My persimmon tree produced 20 fruit this autumn. It’s been in 8 years and has only produced fruit once before. That year it managed 13 and I was over the moon. This year, I went right around the solar system!
When a persimmon ripens, it goes squishy soft, like a balloon filled with water. The flesh inside has the texture of apricot jam. The peel isn’t usually eaten. I found the best way to tackle one was to cut from bottom to top, down through the centre, to the hard woody calyx :
Then pick up the whole thing, one half in each hand, squeeze the sides upwards from the bottom and slurp up the pulp. It helps to be standing with head bent over the sink at the time, and a wet flannel is necessary to wipe the mouth and surrounds afterwards.
Bliss!
Foodnstuff 
May 21, 2016 at 4:37 am |
I eat the skin as well. Persimmons are natures natural desserts and come perfectly formed. I love them and you are one lucky girl 🙂
LikeLike
May 21, 2016 at 5:26 pm |
By coincidence I ate my first ever Persimmon only yesterday. I bought it (from my local farm shop, which offers only locally produced food) last Saturday and decided to keep it for a week to see if or how it would change. There wasn’t much difference, it was still quite firm, so I decided to eat it, skin and all. I read that the best way is to turn them upside down and slice it into quarters and then smaller wedges, sort of like slicing a tomato.
It was nice, reasonably sweet and had an interesting texture, but didn’t have the particularly powerful flavour that I expected. Perhaps better to eat with other fruit. Maybe as part of a fruit salad.
The seeds are huge and I rescued three of them, having accidentally sliced through the fourth. I will be trying to grow one of my own trees from these.
My Persimmon (I’m a 1 week old expert on these, having recently read up on it) is different to yours. It is a Fuyu variety which is rather flatter and rounder than those in your pics, which I think are classified as Hachiya and are quite astringent unless soft and squishy as you described.
I bought another one today, so it looks like I am hooked. They are $6.99 each to buy, so obviously are rated quite highly.
LikeLike
May 23, 2016 at 5:18 pm |
Help! at that price, you’d want to grow your own. 😦
Yes, I know mine is the astringent variety and needs to be soft and squishy before it’s edible. I bought it especially because of that. I’ve never eaten the Fuyu variety that’s commonly sold….I’m told it’s crunchy like an apple (and at that price I probably never will!). I’ve seen it labelled ‘vanilla’ persimmon, did yours have that flavour?
You’d never see the squishy variety for sale, for obvious reasons.
Funny you found big seeds. I’ve never found any, except that a couple of mine had very tiny little black spots….didn’t really check them out. I’m going to try cuttings.
LikeLiked by 1 person
May 23, 2016 at 8:29 pm |
I may have got the price wrong. I know they were marked $6.99 but you’ve got me thinking maybe that was per kilo, although that sounds not enough. I will pay more attention next week.
It was kind of crunchy. Something between an apple and a peach texture, but definitely didn’t taste of vanilla. Maybe they use that term in the ‘plain’ sense, because it didn’t have a strong flavour at all. I am going to keep the one I bought this week for a couple of weeks this time to see if that makes any difference.
I do that with all the fruit I buy, except bananas, which I expect come from Queensland. I know there are some banana growers in Melbourne but I doubt they produce saleable quantities. Coming from a farm shop the fruit is fresher than supermarket stuff and most of it can easily last more than two weeks.
The Persimmon seeds are dark brown, about finger-nail size and shaped like an almond.
LikeLiked by 1 person
May 27, 2016 at 4:26 pm |
I had a look in Coles this morning. They were $2 each.
LikeLike
May 27, 2016 at 5:07 pm |
So, at over 150g each (the Fuyu are about the size of a large apple and quite dense), that would come close to $14 a kilo. Interesting.
Not that I would consider shopping at Coles (or Woollies), even though (or especially because) they were the source of my income (as a contractor, not employee) for the last seven years of my working life.
LikeLike
May 27, 2016 at 5:13 pm |
I get my groceries there but not fruit & veggies. I get those at an independent supplier, who has a bit of local stuff.
LikeLiked by 1 person