Tips & Techniques - Opening Mangosteen

No, these stained hands are not the products of unsaid shenanigans. This was a picture taken a few years back when I went to Vietnam with my family. You can imagine my delight at how inexpensive and abundant fresh tropical fruits were there; I ate pounds of it per day (sorry, kilograms). Rambutan was/is a key favorite of the family and me but so was/is purple mangosteen! It's quite the pricey produce over here in the United States due to its status as a mandatory import, all possible after the import ban of it was lifted in 2007. It can hit you for $8/lb though so having it readily available every day, fresh and voluptuous, was a luxury when I was there. This, of course, led to learning how to open all the fruits we bought.

My brother recorded a short video (see it below!) of me demonstrating my parents'/grandparents' way of opening them without using tools. It looks like a lot of people in the States score the fruit with a knife before peeling it open but that seems inefficient and slow to me. My family's way was to place the fruit between our palms and crush it gently so the rind breaks. Throw away the pieces, and you've got delicious fruit! No need to get fingernails dirty. The only downfall to this fast method, unfortunately, is the stained palms but that's what washing your hands is for anyhow. Hope it helps!