Just thinking about what life has been like this past year makes you want to stick your hand in a bag of chips or open a bar of dark chocolate Snacking may be the quickest source of pleasure during a pandemic, but for those in the habit of delaying rewards, I recommend playing the long game. Rather than giving in to the easy comfort traps, I’ve developed a craving for a weird, shape-shifting fruit that looks like a tiny pumpkin, tastes a like a date and seduces the mouth with the consistency of custard. Yep, it’s the persimmon.
Persimmons are at the top of my grocery list from November through February, months when one or more varieties appear in our markets. It’s a mystery to me why this iconic fruit that’s been revered in Asia for 2,000 years is just now appearing in the States. Let me begin by introducing the ones you’re most likely to see at the supermarket.
The squat, pincushion-shaped fuyu persimmon is the national fruit in Japan where it is called a kaki and eaten dried. Drying persimmons concentrates its sweetness while offering substantial amounts of A and C vitamins, the minerals manganese, potassium as well as fiber. The hachiya persimmon is even more likely to draw your attention in the store. Its gleaming orange surface invites the hand to caress a shape reminiscent of a TV Conehead. Unlike the fuyu, hachiya's natural tannins do not dissipate until it is very ripe. Eating one short of that state will pucker your mouth and make your teeth itch.
Both varieties ripen within the week on a kitchen counter. If you are in a hurry, seal them in a paper bag with a banana for a day or two. The ripe Hachiya develops a most amazing, jelly-like texture when frozen and then defrosted in the refrigerator. Try this technique if you are looking for a machine-free sorbet, You can even store these persimmons in the freezer for days.
The fuyu persimmon looks so much like a small tomato that I find myself using it as if it were one in sandwiches with ham and cheese or simply grilled with brie. The fuyu also slips into the traditional role in a fruit in salad or featured in a dessert with a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkling of dried cranberries and pistachios. I have been hesitant to add persimmons to coffee cakes and jams for fear that its unique sweetness and soft texture will be lost in the process. That said, my one experience baking a Persimmon Membrillo Galette turned out to be very successful. The recipe features concentric rings of persimmon slices on a bed of membrillo (quince paste) curd baked in a buttery pastry shell. The persimmon slices roast to succulent perfection in the oven.
To this glowing fruit review, I add one caveat: do not snack on either persimmon if you have an empty stomach. An acid in the underripe hachiya persimmon's tannins can create a hairball in the human intestines. I have good news too! The acid that can causes this problem has been bred out of new persimmon varieties. I just found one called a Sharon Fruit at my local market this week.
