We tasted a whole lotta dates and found 5 of the best

The office buzzed with excitement last week when our colleague Abirami Durai walked in with bags full of dates. Truth be told, they were probably the only dates some of us single folks had, or will have, in a long time. Don’t judge us busy people, okay?

We were absolutely spoilt for choice during the blind tasting session, as there were over 20 types of dates on the table – dry, semi-dry, soft, branched, sticky, chocolate-coated, and more.

The people’s choice dates

The results came in and whaddaya know, the most popular vote went to the Deglet Nour branched dates. That shouldn’t come as a surprise as Deglet Nour from Tunisia is also known as the Queen of Dates for its superior quality and unique sweet, caramelised banana taste.

The Deglet Nour fruit has a slim and elongated shape, and textures that range from woolly, silken threads to an olive-like meatiness.

They tend to be the least sweet of the dates, and being rich in flavours, no wonder the Deglet Nour dates took three spots within our Top 10 selection.

Lighter in colour, its golden toffee brown reminds us it’s a product of the sun and sand of the arid dessert.

The Deglet Nour dates are often packaged with the branches attached, simply for aesthetic reasons, though there are also loose ones available in the market.

Chocolate-covered date

Another popular choice were the “jazzed-up” dates that fall under the premium category, for these individually packaged dates are priced about RM12 per 100g. Coated in honey, chocolate, caramel and even coconut and sesame seeds, the confectionery dates are targeted towards the younger market, to encourage kids to consume the otherwise unattractive fruit.

Our colleagues proved that they too are young at heart as they happily munched on the dates, and many were surprised to find almond instead of pit in the centre of these dates. That surely is a better surprise than almost breaking your teeth on the rock hard seeds.

Most of the tasters also preferred semi-dry dates like Mabroom and Mazafati to soft dates like Medjool and Barhi.

After much deliberation and coming close to OD-ing on dates, here we have the Top 5 Critic’s Choice dates that really got our fingers sticky as we went back for more.

Top 5 critic’s choice

AJWA AL MADINAH (200g)

RM36.90, Mydin

The Ajwa date which originates from the holy city of Medina in Saudi Arabia is considered one of the most premium dates in the world. We love the sweet scent of the individually wrapped dates that come in a classy, black box. The wrinkly, black skin gives this rather small date a dry appearance. Inside it is slightly dry, chewy and tacky. Do be careful of the rather large, hard pit in the centre that looks like a coffee bean. The flesh tastes like honey and palm sugar, and isn’t cloyingly sweet.

HABBATUS QURMA (500g)

RM36.89, Giant

The first thing that hits you when opening the can of dates is a faint but familiar herbaceous scent. Here’s a hint: it’s Habbatus Sauda oil. What is Habbatus Sauda? Fennel flower. The slightly musky oil is known for its healing property and when combined with the goodness of dates, this is one power-packed treat right here. The exact type of date isn’t specified on the can. However, the dates have a thick skin that holds all the flavour. The unpitted flesh is slightly grainy and it isn’t too sweet either.

AL ALWANI MABROOM DATES (800g)

RM34.90, Mydin

These elongated dates are mostly light coloured although you may find a few dark ones in the mix. The semi-dry date is slightly hard, and has a delicious caramel flavour to the chewy and sticky flesh. The skin wrinkles and flakes, and when the small bits get stuck to your throat, it can get a little annoying. But hey, that’s a small price to pay for this tasty and sweet date that comes all the way from Saudi Arabia.

JERICHO DATES (1kg)

RM61.99, Mydin

Open the box and just go “whoa” at the size of these babies. Ranging in size from large to jumbo, with a slightly shiny skin and deep and rich dark to golden brown colour, they are sweet and very succulent. It’s easy to see why these Palestinian dates are called the King of Dates. With a velvety soft texture, Medjoul dates are rich in taste that lingers in your mouth long after you spit out the pit. Categorised as semi-dry, the Medjoul dates are considered exquisite and they are very hard to grow. But thank goodness for the big box of Medjoul dates that made it to our shores to give us the pleasure of tasting these fine caramel and cinnamon-hinted black jewels.

BEST TAMRAH (100g)

RM11.90, Tesco

We love this selection of dates coated in milk chocolate, dark chocolate, caramel and coconut. The chocolate is overpowering, and the dates honestly are not the stars here. But somehow, that is forgivable with each bite. Soft, crunchy and chewy at the same time, the Best Tamrah dates are really fun to eat. The coconut crusted date gives a nice tropical and crunchy taste to each bite.

Source: The Star Online

#Delicacy #Lifestyle