Buddha's Hand Review - Weird Fruit Explorer in Malaysia - Ep. 95

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Buddha's Hand (Citrus medica var. sarcodactylus)
Origin: China
This is the first of three episodes on fruit that is used during Chinese New Year. Found at Imbi Market in Kuala Lumpur.

[@trstmeimadctr]

"$16 is probably the most expensive fruit I've bought" ah, so this episode is before he went to Japan lol

[@ionlypostonceayear._.5537]

Yeah

[@werpu12]

Hehe growing those myself here in central europe, the candy you can make with it is excellent. Haut cuisine chefs have discovered it for dish flavoring.

[@censusgary]

If you make a jam or marmelade from this fruit, put the pith in, too. The pith contains a lot of pectin, which will thicken the jam and help it jell.

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Gary Cooper Thanks for the tip!

[@rigen97]

Everyone: "Don't eat it." Jared: "So anyway I started munching"

[@shysensei2348]

😂😂😂😂

[@werpu12]

I have been growing them myself, they are perfectly edible although probably not the best way to eat them. Funny thing is, raw they are not bitter, but as soon as you cook them they give a ton of bitterness to the water and you wonder where that comes from. Usually if you candy them you throw away the first 1-2 batches of water to geht rid of the bitterness. The candied fruits/cests however are excellent and a perfect base for cooking way more intense than what you would get from lemon or orange. Really a weird but excellent fruit. And yes if you cut it open the aroma this fruit gives to the air is intense in a nice way, sort of like lavender strong but in the citrus area of aroma.

[@redsky7238]

I've had a Buddha's hand citron tree in my yard for about 8 years. The tree is small to medium. None of the fruit ever have pulp. Also the fingers are set in shape as soon as the flower falls off so they don't change shape as they ripen, they just get larger and eventually turn yellow. They are excellent for zest and the entire fruit can be used for flavoring drinks. I enjoy the pith in smoothies.

[@WeirdExplorer]

Very cool. Mark me as jealous.

[@ybhall]

I would suspect that you could cut it up and candy it too.

[@spookynoodle3843]

Lucky!

[@redsky7238]

@@spookynoodle3843 planning, I wanted to live where I can grow certain things and purposely planted this tree. I love growing my own food. 💚

[@spookynoodle3843]

Red Sky :)

[@dracofangxxx]

i candied this and it was good! just boiled for 15 minutes chopped up, then drained, and then added to a simple syrup and cooked until candied. i tossed the bits in a sugar/citric acid mix so they wouldn't stick together and it was tasty. the pith part got super gummy and it was like lemoney grapefruit flavor

[@thesarahb]

They sell these at Whole Foods in LA sometimes. Bought one once and sliced it up and infused vodka with it. So good!

[@WeirdExplorer]

That would be a good use for it :)

[@redxcube1543]

Are they also easily available at San Jose Flea Market, California?

[@mikeramos5709]

They can be grown in California.

[@toybaworku7339]

Sarah Byrd i bought tody at whole foods in san digeo .

[@NayrbRellimer]

Buddhacello?

[@Imalima.]

Just looks like a lemon from Chernobyl

[@NayrbRellimer]

More like a cthulhu

[@JohnnnyJohn]

That quiet open really freaked me out!

[@isabelsumera4987]

"Don't eat it don't eat it don't eat soooo.. I'm going to eat it " lol

[@jg1019]

I ate an entire one of these raw and had no idea you weren't supposed to. I was fine.

[@timroberts6989]

Interesting. It's used in traditional Chinese Medicine. We usually get it dried, thinly sliced. It's then eaten raw, or added to herbal potions. Eaten raw it's great for queasy feelings in the stomach, and stimulates the appetite. Also good for feelings of nausea from travel sickness or anxiety.

[@WeirdExplorer]

Chris Gordon, Yes! It is a variety of Citron. There are different types.

[@WeirdExplorer]

+anonymous Its just a hobby. I make a little revenue from the ads/patreon, but it goes right back into the series.

[@Durplepurple94572]

can I make a pie out of it?

[@WeirdExplorer]

You can put the zest in a pie, but I'd imagine you'd need other fruits to make it taste good.

[@vannyhuoth3954]

Weird Explorer

[@Animaniafreak]

My mom makes fruit/herbal tea with it! It has a cirusy lovelly smell

[@vipaponpholee4795]

4 people: Don’t eat it, dont eat it, dont eat it, dont eat it Him after some thime: So i’m gonna eat it

[@ericgillespie2812]

the white pith is very edible i enjoy it with a small bit of salt

[@3enjoy3]

Cool. If ever a fruit was going to make you wonder why they grow in certain shapes this has to be the one. Thick rinds, hairs, scales all seem to serve a purpose but what was this one thinking? Lol. Great video Jared.

[@WeirdExplorer]

3enjoy3 I have no idea! Mother nature was bored when she made this one.

[@thegodnamedtodd8524]

Buddha has some jacked up hands

[@NannettCepero]

I just found your channel, and I'm enjoying your adventures. I am in upstate New York, and I grow these in containers. I use them for culinary purposes, such as candies and grated in desserts. They also give the house a wondeful scent in the autumn. I'm looking forward to more of your shows!

[@WeirdExplorer]

Glad to hear it! Thats amazing that you have them growing in NY

[@elilovestrainsplanesmore1101]

Sometimes they have them at the Meijer I live near. I love the lemony taste!.

[@chrisdabell1232]

I have an addiction to this KZbin channel I can't stop watching this

[@rashmishanbhag8221]

hey jared, i am from south india and here we call it madiphala and used widely in ayurvedic medicine for enhancing appetite and digestion. the shape isn't like fingers though

[@WeirdExplorer]

+rashmi shanbhag Interesting! Without the fingers its probably a regular citron and not specifically a Buddha's Hand.

[@kudalaMangalooru]

+rashmi shanbhag Yes, this fruit belongs to Maphala (Madiphala or Mahabala) family, popularly known as Citron. The Israelis & Jews elsewhere call it Etrog and consider it spiritually important for their Sukkot celebrations, much like the Brahmans in Karnataka make it an important part of their Satyanarayana Pooja. The rind from Maphala & and this, so-called, Buddha's hand are identical in taste, obviously Maphala has much larger juice sacs. Maphala is even mentioned in the Vedas, which may even support the theory that Citrons originated in India....

[@Hirobian]

I remember reading about this in detail on Wikipedia a few years back and your video description confirms the memories. It's basically in the lemon family. This is one of the fruit I think I may actually get to try considering you mentioned getting it in New York in the past. Shouldn't be to hard to find some in Canada then, at least I hope so.

[@DeathMetalDerf]

I'm in Buffalo, NY (less than 10 minutes from both The Peace Bridge and the Rainbow Bridge, and then about 15-20 minutes from the Queenstown/Lewiston Bridge), and I've been seeing these pop up in higher-end grocery stores around here. I know Canada is HUGE and I'm guessing you live clear across the map from me, but if you're ever in my neck of the woods, Trader Joe's has them seasonally.

[@darkjanic6668]

Well it is a dry variety. Theres is also a wet variety like a citrus

[@nathanvanmiddlesworthmedia844]

LOVE these! I get one every year around Christmas time! The smell is wonderful! & the taste...VERY citrus,but kind of a floral tropical citrus! Very unique! Makes great candy!

[@WeirdExplorer]

I've candied these before, great stuff

[@djoulliegeraldizo3578]

That fruit looks yummy and really weird hope to taste one someday.thanks for the video

[@WeirdExplorer]

Chacha Cruz thank you!

[@jg1019]

It is literally just lemon skin. Very little flavor, kind of bitter.

[@werpu12]

Its basically citrus skin only, not good for direct eating, but excellent if you want to use it for cooking. Also the scent is very strong, I mean really strong. If you need a room perfume, go for it.

[@moniquegebeline4350]

It’s used for zest and for candies, you candy the peel. I know someone who grows one and used the leaves as a pot herb like bay leaves. The bugs are mealybugs, a soft scale insect.

[@mperticone]

I've seen this fruit in Italy. they call it 'cedro' (citrus medica), but it's like a subset, as other 'cedros' are more like lemon-shaped. very little pulp and a very massive peel. they make a kind of high quality soda, 'cedrata', which is so good I couldn't believe it.

[@MaxOakland]

Marcelo Perticone That makes sense. This is a type of Citron in English and the Citron is similar to this but lemon shaped

[@moniquegebeline4350]

Marcelo Perticone I bet it would make a mean limoncello

[@pkre707]

My speculation is that it’s kind of like a lotto ticket. You buy them green and then you wait until they rippen. If they stay closed, you win the luck lottery!

[@Tomotix]

I bought one in a grocery store in new york last year for $8. It was half off because it was the week after halloween and they were just stocking them for decorations.

[@quitlife9279]

I think the bugs you mentioned might be mealy bugs.

[@jasminewood395]

Citrus mealy bug, almost for sure

[@irenelee7046]

Maybe aphids !!! ??

[@hcitron]

from Martha Stewart: To make candied citron, the citron is blanched in water, boiled in sugar syrup, and dried. It lends a mild floral note to fruitcakes, panettone, and other such confections. We love candied citron but want to make sure you also consider all the other candied-citrus options.

[@TheOriginalFlowerdough]

your general knowledge and taste in fruit changed so much for the better since then

[@dreaminbunny]

Wow, me 1st! I lurve Buddha's Hand fruit. It's a vy aromatic fruit. It oso aids digestion. Am surprised tat u knew so much abt tis fruit n it's purposes. Being a fruit lover, I luv tis channel!

[@WeirdExplorer]

dreaminbunny Thanks! Glad you enjoy the videos. I know quite a bit about fruit, but I do research before making the videos as well. :)

[@mrsenstitz]

dreaminbunny I

[@miriam_etc.9655]

Last time I had made candied buddha's hand and that was really nice, like one of my favourite dessert. As far as I know even in China or Japan you can also buy them in candied or pickled form and it is also used as traditional medicine so I guess it was not a very rare idea to eat a hand of buddha🤔😂

[@andreapatane4204]

My dad enjoyed placing Buddha's 🤚🏻 Citron on his salmon for dinner tonight and it's not bad.

[@ferandy9]

I have a tree in Cuernavaca, México.

[@mikeramos5709]

cristina martinez oh cool! My Mom grew up in Morelos Cuernavaca (land of eternal spring).

[@MaxOakland]

Do you eat it?

[@trackerbignose]

if the white specks are a little fluffy looking they are mealy bugs

[@WeirdExplorer]

+trackerbignose Gross... and thank you.

[@werpu12]

Nope they are open in green as well. The folded or open is just how it grows.

[@plantlvr]

The black is sooty mold, caused by scale insects.

[@weirdman2030]

Hi, actually prickled buddha's hand can be used as drug in Traditional Chinese Medicine. You can get it from Teochew, China.

[@WeirdExplorer]

I've heard that. It's supposed to be good for sore throats right?

[@Lillyiann]

Buddha was telling me what?!?. Lol I laughed.

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Bouakhanh Greene Thats an offensive gesture in some countries. Give that fruit to someone in the UK and they wouldn't be too happy.

[@meisteremm]

@@WeirdExplorer I think they'd be more perplexed by the fruit itself than the fact that it was telling them what to do.

[@rubiks6]

You take the whole fruit and dice it into centimeter-sized cubes and you candy it - boiling water, dissolved rock candy, diced fruit, stir and boil, more water, stir and boil. Dry it for a couple of days and you have citrusy candy. Very yummy.

[@bearvarine]

LOL I enjoyed this vid. Definitely enjoyed your approach to reviewing almost inedible fruits!

[@darkjanic6668]

I saw the plants for sale at a plant nursery

[@chiangchengkooi9791]

Reason Chinese do not buy fully ripe Buddha hand is, the had to put the fruit on their offering altar for about a week to about 15 days that when the Chinese New Year celebration ends.

[@dr.doppeldecker3832]

They are delicious! But usually you use them just for their fragrance. But you also can pickle them or boil them in heavyly sugared water (simple sirup) to make them edible.

[@missgucciify]

I‘m so sad that my plant has dropped all its leaves- now hoping for it to recover

[@JohnsDrams]

Huh, so kind of like pumpkins for Halloween. Sure you can eat it, but not many do... Biggest use for this thing I know of is its the principle citrus used in Porter's Gin based in Aberdeen.

[@rickjac6909]

It is used as a traditional medicine to cure some illness related to lungs

[@WeirdExplorer]

Yes! I've heard that. At Chinese grocery stores they sell a medicinal tea made from the ri.nd

[@supershambox13]

Sweet sunday new vid !!!

[@WeirdExplorer]

Bob Thanks!

[@philippeterson7503]

I was growing one in San Antonio but it got killed in the freaky cold snap this year.

[@liamc2728]

Nice vid, make more!!!!

[@WeirdExplorer]

Liam Chandra For you Liam, anything. Expect a new one on Sunday!

[@liamc2728]

Great!

[@battybethc]

Those Fruitmites are harmless! They eat the Fruit so they are basically made of the Fruit. As the Budhists do, live and let live! 😉Lol! Love this Fruit! It is so aromatic! I wish I could bottle the Scent of it! Thankyou for the Upload! These Videos are phenominal! Keep up the great Work! 👍Shared! 💛

[@lethalweaboo8662]

Weird Explorer:"It's edible why can't you eat it" "Your video won't show up in people's feed in until 5 years"

[@user-ji1vg2jj5n]

Theres people out there that grafted their trees. It looks like its from Lemon tree and Banana tree together.

[@jamiebelilah193]

Those bugs are called mealy bugs, which does attack citrus.

[@danam312]

My fave drinking vinegar was actually made of this. It has such an amazing aroma.

[@StonedtotheBones13]

This would've been good maybe to revisit in your use the whole damn thing series.

[@griffinc3263]

Occasionally, these have a little bit of juice inside them. I dried a hand and made a tea and it was delicious.

[@GuberShep]

buddha flippin you the bird lmao

[@SushiOtterStudios]

Can you find this in California? I really want to try it out.

[@WeirdExplorer]

I would think so. Keep an eye out at gourmet markets, sometimes they show up as an oddity for cooking

[@SushiOtterStudios]

Jared Rydelek ok :3

[@mikeramos5709]

You can grow them outdoors in SoCal and along the coast.

[@LoIi]

super late but i’ve seen them in whole foods on the east and west coast

[@rockerroller]

I know this is an old post, but I live in the eastern part of the San Francisco Bay Area in contra costa county and there’s a couple of Safeways nearby in pleasant hill that carry these fruits during certain parts of the year. I’ve also seen star fruit and some other more rare fruits there as well. So I’m sure there’s more places that have them for sale.

[@AlexGargilisChannel]

Hey Jared, is this the same as a citron? Or are they different?

[@robrod7120]

Chris Gordon Its very similar

[@TheCarin12]

Fantastic aroma.

[@justmegawatt]

I think you got a really rare one with most of the fingers closed like that

[@gr33nDestiny]

I could find these at the supermarket but not the the green grocer, recently

[@grannykiminalaska]

Citron is used in fruit cake or citron muffins, usually candied

[@Jams_Turbo]

I made lemon chicken with it! I also really liked eating raw lol

[@WeirdExplorer]

How was it compared to using lemons? I made a cake filling with it once, good stuff.

[@Jams_Turbo]

It was a lot sweeter than lemons, but it was still very good!

[@joeditta4032]

Next time I fly to China if I want to make cookies for dessert

[@JohnSmith-bv4nw]

Yay! One that we have in Iowa grocery stores!

[@baroncaba]

the mites might be aphids

[@erin9868]

But aphids definitely move. Maybe mold spots?

[@maormalik2994]

it's kind of lemon?

[@WeirdExplorer]

It's related to lemon as they are both citrus fruit, but this is very different. It's a kind of citron.

[@dr.castor1392]

I’m thinking that since it’s nothing but pith, it would be perfect for making sweetmeats!

[@moonliteX]

anybody else have no sound in this clip? :o

[@moonliteX]

oh it was just the first minute

[@tlpricescope7772]

Whole Foods sometimes has these.

[@Mejiaelis]

Candied Buddha’s hand is delicious

[@DJMouthwash]

Is the audio missing for anyone else?

[@WeirdExplorer]

KZbin demonetized some of my videos because of the opening track, just skip ahead past the intro and the audio should kick in

[@richardportman8912]

Also, they smell good. Food for thought.

[@bworld9986]

Why is he so freaking hilarious to me.. like I love him✌🏾💖

[@alicechoocolate]

I'm from KL, never tried this fruit! :)

[@WeirdExplorer]

+alicechoocolate Try looking around the markets around CNY. I found this one at the Imbe wet market :)

[@peterconway6584]

About 6 years late, but ya shoulda washed it in soapy water to get rid of the mites.

[@evalevy2909]

The flavor is very much like the Jewish etrog fruit used for the succot holiday. Both can be used for jam, liqeur or candy

[@ailblentyn]

It would look amazing if you could candy half a Buddha's hand. They do that with citrons, after all.

[@marcellabutay1090]

Please do one one on a wood apple or mangosteen if you haven't.

[@marcellabutay1090]

If you have can I please have the link?

[@Titanic19127]

I got one for 6.99 each where I live in NY

[@WeirdExplorer]

Not bad! I've seen them upwards to $15 in NYC.

[@JO-iv7tl]

Looks like a perfect candidate for marmalade.

[@JO-iv7tl]

I forget what it's called but a condiment made in the middle east.

[@kamil-ov9gn]

Amazing fruit theres no in turkey like that kind of fruit

[@darkjanic6668]

They were for sale as a plant state

[@andrewcassell5076]

hey what type of fruits are in Caribbean islands???

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Andrew Cassell Lots of interesting fruits there. Ackee is popular there and supposed to be delicious. Also "stinkin' toe" has caught my interest for having such a strange name.

[@marcogonzales7070]

Looks like lemons trying to imitate a bunch of bananas

[@Dogman_35]

I always heard that these weren't eaten because they were like super ridiculously super and basically inedible because of that. Turns out that wasn't even remotely true.

[@andrewcassell5076]

can you make a video about it.

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Andrew Cassell Yep, I plan on making a weirdest looking fruit top ten around the 150th episode.

[@killemall4u2day]

I really dont like the fact that there is a full minute without audio

[@MuzikBike]

Were they selling the trees?

[@wickedninja8599]

I personally wasn't a fan when I had it raw. It was good when you candy it!

[@kennethmarshall4790]

Enjoyed and learned from it.

[@maormalik2994]

In Judaism, citron fruit is a sacred fruit and is called in Hebrew etrog

[@andrewcassell5076]

what are the strangest fruits you ever seen

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Andrew Cassell Future episode :)

[@happyman3220]

It sort of made my mouth numb

[@TheOriginalFlowerdough]

you described mold in extreme detail but with no knowledge of what it was... which i don't know if that's a bad or good thing

[@ansonwongb28]

love to buy a few trees for my garden do you know any nurseries in Malaysia that might have these ? thanks

[@WeirdExplorer]

+Wong Anson Sorry I don't. Good luck hunting!

[@jg1019]

I've had one or these, basically just a big lump of lemon skin. So cool looking but not a good fruit for eating.