Persimmons

Until last autmn I never had tasted persimmon. Then a friend gave us some Indiana persimmon pudding and I was hooked. Of course, I like almost things pudding. A nice neighbor has a couple of persimmon trees and she told us we could have all fruit we could pick as she doesn;t care for them. Since an abundant crop will be ready for harvest in a few weeks, assuming I can outwit the wildlife for these morsels, I was wondering how others here may use this fruit?

Darn if I know. I've tried several times -- my grocer says you need to leave them on the counter a long time, till they're very mushy -- and I only get something worth eating 1 out of 4 times. So, I'm eager to see what other folks have to say.

Darn if I know. I've tried several times -- my grocer says you need to leave them on the counter a long time, till they're very mushy -- and I only get something worth eating 1 out of 4 times. So, I'm eager to see what other folks have to say.

Yeah, as I said recently in another thread, I never saw any edible persimmons in Nyc. Although of course I didn't scour every single market of interest. The Fuyu ones are the most common because they are hardier. And they take forever to ripen and can be a crap shoot in my experience. The Hachiya are much more delicate but much more explosive in flavor, although they must be a pain to transport. When I lived in Berkeley I could barely get them home from the farmers market without them exploding.

But to answer the original question, eating them is the obvious answer. Hachiya are almost like a puree, so you can cook with them as you would any other fruit puree. Fuyu are firmish even when ripe, so are often used in salads or in dishes much the way people use apples and pears this time of year.

I wish I could like them, but I could not cotton to persimmons, maybe because I never figured out when or how they ripen.

The first time I tried them was in the 1970s while living in Tehran. Found them boring. Next time was in NYC in the '80s. Found them gushy--and still boring.

Is knowing the ripeness arc THE only answer? I mean, what is it about their taste that is appealing?

Is knowing the ripeness arc THE only answer? I mean, what is it about their taste that is appealing?

Yes. The taste is a perfumey sort of orange and mango, but not really like either one of those. Quite attractive but, um, hard to find.

These are American Persimmons which apparently are quite different from the Asian varieties found in the grocer. The locals claim you have to let these ripen on the tree until the first fruit starts to drop. This usually occurs around the first frost. Doubt this approach would work well if you had to deal with a longer supply chain, but that isn't an issue since it is only a mile walk for us to the trees.
Any old timers remember when the wood from persimmon trees was the material of choice for the heads ofgolf clubs (drivers)?

I use the Hachiyas for cookies, bars, muffins, and yes, you have to wait until they are really ripe. I have tried the Fuyu for eating, like an apple, but was not impressed. Persimmon puree freezes very well, and I usually ripen and process the persimmon for my freezer about this time every year. Here is a little more information.
http://www.shockinglydelicious.com/introducing-4-persimmon-varieties/

Persimmon pie, persimmon bread. That about covers the uses in our household. Given their consistency, we bake with them in much the same way that we'd use overripe bananas.

Mark Lipton

Growing up we only ever had the conical shaped Hachiyas which can not be eaten until they are quite ripe. Over ripe they are mush. Just right they still retain some texture. I did not understand the Fuyu which are now much more common in my markets until recently. Fuyu are what I call hockey pucks and I find them quite delicious in salads with nuts, usually pecans, pomegranate, pears and greens. Roasted nut oils are spectacular here. They are not mushy and have a subtle but delicious flavor that is very versatile and is accentuated by many other foods such as the ones mentioned.
After I started experimenting with them I now prefer almost prefer them to the Hachiya

[Jenise]

Absolutely LOVE persimmons. I knew where there was a tree next to a parking lot in a public place when I was a child, that no one but me ever seemed to harvest. I'd head down there with my wagon and load up. (I was the neighborhood kid who knew where every single edible living thing was within a certain radius.) It was the Hachiya variety and I adored them from the getgo. They are hard to buy in stores as they're sometimes picked too early to ripen, but I nonetheless try because I love them so. I adore the fuyu as much for entirely different reasons. They should never ripen so much they soften, you want them hard and crisp. In Europe, these are often called Sharon fruit--I believe this is the name given them in Israel where they are commonly grown, though I could be wrong about the source of that. I use the fuyus in salads sometimes, though to be honest I just eat most of what I buy out of hand. A real treat for me every year!

Persimmons are extremely common around here. We get both Fuyus and Hachiyas, but I've never had a ripe Hachiya. We use the Fuyus just as Christina says - in salads. They're delicious.