Snakeskin Fruit

Named for its scaly brown skin, the salak is a native of Indonesia, and is also grown in Thailand and Malaysia. We never saw it in markets in the Philippines. It grows at the base of a short palm tree. Bali is reputed to grow the best salaks in Asia.

The skin is thin and strong, and is easily peeled. The flesh is in 3-4 segments. In our experience 2 segments contained a dark brown seed, the third segment was smaller and seedless. The flesh is quite dry, crunchy, and tangy due to a high tannin content. The flavor is quite different from any other fruit we have tasted, and therefore hard to describe. It is one of Jim's favorite fruits.

We have not attempted to store salak fruits, but expect that they would last for a fairly long time. Once we have had a chance to experiment, we will add the results here.