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5 Tips on How to Spot a Real Mao Shan Wang MSW Musang King Durian 猫山王

Tips-How-Spot-Mao-Shan-Wang-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

An anonymous Johor Kaki reader suggested that I post a side by side comparison of a Mao Shan Wang with other durians to make it easier to spot a real Musang King.

I thought it is a great idea, so here it is 😄

There are 5 external features that distinguishes a Mao Shan Wang from other durians.

In the pictures that follow, the Mao Shan Wang is on the left and the other durian is on the right.

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

The Mao Shan Wang thorns are pyramidal in shape instead of conical. The pyramid is angular and has flat sides. 

Mao Shan Wang thorns are also relatively sparse compared to other durians which can be quite densely squeezed together.

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

Mao Shan Wangs are usually oval like a rugby ball (and sometimes even shaped like a kidney). The durian on the right is a Thai durian. It has the same pyramidal thorns as the Mao Shan Wang but it is usually round like a bowling ball.

Some dishonest durian sellers pass off Thai durians as Mao Shan Wang when the Musang King is off season, during early season and late season when there is pent up demand but low MSW supply. Sadly, this is a very common scam that happens every day.

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

The ring at the bottom of the Mao Shan Wang's stem is brownish and relatively bald. There are no thorns growing on the bald ring at the base of the stem of a Mao Shan Wang durian.



The Mao Shan Wang has a unique 5 arm "starfish" with long slender arms that run up from the bottom to the sides of the durian. 
The bottom of a Mao Shan Wang is bald and flat (like the flat body of a starfish). 

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

The base of a Mao Shan Wang durian is flat and does not protrude like pouty lips nor indent like ..... the rear end of mammals... .

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

When looking for Mao Shan Wang, look for all the five features altogether in a single durian. Other durians may have one or two of these features but not all five together.

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王

When we picked the right Mao Shan Wang, the thick flesh is rich almost bright royal yellow in colour (hence the Malay name Rajah Kunyit). The fragrance is sweet though not overly pungent. The tender flesh is creamy and it tastes sweet with slight bitter notes - all in a delicious tasting balance. 

Mao_Shah_Wang_Seed

The small waxy seed is flat and the flesh literally undrapes itself. If your durian seed is shaped like an egg, then it is a lower quality MSW or worse, 
not a Mao Shan Wang at all.

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王
👆A stale Mao Shan Wang with slightly mouldy wet core

Unfortunately, knowing how to pick a real Mao Shan Wang still doesn't guarantee a good durian 🤔 It is only half the battle of buying a good durian. (Yes, it is sometimes a battle.)

There are good Mao Shan Wang and bad Mao Shan Wang.

Customers can still get bad Mao Shan Wang, if they run into dishonest durian sellers who:
  • Over charge
  • Cheat on weight
  • Sell stale Mao Shan Wang
  • Bait and switch
  • Use aggressive strong arm tactics to intimidate customers into accepting bad durians.

I once had a durian seller palmed off a mouldy Mao Shan Wang to me. He insisted that the durian was perfect and waved his durian knife menacing at me when I tried to reject that durian.

So yeah, knowing how to spot a Mao Shan Wang increases your chances of an enjoyable durian experience but the best protection for consumers is still a reliable, honest durian seller.

If you know a honest durian seller (the majority are), go back to him/her for your durians.

Please share the name and address of honest durian sellers you know in the comments for everyone's benefit 😄

Mao-Shan-Wang-MSW-Musang-King-Durian-猫山王
Enjoying durian in Singapore

Here is my earlier post on how not to be cheated on Mao Shan Wang 👈 click.


Next project, to make a list of honest durian sellers in Johor and Singapore.


Wish you happy durian eating 😄




Written by Tony Boey on 24 Jun 2015 | Updated on 2 Jul 2021

41 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Thank you for your encouragement.

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    2. Recently bought MSWs but really doubt its authenticity.
      Thanks for sharing the tips.

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  2. Yes, do compile a list of honest durian sellers in Sin n JB. I OFTEN get into heated argument with strong arm tactic sellers. Bec of this, I seldom have durians this 15 years.

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    1. I shall definitely do this for the next season. Thank you for your suggestion.

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  3. informative and great article :D keep it up

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  4. Is there a stall mao shan wang durian around jalan meldrum?

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  5. Never know durian have so much knowledge, but i dont eat durian, haha~

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  6. We always having difficulty to choose the right durian. Thanks to your tips. Will make a wiser decision next time. :)

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  7. I didn't know there are so many things to look out for when choosing a durian- shame on me as a Malaysian. Thanks for all the info!

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  8. I know Durian only. First time got to chance to read what is the different. You make me miss the 'cucur durian'

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  9. Learn a lot of knowledges about Mao Sheng Durian
    Thank you so much
    I love Durian :)

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  10. for a fellow durian lover this is very good info!

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  11. honestly i dunno how to distinguish those durians, usually the seller will pick but it is better for us to learn how to choose the best. no more being conned :P hahha

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  12. This is a great post! I never know how to differentiate durians. At least now I will not get cheated!

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  13. I've always just used the bottom and the stem area to identify them.

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  14. Thanks for sharing! Many people don't know how to differentiate it at the end bought the fake one with higher price. =)

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  15. Awh Tony thanks for the share! Never really knew how to distinguish durians before but this was very informative :D *hugs*

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  16. Ok I will take note on that because occasionally my family like to go out for durian feast.

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  17. awesome tips.. now I will go look for my musang king durian properly.. hahaha

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  18. Awesome tips. Never know the secrets in getting the authentic ones. Now the seller cannot bluff us anymore.

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  19. After reading your blog I feel the urge the eat Durian!!! OMG the musang king is super delicious ><

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  20. My goodness as I super love Durian but dont know how to see mao sang or not. Luckily I learn from you.

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  21. Great for durian lovers though I am not a fan of it so not sure whether will be helpful.

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  22. very good tips. i'm a durian lover and this post helps a lot!

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  23. This is super interesting. I never heard of this kind of fruit but it looks so interesting.

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  24. oh no i haven't had durian for some time, that durian is screaming out at me to go eat some, i normally will just accept any cheap durian no need those crazy priced super species

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  25. These are really good tips, thanks for the sharing, won't afraid kena cheated again ;)

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  26. Hi..Yesterday we drop by a durian stall in Tangkak. Before we came down the car, we did asked the seller how much is his displayed durian per kg. He answered RM32/kg. We then sat down to enjoy 4 quite a good size durians. He told us it was a Musang? but not a musang king. When my hubby went to pay the seller. He got a shocked of his life. The seller charged him a whopping RM76 per kg. He didn't want to argue and ended up paying RM800 fr a 4 durians estimated about 12kg++. Does such durian really cost that much or are we being cheated by the greedy Seller in Tangkak?

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    1. Generally, I try to buy durians only from sellers whom I already trust or those which my friends already trust.

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  27. Please please suggest names of honest durian sellers in JB especially nearer to city or Pelangi side.
    Thank you very much.

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  28. Are there any good durian sellers in Jurong?

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  29. There are various durian stalls in and ard JB that I have had the opportunity to purchase from. Unfortunately, my 2 favourite stalls have since closed due to old age of owners. There is currently one (rank personal 3rd) who is consistent but price is on the higher side relative to other JB stalls. That's Ah Tong behind KSL. His service is consistent, is very generous with sampling and his price is also consistently higher. If you choose not to open your durians to "ta bao" home, there is always the risk of not getting what you paid for. This, to be fair to him, can occur at any stalls anywhere. To counter this, you tell him (him only, not his assts or son)you will be back if the durians have any problem and make sure you go back within the week if you have poor quality durians or better still, call him as soon as you have eaten your durians. Tell him how many pieces are affected and when you will be back. Of course these means you have to be a JB regular to be worth it. Another way to reduce your chances of getting a not-so-good durian is to select the durians yourself. Since Ah Tong has many durians of many varieties, you can do your own selection before taking them. Go early (way before 12pm), sit around and wait for his lorry to arrive and then join in the rush with fellow durian siao. Trust me, there are a lot of people just as crazy as us or more. The workers unload the baskets of durians and everybody goes "ji eh si mi lew lian", "MSW", "kui lui?", "ji eh leh?", "kim hong", "kui lui?"...and it goes on and on until every basket is on the floor. And before you know it, half the durians have been "choped" by someone. Each of these someone, standing next to little piles of their carefully selected prized fruits, guarding them with hawk-eyed nervousness. They have taken their share, yet for unknown reasons, they wouldn't move a foot. If you are there the first time, you will be stunned silent. You will feel like the best durians have been taken and you are left with just scraps. Don't worry, there are still good durians around and you will get over your initial shock soon enough. But will you be shocked a second time? By his price that is...

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    Replies
    1. Thank you g lowsh for the very helpful info. LOL the scene you described is worth a visit itself :-D Appreciate much.

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  30. Best is to kam Cheng with those ppl who owns durian farms.. those who know that their trees are musang kings.. their durians are the best and most of the time, they dont want any forms of payments..

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  31. Are MSW seeds always flat? I get mine direct from a Johor supplier but I noticed sometimes seeds are normal while the durian still has other characteristic of a MSW.

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  32. Where are the good & honest MSW Durian Stalls in Sgp ?

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  33. Any trusted Durian sellers in KL?

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  34. Ah Seng durian at Ghim Moh estate

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  35. Pahang Durian Stall at Blk 24 Sin Ming Road has great MSW and the price is reasonable.
    Think the owner from Pahang Raub.
    Many durian stalls selling MSW from Johor which is not as good as from Pahang.

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