange combination of whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, diced garlic, onions, cheese, and caramel all at once!
Nicknamed “the king of fruits,” durian is one of the most popular foods in Southeast Asia. Beloved by millions, it's considered a delicacy. There's only one catch: It's also known as the stinkiest fruit in the world. The durian fruit smell has been compared to garbage, raw sewage and sweaty socks!
Stinking toe is the fruit of the West Indian Locust, one of the largest trees in the Caribbean. The fruit is held within a large brown pod that is shaped somewhat like a toe and, when the shell of the pod is broken, a repugnant odour is released - hence the name, stinking toe.
Washing your hands with soap after preparing or eating durian may not help reduce the odour. However, using sliced cucumber is surprisingly effective at reducing odour. If this cucumber fails to do the trick, we recommend using alcohol based sanitiser. Citrus compounds are very good at neutralising the smell of durian.
Durian has been described as the most foul-smelling fruit in the world. Its aroma has been compared to raw sewage, rotting flesh and smelly gym socks. Durian's smell is so pungent that the spiky-skinned, custard-like fruit is even banned from public places in Singapore and Malaysia.
Locusts are considered halal or lawful food in Islam. According to Salafi Centre in Manchester, locusts are permissible food because it was eaten during the time of the Prophet. The pests were eaten during a military raid, said an authentic hadith, according to Salafi Centre.
Many animals are forbidden to eat in Judaism: pigs, insects, rabbits, snails, shellfish, other fish without fins and scales, and dogs. Hindu religions also include prohibitions on meat consumption.
Although most insects are forbidden to be consumed, the Bible explicitly permits locusts to be eaten (Leviticus 11:22). Christian scripture indicates that John the Baptist survived on “locusts and wild honey” (Mark 1:6 and Matthew 3:4) and locusts are also permissible food (halal) for Muslims, according to the Koran.