pocket knife tough enough for durian

[mikemap]

My wife wants me to buy her a folding pocket knife for everyday use but she said it needs to be strong enough for opening durians. We're dealing with a lot of premature/windfall durians this season, so I can see how this will be handy to process them in the field for seeds. I don't know much about knives, so maybe someone here has advice? I understand that many small knives are engineered for sharp slicing but can't handle bending or prying, so maybe there's a beefier blade type out there?

[Mugenia]

More than enough. I could rip durians with my bare hands.

[mikemap]

Only 3 bucks, so I ordered this to try. Looks like a compact tool good to have in the mobile toolbox.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/DIY-Stainless-steel-cut-Durian-artifact-Opener-stripper-knife-pineapple-Peelers-Kitchen-Gadgets-Fruit-Vegetable-Cooking/32764355240.html

[Finca La Isla]

For the price I am very, very happy with Kershaw  knives.
Peter

[fruitlovers]

Only 3 bucks, so I ordered this to try. Looks like a compact tool good to have in the mobile toolbox.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/DIY-Stainless-steel-cut-Durian-artifact-Opener-stripper-knife-pineapple-Peelers-Kitchen-Gadgets-Fruit-Vegetable-Cooking/32764355240.html

That looks more like a pry bar than a knife, and it does not fold, but yes will probably do the job. Personally i like to use a large cleaver. It's tricky finding a folding portable knife that is strong enough. Some of the diving knives are very strong and fairly portable, but never seen one that folds.

[fyliu]

A folding knife is probably not good for prying durian. I keep imagining it snapping close. It would have to be one with a thing to keep it open would work. Maybe get a swiss army knife with prying tool.

[Finca La Isla]

The Kershaw knives I have are strong and lock open.
Frankly, I don't use a knife on durian and we eat a lot of durian.  The ripe durian will split easily when you slowly compress it under your boot.  It will split nicely along the natural seams.
Peter

[fruitlovers]

The Kershaw knives I have are strong and lock open.
Frankly, I don't use a knife on durian and we eat a lot of durian.  The ripe durian will split easily when you slowly compress it under your boot.  It will split nicely along the natural seams.
Peter

Your boots must be better than mine. Would never do that to my boots!

[goosteen]

Kershaw is good,  however for folding knives Benchmade is best,  The locking mechanism will not close when prying, and the blade can open and closed with one hand - with some practice.   Her best bet is this one, it has a large blade and handle.  She will still need some strong hands!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Benchmade-950-1-Rift-154CM-Stainless-Black-G-10-Handle-Axis-Lock-Reverse-Tanto-/272795558695?hash=item3f83e1e327:g:0yYAAOSwnSxZiSHe


But I agree with others saying a pocket knife is not a great choice for opening durian, it's best to have a pocket knife, and a larger knife for coconuts, jackfruit, durian, hostiles...  When traveling I alway have a Hatoria kitchen knife on me it's 5MM thick 10 inches long made by Hattori in Japan.   

[fruitlovers]

A machete works pretty well for opening durians. Not portable, but there are folding machetes which would be plenty strong enough to open a durian. But seems like they stopped making them after WWII. If you're lucky you can find them in an army surplus store, called Cattaraugus machete.

[Finca La Isla]

I'm wondering about this opening of durians, and if my experience is somehow unique to here though that's hard to believe.
As the durians ripen, they eventually split open themselves.  By this time they could be passed but not necessarily.  If they are forced open too soon they will be kind of crunchy and not ripe enough.
So, by testing the durians with a boot or board, applying pressure, just enough to see if it is going to split is the best way I know to gauge the ripeness of a durian.  At this point I might use a knife to help the separation along but it's not the kind of challenge that calls for heavy weapons. 
  I learned this from the Whitmans.
Peter

[fruitlovers]

I'm wondering about this opening of durians, and if my experience is somehow unique to here though that's hard to believe.
As the durians ripen, they eventually split open themselves.  By this time they could be passed but not necessarily.  If they are forced open too soon they will be kind of crunchy and not ripe enough.
So, by testing the durians with a boot or board, applying pressure, just enough to see if it is going to split is the best way I know to gauge the ripeness of a durian.  At this point I might use a knife to help the separation along but it's not the kind of challenge that calls for heavy weapons. 
  I learned this from the Whitmans.
Peter

Depends on the type of durian. For example, with monthong by the time they split open they are over ripe. Nobody uses the method you mention in a commercial way because you ruin the durian that way for sale. In Thailand most people use a super ball stuck on a long stick to thump the durian and listen to the sound, as well as looking at color of the fruit, smell, etc. Experts can tell best eating stage without injuring the fruit. In some supermarkets i noticed they also cut a little window into the fruit so you can see the insides, that's about as radical as they get.

[Finca La Isla]

In Thailand they pick the durians and, according to Lindsy, frequently ripen them with ethylene.  We let the durians drop, as in Malaysia.  We don't usually let the fruits open by themselves either.  The fruit won't get damaged as the pressure is not that great that we are applying.  If it doesn't split with a little pressure we wait another day, no damage.
At this point we are mostly eating D-24 and several pretty good seedling durians.  I recommend trying this method.
Peter

[fruitlovers]

In Thailand they pick the durians and, according to Lindsy, frequently ripen them with ethylene.  We let the durians drop, as in Malaysia.  We don't usually let the fruits open by themselves either.  The fruit won't get damaged as the pressure is not that great that we are applying.  If it doesn't split with a little pressure we wait another day, no damage.
At this point we are mostly eating D-24 and several pretty good seedling durians.  I recommend trying this method.
Peter

I'm pretty sure Lindsey is wrong about that. No ethylene used on durians. In fact for durians that are shipped the opposite is true, they apply a growth regulator to keep the durians from ripening too fast during the long shipping transport.
I let my durians drop also. By the time Monthong starts to split it is over ripe.

[Finca La Isla]

The D-24 is generally over ripe after it has split too.  That's why we don't wait but instead try help it along with some gentle pressure to get it open just 1-2 days before it would open naturally.  Perfection!
Lindsey seems to know what she is talking about.  The durians to ship wouldn't be treated in the same way as the ones for local consumption.
In CR, for convenience, people will apply ethylene to fruit that has been massively picked a little green for easier handling such as guanabana and platano.  It wouldn't surprise me if the Thais might do that as well.
Peter

[mikemap]

goosteen, I'm glad to have found the knife connoisseur of the group! Thanks for these excellent recommendations.

Peter's boot method might be adapted for weaker footware with a small piece of sheet metal or wood.

In the videos of durian vendors in SE Asia I've seen on youtube, a variety of knives are used, from long, skinny kitchen knives to beefy short cleaver/machete sorts. I think there's a wide selection of beefy fixed handle knives on the market that would be fine for abusing a little. Two of the more unusual ones I've stumbled across:

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Best-Gift-Home-Kitchen-Knife-Fruit-Durian-Knife-5c13-Blade-Rosewood-Handle-Camping-Fixed-Blade-Knives/819833_32806716337.html

https://www.lehmans.com/product/multi-purpose-power-knife/

[ben mango]

I spent $6 on mine from an army surplus store in Hilo.  Works fine, had it for years. Don't need something fancy

[DurianLover]

In Malaysia all durian sellers use butcher style knifes, something like picture below. These knifes makes easy to split durian rinds once knife inserted into fruit. There are foldable versions of this style.

[goosteen]

goosteen, I'm glad to have found the knife connoisseur of the group! Thanks for these excellent recommendations.

Peter's boot method might be adapted for weaker footware with a small piece of sheet metal or wood.

In the videos of durian vendors in SE Asia I've seen on youtube, a variety of knives are used, from long, skinny kitchen knives to beefy short cleaver/machete sorts. I think there's a wide selection of beefy fixed handle knives on the market that would be fine for abusing a little. Two of the more unusual ones I've stumbled across:

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Best-Gift-Home-Kitchen-Knife-Fruit-Durian-Knife-5c13-Blade-Rosewood-Handle-Camping-Fixed-Blade-Knives/819833_32806716337.html

https://www.lehmans.com/product/multi-purpose-power-knife/

Glad to be a service! 

Those are both interesting, Off brands from Ali express are a little bit of a risk....  There's a chance the steel is not tempered correctly and it bends, or breaks, is too blunt, or can't hold an edge.  But it does say 58RC hardness, but it does not mention the steel type.  The shape could be good, it looks the flat top is for prying, and you could hammer the spine to get the thing into the durian.   it's risky, but there's also a chance it works really well.

For me around the property, I find a folding knife with pocket clip is best, just because it's always on me like my keys. If I have to go get a knife, like a fixed blade, I find I rarely use it.   Anything from Benchmade with the Axis lock is good.   Since it's a gift you need, this could be good
http://customknife.benchmade.com/knives/#/customizer/blade   ... Upload a photo of a durian to get engraved into the blade,  Give her the mental edge over that fruit!

....When I do have to walk to the shop and get a knife, it's usually for a bigger task, so I grab the machete,    Which in that case I recommend this one.   Great edge, not too blunt, cuts fast and deep.   ...If she's only opening the thing to get the seeds out, whacking it with this will be the fastest way!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BNPV1RW/ref=twister_B014SK7GOA?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

[mikemap]

....When I do have to walk to the shop and get a knife, it's usually for a bigger task, so I grab the machete,    Which in that case I recommend this one.   Great edge, not too blunt, cuts fast and deep.   ...If she's only opening the thing to get the seeds out, whacking it with this will be the fastest way!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BNPV1RW/ref=twister_B014SK7GOA?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

That Kershaw has a very nice handle. I don't personally find long machetes useful. More and more I like really short machetes. We have a few Condor brand machetes we use all the time. My wife carries her stainless Condor 15" machete everywhere she goes. We eat a lot of coconuts and generally use a machete. The stainless blade is good for cleaning and food contact. That's a tool we often use for durian, but we also use one of those fancy rustic soft steel Japanese kitchen knives to open durian and about 90% of kitchen cutting tasks.

We have some Silky saws and a Silky nata, very good tools. I think the Silky Ono might be a good option for a durian vendor compared to a typical compact cleaver, very ergonomic and durable, maybe a little hard to keep a sharp edge, but it's pretty easy to cut into durians--definitely no hammering would ever be called for, even with a blunt edge--and prying is the main work. Of course often it's easy to open with bare hands, but depends on the durian. All of this is overkill since lots of cheap knives are perfectly adequate for a crude, simple task like durian, but I enjoy analyzing tool choices.