The early North American settlers didn't like persimmon fruit at first. According to Vegetarians in Paradise, the early settlers found the fruit inedible until the Native Americans taught them to wait for the first frost of October before eating persimmon fruit. The settlers thought the frost sweetened persimmons, but in truth it was just the natural signal that these fall treats were ready to eat.
Types of Persimmons
There are two major types of persimmon: the Hachiya and Fuyu. Hachiya persimmons must be eaten when completely ripe, or the tannins inside the fruit will make it very bitter and astringent. Fuyu persimmons can be eaten when firm, skin and all. Fuyu persimmons are the type more commonly found in grocery stores nationwide. Both types appear in markets in the fall, usually between Halloween and Thanksgiving. They can be eaten raw, made into many fruit-based jams, jellies, breads and desserts, or dried and used later to eat or make beverages such as persimmon tea, a popular natural remedy for acid reflux conditions.
Eating a Persimmon
Fuyu persimmons are bright orange in color and can be eaten fresh and raw, just like an apple. Simply wash them and bite into the tasty persimmon fruit. The taste has been described as something like an apple mixed with an apricot.
Hachiya persimmons or the wild persimmons typically found growing at the edges of fields in North America should be eaten carefully. First, make sure the persimmon is very ripe, or the taste will be very bitter. A ripe Hachiya persimmon is a golden orange to blush purple color and easily pulls off the tree. It feels squishy. Wash, slice open, and eat the pulp, discarding the seeds and flesh.
Serving Persimmon Fruit
Persimmons taste wonderful when paired with other fall treats such as fresh apples, raisins, currants or nuts. Slice a fresh persimmon and mix it with sliced apples, raisins, a splash of lemon juice to keep the apple from browning, and mixed shelled raw nuts such as pecans and walnuts.
Wild Persimmon Jam
Wild persimmon jam can be made with about 70 ripe persimmons. To make wild persimmon jam, wash and slice off the blossom end of the ripe persimmons. Place the persimmons in a heavy saucepan with about 9 cups of water and boil for 10 minutes. Mash with a potato masher and strain the seeds out, reserving the pulp. Mix one envelope of commercial fruit pectin into the persimmon pulp, along with three tablespoons of lemon juice; boil for a few minutes, the mix in half a cup of honey. Boil until jelly is formed and refrigerator or can in half pint jars.
Where to Find Persimmons
Persimmon trees may be obtained from mail order nurseries and nursery and garden centers nationwide. They grow in temperate climates and need full sun and well drained soil. Persimmons may also be obtained during the fall at grocery stores, but they do not ship well and are not carried everywhere. If using purchased persimmons for making jam, jelly or other dishes, use them within a few days of purchase. Unripe persimmons can be ripened by placing them in a paper bag with an apple or banana; the gases releases fro the apple or banana ripen the persimmons quickly.
With their sweet, apricot-like taste and abundant vitamin A and beta carotene, persimmons are a fall treat. Purchase them or pick them wild, but enjoy this delicate, unique autumnal treat.
Sources
- Farm Fresh website, "Persimmons"
- McClure, Susan. Preserving Summer's Bounty, Rodale Press Inc., Pennsylvanian. 1998.
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