Hunting the Extraordinary NIPA FRUIT! (and the strange ways that you eat it)

Episode: 707 Nipa Palm
Species: Nypa fruticans
Location: Penang Malaysia
Thanks to Jennie From Nature Fruit Farm Resort for showing me this incredible fruit: follow her Instagram: @naturefruitfarmresort
---
+ See EXCLUSIVE videos! Get REWARDS! Help the channel GROW!
Patreon: / weirdexplorer
---
+Fruit Hunting Tours!
weirdexplorer.com/tours
---
+ GET A SHIRT:
www.weirdexplorer.com/shop
---
+SEARCH through a complete database of all my fruit reviews on my website: www.weirdexplorer.com
---
+ Follow me on SOCIAL MEDIA:
IG: @weirdexplorer
Twitter: @weirderexplorer
FB: weirdexplorer
Reddit: / weirdexplorer
---
+ MUSIC:
"Nonstop" By Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/b...
---
+ SPECIAL THANKS:
Smarter Every Day, JMac

[@WeirdExplorer]

Check out my top fruit hunting episodes: kzbin.info/aero/PLvGFkMrO1ZxJldWKpSAhhnxuPYVeCt8oj

[@Double_penetration]

Can you try the whitebark raspberry next

[@lakcheong1499]

Hello, have you considered maybe the Arak drink tastes like palm wine?

[@marufmunsur1991]

Similar juice is produced from date trees in South East Asia e.g. Bangladesh, India. It tastes amazing when freshly collected at night. Hope you can try it.

[@apemancommeth8087]

Looks like a skinless green grape!

[@edgarburlyman738]

The sap seemed a lot more worthwhile harvesting, than the fruit did.

[@wessss]

Talking with locals is really filling out the story and giving an Anthony Bourdain vibe and I am here for it.

[@edgarburlyman738]

Ack, cringe, please don't say things like that.

[@bobf823]

@@edgarburlyman738 why is that cringe, wdym?

[@edgarburlyman738]

@@bobf823 Comparing wholesome youtubers to creepy travel channel dudes

[@almarc3747]

​@@edgarburlyman738 You think AB is creepy? You need to GTFO.

[@custos3249]

@@bobf823 He lives in a suburb surrounded by "live, laugh, love" wall art, i.e. the type of person Bourdain rightfully hated.

[@DeathMetalDerf]

These "fruit redemption" videos are some of my favorite ones. I love when you revisit something that you feel deserves another shot. It just shows what kind of guy you are, and I'm 1000% here for it dude! I hope everyone is doing well and having a great day!

[@GeoQuag]

I enjoy hearing from the people who actually eat/harvest these fruits!

[@NikoRoyal]

How can one man look like both a child in a cuckold when he smiles?

[@samholdsworth420]

No one ever

[@chairwood]

hello I actually eat fruits

[@tenchuu007]

I love that you showed the mudskippers! Can't see them without remembering David Attenborough talking about them in a nature documentary in the 80s!

[@WeirdExplorer]

they eat them around that area too and are supposed to be quite good

[@tiki_trash]

@@WeirdExplorer I wonder if they taste like catfish.

[@yesterdaydream]

Thank you for giving me the term, I was like wtf are those giant tadpoles

[@ExpandDong420]

​@yesterdaydream they're quite similar in that they're amphibious but to the best of my knowledge they aren't amphibians

[@weekendwarrior5303]

2:52 Omg, the way this dude is swinging that clever with his hand right there.

[@LC-le9ew]

😱

[@Katalowins]

If you notice he is swinging the back of the machete, the blunt side, so he can hopefully dislodge a fruit from the bunch. His hand is there to hopefully catch it before it plops into the river and floats away.

[@weekendwarrior5303]

@@Katalowins Take a closer look. There is a notch cut out on the dull side. Which can be clearly seen when he is swinging it and when he cuts open the fruit. Dude was swinging with the sharp side, with is hand right there.

[@kwongyeang]

I'm from Penang originally and it was a blast from the past to hear Jenny's accent !

[@tiki_trash]

@ 3:34 is that what we call a mudskipper? A fish that walks on land? Edit: I should have watched until the end and I would have found my answer. I often pause a video in the middle just to see what other people are saying.

[@singagency1481]

Nipah Palm trees usually prefers the upper estuarine where the stream has lower salinity. As you rows towards the sea, the river banks vegetation will transitions from jungle plants to just dense Nipah palms and eventually mangrove forest.

[@nguyenpham7156]

In Vietnam we call it Dua nuoc (Water Coconut in English), we usually eat them with syrup and some other sweets

[@PDYALL]

I liked seeing that monitor walking slowly away in the mangroves

[@chiyo9014]

That muddy mudskipper theme really hit me with the nostalgia! By far my favorite show growing up.

[@nonsequitor]

Wow....weird re: Sulphur. It grows in deep mud that's gonna stink of sulphur if distrubed but it's not as if there's a particularly high concentration in the mud itself, it's more to do with anaerobic chemistry going on in bacteria. Maybe it's secondary metabolites in the plant... some level of internal antifungal capacity given the damp, hot conditions 🤷‍♂️

[@shichimiyasatone726]

Didn't expect you to go to Malaysia! I can't recommend any other local fruits there since you tried them all tho, but Tuak is a nice alcoholic drink to try for alcohol beginners. There is also rice tuak and coconut tuak, you should try them too while here!

[@tiki_trash]

He goes to Malaysia often.

[@M3W3]

Welcome to my hometown, hahaha I never knew it’s so hard to break open the fruit, had it with local dessert and always thought nothing about it until I watch this video then I realize next trip when I taste the fruit, I should give more thought and gratefulness to the people who took the effort to process it. It has this interesting texture that add texture to your dessert, there isn’t much taste to it. Penangite call it attap chee. Also don’t forget to try out local amazing fruits such as Duku, Langsat, both look similar but Duku is bigger and Langsat is smaller. Very tasty, sweet and sour taste.

[@WeirdExplorer]

Thanks! It a beautiful place. I had duku and langsat side by side in East Malaysia some years ago: kzbin.info/www/bejne/roSQdpmGo7d9gJY

[@spacekitt.n]

bro your production quality has gotten so slick! love to see a fruit king thriving

[@Najdmie]

Very nostalgic. My late grandpa grew them at the backyard pond, near the paddy field, mainly to harvest the leaves to make roof. The fruit is not popular because it has very little fill. Also difficult to harvest and peel.

[@SnakeBush]

May he rest in peace

[@barryschalkwijk9388]

Yeah it really looked like it's not worth the hassle lol.

[@blueberryiswar]

@@barryschalkwijk9388 I mean, old apple were tiny and smelled like wood. You probably could improve things like seize.

[@barryschalkwijk9388]

@@blueberryiswar interesting, yeah i guess it could be cultivated, but then still there's a lot more promising options growing in the same area.

[@VespasianJudea]

@@barryschalkwijk9388 If you don’t have modernity this fruit is a life saver.

[@luke_fabis]

That cluster of nipa looks a little bit like screwpine fruit. But looking it up, their closest point of relation is that they're both monocots. It's not even vaguely close. Convergent evolution is nuts.

[@vanhoe0]

Currently it's the starting of fruit season in Malaysia. If anyone planning to come here, you should be able to find fruits like durian, mangosteen and rambutan a lot easier for the next 2 months.

[@0alexander]

I really appreciate you going out to document these finds in an easy to consume and engaging way. There is often nothing readily available online about so many species of fruits and vegetables (especially those from local/indigenous communities). It feels like you are digitally preserving such important knowledge.

[@Alina-dw3ct]

I know it's not really a fruit, but the look of the nipa palm sap reminded me of "birch juice" aka birch sap which is a common summer refreshment drink here in Eastern Europe, maybe one day you give it a try :)

[@phoenixpinkmyn5535]

For some reason it's not common in northeast US here, even though we have lots of birch! But we DO have "Birch Beer", which is made from the bark instead of the sap. It's not alcoholic, just a soda like root beer. I bet birch juice would taste great, I wish my family & I would have tried making it when I was growing up from the big paper birch tree we had. Sadly, that tree's long gone.

[@Jimbo_McBacon]

I have had birch beer. It tastes so much like root beer, but way better. I wish I could find it again in the stores here. A rare treat indeed.

[@SobrietyandSolace]

Birch sap is very delicious and refreshing, like the European version of coconut water

[@johnr797]

Looks just like maple sap

[@EeeEee-bm5gx]

I don't like it fresh, I don't like it strongly fermented. Best it's two three days of light fermentation

[@Youngstomata]

Not sure if you have ever covered the Japanese Raisin tree but I ordered a sapling. Maybe in a few years I can send you some edible stalks!

[@LordRaptor]

Figured you'd revisit this fruit, it's fascinating that Arak is also a thing in Asia because it's not the only food that is common in both Asia and the Middle East I'm familiar with that is considered the same thing but is made slightly differently, Pilaf, which is a very common rice dish in Asia is also very popular here, but it's called Oshpelo.

[@winegoddess55]

What a strange and interesting fruit! Here in my local small town in Canada, I've found cans of nipa fruit, and had no idea what the tree might look like. The fruit is quite delicate and refreshing; I never would have suspected that it came from such a crazy looking tree! Great video.😃

[@Lnel3799]

The nipa sap is made into palm sugar, used in desserts in SE Asia. It has a somewhat caramel taste but different.

[@LtCmdrData45]

The mudskipper featured at the end was the icing on the cake!

[@ChadGardenSinLA]

And don't forget the world famous, nipa hut! It's also a useful building material.

[@Captain_Sosuke_Aizen]

That sap nectar is called neera, We have coconut neera here in Kerala, India. Palm neera is also there. The traditional alcohol in Kerala is made from the fermented coconut neera.

[@ameythegooner]

Likewise in coastal Maharashtra, India. Fermented coconut neera/alcohol is called "Maadi" while the fermented palm neera/alcohol is called "taadi".

[@Captain_Sosuke_Aizen]

@@ameythegooner Kerala coconut alcohol is called Kallu and palm one is called Charayam(I think ... not sure about the palm one)

[@hudefuk]

True adventure. Exotic fruit that requires a canoe and machete to find!

[@DanielLiNeutrinos]

Took me half a video to realise these are what we call attap seeds! 🇸🇬

[@13gan]

That's because the etymology of the name "attap tree" comes from the use of its leaves to make roofing (attap/atap in Malay). Which is why it's somewhat funny when we consider where the word "rumah attap" comes from since on the face of it, it simply means "house with roof" instead of "house with nipah/attap leaves roofing).

[@a-man2246]

Linguistically, arak in arabic is "sweat". I think it derives from the distilling process since the distilled alcohol beads on the surface of the condenser element and runs into the collecting flask resembling sweat beading off skin. In this sense arak would be any distilled drink

[@ricardosotto6885]

Maybe that's why it tastes awful.

[@kristenfrosch]

Been watching your channel for almost a decade now, came for the kaffir lime - stayed for the exceptional commentary, fun new fruits and great personality! I really love your content and wanted to thank you for doing what you do! And doing it so well! Thanks for exploring the fruits that many of us will never get to discover and helping us know what they're like. It honestly makes me very happy.

[@pattheplanter]

Arak was the first alcohol used to make punch. That was in India in the 17th century. This was before methanol was avoided by distillers and the arrack contained a lot of methanol. It seems to have killed a lot of employees of the East India Companies, both Dutch and British. Usually when they sobered up, as ethanol is a treatment for methanol poisoning. Once the ethanol left their system, the methanol was still poisoning them.

[@prolly2stoned420]

I want to see you and Sonny from Best Ever Food Review Show do a fruit collab!

[@Youngstomata]

Ah peace!

[@Bluedini01]

Shout out to Ren & Stimpy. Hearing that theme song brought me right back to the early 90s

[@earkittycat5421]

LMAO FIRST As a malay, i see this fruit a lot. Also arak is what we call any alcoholic drink, i fisnt know there was a specific drink called arak.

[@fleeb]

Love the Renn & Stimpy reference!

[@StuffandThings_]

Ah, I was wondering when you'd give this fascinating fruit a second try and do it justice! Its such an amazing, useful, adaptable plant, its honestly incredibly surprising that its not more commonly cultivated. All the fruit seems to like these quite a lot too. I tried finding some canned stuff at an Asian market, they didn't have any but the canned toddy palm was quite nice.

[@forevernaturalnature]

We have gula (sugar) Apong here in Sarawak, East Malaysia made from Nipah palm sap. Do come to try our Gula Apong ice-cream, it is really good.

[@gorillapermacuture]

Thanks, I found a seed of Nipa or a relative to Nipa after a big flood on Kauai and was having a hard time finding it online. It sprouted and is planted in Kalalau but the goats have probably eaten it.

[@Andifachri]

The fresh one i used to drink it as a kid. In my part of Java that drink called "legen" without d. Tuak is also good but arak nipah oh boy, it burns! Sometimes it is distilled with coconut or other palm juice.

[@nimay13]

"Arak" is just a word for liquor. Tuak means fermentation but in this case, it refers to fermented juice or sap. This is because in some parts of Malaysia some tribes do moonshine out of different crops and they still call it tuak. So I guess, tuak means moonshine. Lol.

[@13gan]

The more likely explanation is that Tuak is the general word for alcoholic drinks in an older version of Malay whereas Arak is a loan word from Arabic. At least in Iban (a proto-Malay group), we use the word tuak both as the specific name for the alcoholic beverage made from rice and also as a general word to mean alcoholic drinks. Also the word moonshine is not correct in this context as moonshine are alcoholic beverages produced illegally ( "as the moon shines" aka in the dark). Although home-brewing is illegal in Malaysia, the law provides provision that allows the natives of Sarawak and Sabah to make them.

[@wpc456cpw]

Hello Jared, I don't know if you will see this but I've been an active subscriber and Patreon member for about 2-3 years :) unfortunately I am pausing my Patreon membership for now because my financial situation has changed. I don't have much of an income at the moment that's all. But I plan to re-join once I have a steady job again after I finish my degree. I'll still engage on KZbin though!! All the best from Australia!

[@Lightwish01]

I absolutely LOVE this channel! I have been watching since the very beginning and it is video's like this one that make it all worthwhile! I had never even heard of Nipa before this! Well done, particularly with the visit to the plantation.

[@SonnyGulanesPH]

Nipa is pretty much like coconut. We get the sap from the flower stalk. The sap has high sugar content. You can dehaydrate and crystalize into coconut and nipa sugar. You can ferment the sap. Tuak is tuba in Filipino. Distil it into arak. Arak is alak (wine) in Filipino. Distilled palm liquor - coconut or nipa is called Lambanog in Filipino. The coconut and nipa fruit are made into jam here in the Philippines.

[@lagurr]

Such an interesting episode! I found a nypa palm washed up on one of our remote beaches and took it home to plant (100% sure it would not have survived there) and it's still alive after a year! I've never seen nypa palm where I live, even asking the elders if they recognize it and they don't. I had to search through driftseed catalogues to find out what it was named and was delighted to learn it's edible ☺️ loved that you showed the different varieties of what can be done with it!

[@OldDistantHermit]

Where do you live that you found it?

[@Mysteriousgurrl]

Love this kind of storytelling, keep going.

[@Double_penetration]

Can you try the whitebark raspberry next

[@traphimawari7760]

Soldier from tf2?!

[@Double_penetration]

@@traphimawari7760 trap from himawari?!

[@danielleohallisey4218]

Ooh!! Thanks for reminding us of Muddy Mudskipper! I won’t be able to stop laughing for a good long while!

[@chiangchengkooi9791]

When you are in Malaysia, have you try the most famous Malaysian mango, the "Harum Manis". Beside this have ever try, mango type fruit like macang and kuinin. Wonder if you try what Penang people call Jungle Longan, In Sarawak people there call buah kristal (Crystal fruit). It is also know as matoa. Beside these there are other non so popular fruit like keranji, perah, keriang, buah rotan, ketapang, pinang and malaysian jungle chest nut. Jambu mawar can be translate as rose apple, but here jambu mawar is another type of the typical rose apple, usually round and greenish yellow, but the seed are rather big.

[@moradtabbicca9204]

In Ghana, they ferment palm wine and make Akpeteshie out of it. Palmwine is from the sap of the palm nut tree.

[@radionoakmont7756]

a new beautiful treasure and oh the Silk road from the middle east to the far east what a great connection, and super amazing find very exotic and the flavor sounds delightful.

[@thedeesus4249]

The “Muddy Mud-skipper” theme song! You just won with that deep cut.

[@RidiculousBadgerGames]

just the slick Ren & Stimpy reference lol. Keep at it brother

[@tellMemeAStory]

It's really cool how your fruit adventures lead you to meeting so many awesome people 😊

[@Dielonthug]

What a crazy fruit. Your channel really has grown, congrats

[@klyanadkmorr]

💪👍👍😜Thumbs up just for the REN AND STIMPY reference. There's a Florida grower called MIAMI FRUIT that from online shop, ships or grows specialty American continents fruits from USA , C AM AND S AM. The only way I have been able try out some of the fruits you mentioned.

[@KostaCeid]

Thank you for uploading these, always makes my day to watch a new adventure of yours :)

[@ILiekDeadpplz]

Those are some virile globules, great find!

[@WeirdExplorer]

extra globular globules

[@UncleBread]

Definitely one of the coolest looking fruits! I’m glad we got to try these multiple times in Vietnam.

[@tikiclock]

Thank you for your diligent fruit opening efforts. This is one of my favorite youtube channels. Keep on rockin it.

[@CLOUDSINTHEKITCHEN]

We have this here in Thailand. You can buy it plain or in syrup to put in many snack desserts. SO yum.

[@jimkessler2001]

Great useful Knowledge as usual. Thanx, Man !

[@applegal3058]

How cool is this! Thanks for sharing Jared ❤

[@graxo3752]

Dude your content is awesome. I love learning about all the different types of fruit this earth gives us. Thanks so much for doing all the hard work for us to enjoy this content!!

[@MThomasB]

Giant Pinecone!!!!

[@BigIslandLavaPioneers]

Haha! Yesss! Muddy the Mudskipper! My mind went to the theme song the moment you said "mudskipper". Was a bit shocked when you referenced Muddy.

[@eileenhousebeatz3707]

Looks so prehistoric. Cool fruit, thank you for your awesome videos :)

[@TheWeirdestOfBugs]

Great video as usual, Jared! :D

[@JTMusicbox]

Glad you reviewed this again. Night and day difference from the first time. 9 times out of 10 I try a new fruit I miss judge the age or ripeness.

[@frankmacleod2565]

Excellent review

[@HendersonHinchfinch]

Great video. What was exploring Malaysia like? I really want to visit sometime.

[@deliocache2528]

Thats a cool thumbnail

[@drecion1]

Hey wired explorer, I tried Mangosteen for the first time the other day after being curious seeing one of your videos. I really didn’t think too much about it but I’m glad I gave it a go anyways. Maybe it was overripe. but I am more curious to try other fruits that I haven’t tried before because of your own enthusiasm with exotic fruits. Keep up the good work.

[@M3W3]

Mangosteen is tricky, when u pressed the fruit it’s rock solid hard, don’t bother to open, it’s spoil. It should be medium soft that easily cut open or press & peel open. And when you open and see the yellow milky sap in the flesh of the fruit, don’t eat those, it’s yucky. Only eat those that looks fluffy white and plump, some turn transparent and harden. Also no good the transparent one. The best is fluffy white soft sweet ones. It’s so far the best tasting fruit, and full of nutrients too.

[@Naveandlaen]

Loved this video tbh

[@thatshowwithjoe]

Wholesome and fascinating channel. Good work.

[@WeirdExplorer]

just ignore the occasional cursing at a fruit and this is true 👍

[@thatshowwithjoe]

@@WeirdExplorer Completely acceptable.😂😂👍👍

[@laurasnow7822]

One of the most gorgeous fruits I’ve ever seen.

[@user-ir6zx3rv4w]

Your one of my favorite KZbinrs. Great episode!

[@WeirdExplorer]

Wow, thanks!

[@Alakazzam09]

The look of it opened reminds me of an oyster. A palm oyster?

[@iangomez7190]

Great video

[@inujoshwa89]

I remember when you had around 20-25k subscribers... it took some years..but you def grew over the past 5-6 years❤

[@SanPendro]

awesome video

[@atanacioluna292]

The joy of life on earth with humans and things. Love it; thanks for an entertaining and informative adventure.

[@alexanderzhukov111]

Digging from the memories I used to had from my asian trips experience... I've tried nipa palm fruits in a vacuum packing once bought in a local store. But I've never thought they have such hard and thick coating. It takes a lot of effort to harvest and process them

[@SriGutta]

In Vietnam, they cut the stalk of the Nipa palm bearing fruit and collect the sap.. The sap is sweet and used to make Sugar alternative which is rich minerals and also to make honey! It has a sweet, salty tang and its unique.

[@mealex303]

ace i said this idea im so glad u got to try😊

[@capnstewy55]

I just watched the first Nipa video last week. Somehow the algorithm knew...

[@WeirdExplorer]

I knew 🕴

[@LexDimonEnt]

I am from Trinidad and Tobago, we have a palm called Banga that also exists only in most of our Mangroves that have a unique tasting fruit and we also have these Nepa palm seeds washing up on our East coast beaches, I always wanted to know the name of the fruit thanks for the info...

[@SkuttleCS]

Bowser shell looking ah fruit

[@machinegunhippy]

Someone needs to paint one for a laugh

[@youtube.commentator]

Thanks, Jared

[@MinaKittyKawaiiMii]

liked the video because of the dramatic reading of the mud skipper song. I love this channel lmao

[@apemancommeth8087]

I’ve seen something similar to this but they were smaller and were really colorful! Supposedly they have a mixed flavor of fruits!

[@renzigayosa5895]

We also have that but we also tap coconuts and it looks similar

[@davis4555]

I love the Muddy Mudskipper shout out!

[@LC-le9ew]

Lol! Never seen this fruit or heard this song but I enjoyed all of it!

[@chuck6290]

I love these fruit redemption videos :)

[@AltimaNEO]

Interesting that arak is similar to Mexican "agua miel". It's Made by collecting the sap from an agave in which a hole had been cut out in the core where it will collect. Then allowing it to ferment. My grandparents and mom loved the stuff.

[@josephkanowitz6875]

ב''ה, think you meant tuac; the agua miel is sort of a beer or wine, right? Then arak is generally distilled liquor, so generally a liquor/vodka/moonshine (though the middle east will dose this up with a healthy amount of anise or anise oil, as you might recognize from ouzo). While I'm in this thread, I wonder how much sulfur comes through the plant and how much from the air around it if you've ever spent time in marshlands.. and while I'm not sure I can specifically recommend it, that note reminds of "jaljira" or "jaljeera," a paradoxically refreshing beverage (non-alcoholic) made with a bunch of sulfur salts reminiscent of a day in a marsh, or perhaps of the Ganges and everyone floating around in it. It *should* just be from chemical salts and happen to taste like that, y'all...

[@anonymous-ds4ix]

In south india we have similar ... neera , the unfermeted form and toddy .. both from coconut palm

[@dragonpaws]

I want to try the sap so badly, I was expecting it to be tannic or bitter and the fact that it has an eggy taste!? Fascinating

[@Xavus-137]

i think you should revisit the old fruit videos you might eat it wrong and your experience of the fruit will be my point of view of the fruit .

[@aurochf1]

I'd bet that the sulfuric taste comes from the fact that the palm grows in muddy mangroves.