Apparently, when I was a baby I was a big fan of super-mooshy Hachiya persimmons. My mom used to feed them to me as a ready-made baby food, and she tells me that I was totally into it. Well, times change, because these days I'm not really into those super gooey Hachiyas.
persimmons are beautiful. I love this painting so much
I do agree that their acorn shape is totally beautiful, and I still love to use them pureed in baked goods. Also, they are great for making dried persimmons. My grandparents had a persimmon tree, and my grandma really loved making dried persimmons. She had a whole special method using a strong lightbulb in the oven overnight, and she made loads of them every year. They were beautiful and delicious.
fuyu fun
And yet, even with all those years of sentimental attachment... in recent years I've gradually become a convert to the crunchy
Fuyu Persimmon.
my fuyu friends
Have you ever had one?! They are more squatty than their elongated cousins, but otherwise they are just as striking and beautiful as any persimmon anywhere. The special thing about fuyus is that they are ripe when they are still firm. You can slice them up or just bite into them and eat them like an apple. The flavor is sweet, mild, and delicious.
I love the flavor, the beauty, and the super-autumny feel of persimmons... Last year I sorta missed out on persimmons (how did that happen!?), so this year I've made a concerted effort to appreciate these guys while they're around!
Fuyu persimmons are one of my favorite fruits, but I didn't discover them until my twenties! I've only had the Hachiya persimmons once, and it was a karmic disaster. In my old neighborhood there was a house with a big fence, and just inside the fence there was a Hachiya persimmon tree. I'd only had the Fuyu persimmons, and I assumed they were the same. I didn't want the owner to see me climbing up on their fence to pick one, and so I convinced David that we should go on a nighttime walk later. I climbed up onto their fence, took a couple of persimmons, and brought them home with me. I washed one, took a big bite, and was greeted with a chalky mouthful of underripe Hachiya persimmon. I learned my lesson that day, and now I stick with the Fuyu! Plus, I like that they can be eaten at various stages of ripeness - while they're crunchy like a pear or when they're softer and riper like a peach. And that owner gets to keep her Hachiya persimmons all to herself! :)
ReplyDeleteha ha!! yes, the Hachiya persimmons are NO GOOD when they are crunchy. That is a real mouthful of yuck. What a great story. :)
DeleteI love them both equally! There is just something so happy and fall-into-wintery about them. Maybe it's the color. They just cheer me up to see (and eat).
ReplyDeleteI used to feed super ripe hachiyas to Grey when he was tiny... possibly the closest thing to normal baby food he ever got his little gums around.
Maybe our shared baby-food-persimmon experience is why I like Grey so much!! <3
DeleteAlso, I agree about their color... It's just so bright and warm and cheery
DeleteI'm a fan of dried persimmons -- to me they taste like caramel -- but between the period of astringency followed by the period of short shelf life have not really pursued fresh ones other than a time someone gave me extra ones from her tree. If Fuyu persimmons don't have that issue then I should give them a try ...
ReplyDeleteTane', I totally agree about that annoying unripe -> overripe phenomena. The crunchy Fuyus don't have that issue at ALL. They are even good when they are a little under-ripe all the way to when they are over-ripe. They are so much easier to work with. Also, dried persimmons really are fantastic!
DeletePersimmons are a new discovery for me too! The little, squat ones are much easier to find here (usually sold under the name of "sharon fruit" but I recently found a few of the bigger, squishy ones and really liked them too.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the education on what their real names are!
I've never heard them called "sharon fruit," how interesting!!
DeleteI didn't grow up with persimmons — they would have been an exotic fruit in Pennsylvania. I'm basically unfamiliar with either variety, but after reading your post, I plan to end that nonsense. The not-mushy one sounds best to me so I'll start with that!
ReplyDeleteyeah! give them a try and let me know what you think. I bought about 10 of them at the market today. :)
DeleteI'm on the fence with persimmons. I've had some that I just go crazy for and others that are just kinda meh. I think I just don't know enough about the different varieties and what to look for in terms of ripeness. The ones that I did like were a little soft in the middle. I also don't know what to do with them other than just eat them straight.
ReplyDeleteYou can use the crunchy ones like you would use apples - you can make tarts or pies or muffins... just like you would use apples. And they are good with similar flavors like cinnamon and ginger and nutmeg. The mooshy ones I usually use in puree form in baked goods... sorta like how you would use pumpkin or sweet potato. The persimmon puree is more liquidy than pumpkin though, so you either need to cook it down or replace some of the other liquid in the recipe. <3
DeleteWe only seem to have the Fuyu ones here. I love them for eating!
ReplyDeleteHowever I have a few recipes that require the smooshiness of the other ones for baking, so I do wish I could find some of them as well.
these fruits are waaaaay too sweet for me but my mother enjoys them as a snack daily. thinking of "borrowing" some from her to make a pie or bread
ReplyDeleteI first tried, and fell in love with persimmons in Japan, where they have been called the "national fruit". I used to like the sweeter ones but now prefer the hard ones, especially those with black specks inside referred to "goma" (sesame seeds!) in Japanese. However, I just read that the younger generation are not eating many persimmons because they are too difficult to peel!
ReplyDeleteYou people crack me up, this blog is top heavy and loaded with sugar addicts including the owner, who openly admits it, and persimmons are too sweet. What about all those unhealthy desserts everyone here just loves that are loaded with sugar. I don't here one person complaining about them being to sweet.
ReplyDeleteFruits are highly nutritious and persimmons are wonderful and very healthy, I would take a persimmon over a sweet dessert anytime.
I love persimmons! I totally hoard plates of them during persimmon season, waiting for the Hachiya to soften. My sweetheart forgets which are Hachiya and which and Fuyu so I have to be constantly vigilant! One bout of xerostomia was enough, oof.
ReplyDeleteAnother permission lover! Nature's sorbet! Sending you and your family love, Amey.
ReplyDelete