It is no surprise to hear that fruits are good for us and that we should eat them. But it may come as a surprise to many to know just how many different, unique and nutritionally dense fruits there are out there.
While some of us do eat lots of fruits each day, many of those seem to be the same traditional fruits over and over. And while there is nothing wrong with that, as ALL fruits are delicious and highly nutritious, there is nothing like exploring the unknown fruits of the Earth and adding them into our diets perhaps regularly or perhaps on some rare occasions as those extra special treats.
Well, one of these highly exotic and also not well known fruits for many in the Northern hemisphere is the Fuyu Persimmon. I discovered these fruits myself earlier this past winter and have been hooked on them since. They are deeeelicious!
This amazing fruit is just as highly nutritious, as it is delicious. In fact its taste is something that I cannot say compares to any other fruit in the depth and richness of the sweetness it possesses. It is thus not a surprise or coincidence that the Greeks called this “the fruit of the Gods.”
Fuyu Persimmon Background
You may first off be wondering about the Fuyu persimmons odd name. The word “fuyu” comes from Japanese and the word “persimmon” from Powhatan, an Algonquian language means “a dry fruit.” The biological genus this plant belongs to is “Diospyros”, which means as I mentioned earlier “fruit of the Gods.”
There are hundreds of varieties of persimmons, with only about 2 that are easily available commercially – the fuyu and the hachiya. They are generally divided into two groups: the astringent (bitter) and the non-astringent. The fuyu belongs to the non-astringent types because it is palatable both before and after fully ripening, where as the hachiya belongs to the astringent varieties, which are only edible after fully ripening.
The fuyu persimmon is a deeply orange fruit that is firm, crispy and delicately sweet when not fully ripe and darker, jelly-like and amazingly sweet when fully ripe. Now it is hard to relate to you the “sweet” taste that I am talking about, especially given that most fruits are “sweet.” Well this “sweet” is honestly like nothing I have ever tasted before. It is not an overwhelming or nauseating kind of sweet, but a unique, deep honey and deliciously rich type of sweet. I am sure that it will not please some people’s taste buds, as not all things do, but generally speaking it is something that everyone must try for themselves to see just how good it really is.
The fruit fits in the palm of a hand, slightly smaller than an apple and looks like a mini-pumpkin.
This fruit was native to China thousands of years ago and then introduced in Japan. Since then, the persimmon has become Japan’s national fruit and one of the traditional foods of the Japanese New Year. The persimmon fruits first arrived in California in the mid 1800s, making it one of the earliest commercially grown fruits in the United States.
So while I would love to tell you all to just run out to the grocery store and get some to try, it is not an easy fruit to find in all stores or even in all areas across North America. The reason for this is that the fruit is grown and harvested in typically warmer climates and hence has to be imported. And while some stores are able to get this fruit and stock it regularly, most are not. This is mainly because it is still a greatly unknown fruit to most, and hence the demand for it is not great enough in many parts to make the import worthwhile.
China is the largest producer of persimmons, followed by Japan, Korea and Brazil. Here in Ontario, the major source of the fuyu is Israel, where the fuyu persimmons are called “Sharon Fruit.”
Even though in the past, the astringent hachiya persimmon variety was the most common persimmon, today the fuyu persimmon accounts for about 80% of the persimmon market, with the hachiya accounting for only about 20%.
Nutritional & Health Information
The fuyu is a rich source of antioxidants, vitamin A, manganese and fiber, especially soluble fiber. It contains a fair amount of some of the B-complex vitamins, potassium and calcium. Generally speaking 1 fruit contains:
- Calories: 118
- Carbohydrates: 19 – 31g
- Omega-3 fatty acids: 6.7mg
- Omega-6 fatty acids: 65.5mg
- Protein: 0.6 - 1g
- Fiber: 4 – 6g
- Vitamin A: 2733 – 3641 IU
- Vitamin B1: 0.1 – 0.5mg
- Vitamin B2: 0.03mg
- Vitamin B3: 0.2 – 0.17mg
- Vitamin B6: 0.2mg
- Vitamin C: 12.6mg
- Vitamin E: 1.2mg
- Vitamin K: 4.4mcg
- Folic Acid: 12.6 – 13.4mcg
- Choline: 12.8mg
- Potassium: 270 mg
- Calcium 13.4 mg
- Magnesium: 15.1mg
- Phosphorus: 28.6mg
- Iron: 0.3mg
- Zinc: 0.2mg
- Copper: 0.2mg
- Manganese: 0.6mg
- Selenium: 1mcg
*Source: NutritionData.com
Researchers from Israel found that the contents of total, soluble, and insoluble dietary fibers, total phenols, epicatechin, gallic and p-coumaric acids, some minerals in persimmons are significantly higher than in apples.
The fruits of some persimmon varieties contain antioxidant and specifically flavonoid properties. Scientists are still trying to learn about these compounds, but to date we know that they show great promise for optimizing health. Specifically most persimmons contain the tannins catechin and gallocatechin, as well as the anti-tumor compounds betulinic acid and shibuol.
The anticarcinogenic and antimutagenic potentials of tannins may be related to their antioxidative property, which is important in protecting cellular oxidative damage. Tannins are also antimicrobial. Tannins have also been reported to exert other physiological effects, such as to accelerate blood clotting, reduce blood pressure, decrease the serum lipid level, produce liver necrosis, and modulate immunoresponses.
In traditional Chinese medicine, the fruit is also believed to regulate “chi“.
The raw fruit is used to treat constipation and hemorrhoids. As such, it is not a good idea to consume too many persimmons at once as they can induce diarrhea.
If cooked, fruit is used to treat diarrhea. The opposite effect of the raw and cooked fruit is due to the change in the osmotic balance. In the raw fruit, the sugar may loosen the bowels, where as in the cooked fruit, the tannin content may help with diarrhea.
Preparation
I recommend eating the fuyu raw. I can’t imagine distorting that amazingly delicious taste with any kind of heat, although the fruit is eaten cooked in some dishes. They are also commonly dried.
To prepare, simply wash the fruit thoroughly and then there is a choice of how one wants to cut it. I typically recommend cutting it in half, from the bottom up. This way specifically because at the top, the fuyu has the vegetative sepal or calyx, which is pretty tightly fixed to the fruit. Hence, upon cutting it from the bottom up, when one gets to the top leafy part, you can break off one half of the fruit and then the leafy part is easy to break off the other half.
With that in place, I then recommend to cut the halves up into quarters/slices or just eat the halves as is. There are no pits or seeds of any kind to make eating the whole fruit uncomfortable in any way. Generally peeling is not needed, unless one is not sure of the pesticide use on the fruit.
The fuyu can also be used in smoothies and purees, in which case the peel should be removed as it is tougher than some peels. It is also a great addition to any fruit or even vegetable salad.
Buying and Storage
You can buy the fuyu soft and ripe and eat right away or buy them hard for later use. The fuyus will ripen on their own at room temperature over a period of several days. They are generally speaking not a fast ripening fruit like strawberries or bananas. Hence an unripe bunch can last weeks. However, once ripe they do not keep well and thus should be eaten quickly.
Refrigeration is not necessary and may actually ruin the fruit.
Generally speaking it is best to eat the fuyus when they are fully ripe and soft, which is when their sweet taste reaches its optimal peak.
They are typically found in some stores in North America from late fall, through winter and into early spring. One can typically find them more easily in ethnic markets, where the demand for them is high.
So the next time you are at your local supermarket, take a good look around the produce section, as lurking somewhere between the fruits, there may be a fuyu persimmon waiting for you to take home to indulge in the most luxurious fruit taste you may have ever had!
References and Further Reading
- Persimmons Benefits – Zhion.com
- Health Benefits of Persimmon – HubPages.com
- Persimmons – EarthBound Organic Farm
- Fruits: Persimmons – TonyTantillo.com
- Persimmon – Wikipedia
About the author:Evita Ochel, B.Sc., B.Ed., CHN - is a certified holistic nutritionist, biologist, educator, writer, researcher and speaker in the areas of health, science and holistic wellness. She is a nutritional science expert and her teaching and writing focus on natural, wholesome, plant-based and organic nutrition to achieve optimal health and longevity. Learn more about Evita Ochel or Follow Evita Ochel on Twitter.
48 Comments to “Fuyu Persimmon: A Fruit From the Gods”
When I lived in Oregon, I had a persimmon tree in my front yard. I had absolutely no idea what it was and then one autumn day, an elderly chinese neighbor came by and started picking the fruit. I got to talking with her and she showed me how to make persimmon jam. Wonderful, not too sweet, substantial and wonderful jam. I highly recommend it!
jen
http://www.bodaweightloss.com/blog
Hi Jen
Thanks for the tip! I imagine whether in jam or a puree it is just as delicious as fresh!
it is wonderful i made jam with this new delicious fruit. it is amazing and will most definitely recommend it to anyone! and the rich source of soluble fiber and antioxidants. so a great and healthy choice and the kids just LOVE it and the best part its easy on the wallet!.
Hi Kade,
Great to hear you love it too and your experience with it!
Thank you so much for stopping by and sharing it :)
I’m back!
I’ve seen them in the shops, but having no idea how to eat them, never even thought of buying them. But now I’ll be sure to give them a try – maybe even today! I’ll let you know…
@ HANLIE – It is great to have you back, so glad that your internet is up and running again. I can only imagine the feeling of being internet-less, but on the other side of things, it is a good mental break too in some ways ;)
I thought that you must have these fruits in South Africa as they do grow in warm climates. And lucky you, because honestly they are amazing, especially when ripe, it is like a refreshing dripping honey!!!
Evita,
how do you make a jam with persimmons ?
Thanks
Ben
@ BEN – Hi Ben, to tell you the truth I am not 100% sure as I have personally never made it myself. But here are a few resources for you that can help:
1. http://recipes.epicurean.com/recipe/3488/persimmon-jam.html
2. http://www.ehow.com/how_2170083_make-persimmon-jam.html
3. http://www.bigoven.com/4354-Persimmon-Jam-recipe.html
Hope those help :)
I am a persimmon novelist and only have had persimmons 2x’s in my life. Once 18yrs ago and recently when a co-worker brought in a few fuyu persimmons from her tree. The taste is amazing. They taste like a small melon and an apple at the same time. Now I understand the term “Fruit from God.”
@ BRILLIANTPAMELA – Thank you for sharing your experience with the Fuyu Persimmons – they really are an amazing fruit!
@EVITA I am dying to try a persimmon salsa recipe I saw online. Pair that with a nice piece of salmon…mmmm. I will try to find it again and post it.
Hi Evita,
I am very interested to maybe plant it in the Philippines this tree called Persimmon and I was able to collect some of this seeds in which I bought them from the local market. can I use this seeds and will they grow there though we have summer hot climate there, can it grow on the higher elevation
which are much colder climate.
Thanks,
Angel
@ ANGEL – Hi Angel and thank you for your question. Unfortunately I do not specialize in gardening or anything dealing with farming and growing plants, so I cannot help you or advise you in whether the seeds will grow in your region.
Perhaps try searching in google, growing patterns of Persimmons and maybe that may turn up better results.
Thanks and wish I could have helped more.
It is a very good orange cultivar
I just got 4 delivered from my CSA yesterday. I am so glad I found this post because I was thinking of making cookies with them. That is a pretty popular recipe around here since a lot of people grow Hachiya persimmons around here which are pretty mushy and slimy when ripe. Now I’m going to go cut one up right away!
How do I know when it is ready to eat ? The colour ? The touch ?
Hi Guy,
The Fuyu’s color may go a little darker, but the real indication is in the touch. Fuyu’s that are not fully ripe are lighter and very firm to the touch. The softer they get, the sweeter they get. So from slightly soft to the touch to very soft indicates ready to eat. I personally like to eat them just a little firmer, but also enjoy when they are very soft. So you will find your own personal preference too.
I believe you ment to say “reduces liver necrosis” Not
“Produce live necrosis” Because “Produce live necrosis” means it kills the liver. :O)
Correct me if I am wrong.
The anticarcinogenic and antimutagenic potentials of tannins may be related to their antioxidative property, which is important in protecting cellular oxidative damage. Tannins are also antimicrobial. Tannins have also been reported to exert other physiological effects, such as to accelerate blood clotting, reduce blood pressure, decrease the serum lipid level, produce liver necrosis, and modulate immunoresponses.
I live in central California and have a Fuyu tree. I love to eat them when they’re still firm. My tree is at my almond orchard about 15 minutes from my home and someone else must enjoy them as much as I do because when my husband was there a couple of days ago he said about half of the persimmons had been “borrowed” from our tree. Guess I’d better get the rest of them harvested. The salsa sounds like a great idea. I’ll check out those recipes for jam too. What a great way to enjoy the flavor all year round….
Hi Deanna
How lucky of you to have your very own Fuyu tree!!!
Yes, you can harvest them now, enjoy some fresh and make delicious homemade products with the rest :)
Evita,
I am trying to find out the sugar content of fuyu persimmons. I am following Jorge Cruz’s Belly Fat Cure diet and am counting both carbs and sugars in foods. Can you help?
Hi Tina
I would try NutritionData.com – this is the closest I think that would be of value to you:
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fruits-and-fruit-juices/2018/2
But just in general…. I don’t recommend to any of my clients or groups when I speak to count anything. It is too restrictive and not learn term sustaining. When we eat natural food, in good portions, weight comes off naturally. Most important is to get a good acid-alkaline balance in the body.
To make things easy, give up processed, packaged foods. Go to natural fruits, natural veggies, natural grains and natural meats if you want. It is the sugars and carbs that are in processed food that are the culprit, not in fruits.
I don’t want to dismiss Cruz’ work, as I am familiar with it and there is great substance to what he says, but I just don’t like anyone counting anything, because as I mentioned, it is not a reasonable, long term approach. We need to learn how to eat for life, how to be healthy… the weight then comes off naturally. It happens every time, unless there is a medical condition.
Consider looking into Dr.Joel Fuhrman’s “Eat to Live” book, and without sounding like I am pushing my own stuff, if you do want to understand healthy eating quickly and easily, I invite you to download my free ebook “Healing & Prevention Through Nutrition”, where I explain the whole acid-alkaline idea and teach people how to truly eat for health and longevity, no diets, no gimmicks.
Hope all this helps :)
Tis’ the season of Fuyu persimmon in southern California. Over the Thanksgiving weekend I distributed 50 lb. Fuyu to my family, friends, and neighbors. But I was shocked when my daughter told me they trashed soft Fuyu and ate only the firm ones. I reminded her that the Apple-Persimmon jam I made last December, as gift to attendee of her wedding in April, was made from mostly ripe or very soft Fuyu from my backyard.
There are two ways to enjoy ripe or very soft organic Fuyu persimmon. I define soft as when the fruit cannot be peeled by a peeler. To eat it raw, put it in a bowl or a dish, slice it open with a fruit knife, then scoop it up with a spoon. Or you can make organic Fuji-Fuyu jam, or Red-delicious-Fuyu jam. I made 48 16-oz jars of Apple-Fuyu jam in 4 batches over few weekends. Each week I bought organic seasonal apples from WholeFoods, used my own fresh or ripe Fuyu, followed regular apple jam procedure except I hand sliced the apple and added sliced Fuyu or puree scooped from ripe Fuyu.
Because hand sliced apple and persimmon, the texture of my organic apple-persimmon jam is different from those mushy apple jams you find in a supermarket. I also used organic cane sugar which adds great flavor and aroma to the jam.
You can make persimmon biscuits using Fuyu puree, if you like.
Enjoy and never throw away your ripe Fuyu – a Fruit from Greek Gods.
Kenny
Kenny Chenzy, is there any chance you would share your Apple-Persimmon jam recipe with us? I have access to both right now and it sounds delicious! Thanks!
The pastors of ohurch bought a ranch outside town last summer. Of the 130+ -tree organic orchard already established (we’re pinching ourselves!) there is at least one persimmon tree!! Online research, indicates it is a Fuyu, which is great news! We’re in south central Texas, so apparently this tree grows well here; we’re looking forward to upcoming harvests of the apples, pears, peaches, fig, cherry and walnut next year. These persimmons are an encouragement, coming this time of year!
Hi Cindy,
Wow that is exciting news! How wonderful that you have access to local, organic produce – Mother Nature at her best :)
Enjoy and thank you for stopping by to comment!
I recently went to the san francisco farmer’s market where they had the fuyu’s out for samples and I tasted some – they were delicious! as a kid, my mom brought home the other (mushy) type of persimmon and they were interesting but odd at the same time. So I was very happy to see these “new” (to me) persimmons! And today, I found some in my local supermarket! Now I am excited (after having just eaten the two I bought) to introduce these to my kids……finally, any exotic fruit you can find in winter!
Hi Spagra
That is so wonderful to hear. Thank you for sharing your beautiful experience with this delicious fruit!
I have one five year old tree that produced over 400 fruits this year. The tree is about 10′ tall and about 6′ in dia. This is the third year of production. Wished I had planted Fuyu persimmion trees 40 years ago. I just tried something new…persimmion sherbert. Peel, puree, pour into individual cups and freeze. Prior to serving set containers out for about 30 min. I ate a few shelled walnuts along with the sherbert….it was sooooo good. Try the puree as syrup on waffles or pancakes. I live just north of Sacramento, CA.
Hi Vivien
That sherbert idea sounds delicious and loving the taste of walnuts, I can see how it would be a great mix together!
Thank you so much to stop by and share your comment :)
Was just gifted with a quart jar of homemade persimmon jam. I will never eat that much! What can I cook or bake with it to use it up? Nothing comes up on Google for recipes USING persimmon jam, just making it.
Hi Donna,
Well, first off wow, lucky you! What a nice gift :)
While I used to be a baker, I am not one these days, nor do I promote any baked goods for the simple fact that it kills our food too much, destroying most valuable nutrients found in food. So I cannot recommend anything in terms of baking, although if you really wanted to make something, there is a simple recipe for thumb-print cookies, which use a jam in the middle. You can easily use persimmon jam and these cookies also freeze well. I guess you can use it in any recipe that calls for a jam, and then just use the persimmon jam, instead of another jam.
However, a jam, especially if kept in the fridge will easily last several months, as long as you always use a clean spoon to scoop some, not contaminating the contents.
You can use it for spreading on some healthy bread, to making some sauces out of it. We often think main meals have to be on the salt or spicy side, but you can make a sweeter sauce for a stir-fry by stirring some of this jam in. It goes well with rice, noodles and even sweet chilli.
Just get creative in the kitchen and enjoy :)
Dear Evita,
Thank you for the wonderful ideas for using up my persimmon jam, particularly the potential for sweet-sour. I’ll try it with stir fry and sweet chili, cold noodle salad, and experiment with hot chili sauce for Asian and something curry for Indian-style. Inspiration for upping my dose of winter veggies, always a challenge.
HELLO EVERYONE!! I WANT TO TRY THIS AMAZING FRUIT! WHERE CAN I BUY SOME ONLINE? I CANNOT FIND IT ANYWHERE…
Hi Jeannette
Thank you for writing in. I am not sure if you can buy this fruit online. Normally fresh fruits and vegetables are not sold online, but in local grocery stores, farms or markets. I would check local stores to see if they carry it. Depending on where you live it may be a fruit that is available readily, or perhaps rarely.
All the best with your search for Fuyus :)
Hi Jeannette, I hope you come across this reply in time: Whole Foods Markets carry fuyu persimmons, but only during season, which is late Oct – late Dec. Here in New York City, it’s January, and WF doesn’t have any available, but my local grocery store, Food Bazaar, does — now I’m absolutely hooked on them. As I’m going to post generally in a moment, fuyu is so good I told all my Facebook friends about it and have created two converts to The Growing Church of Fuyu!
Hello Jeannette,
Here is Southern California the Persimmon harvest has just begun and will continue until about the first week of December. There are farms like ours that sell Fuyu persimmons online either through their own website or websites like Local Harvest. We sell direct to customers as well as wholesale.
I love fuyu persimmons!
My grandpa has a tree in the backyard and we get them all the time. We are even starting to sell them because we have so many. The fruits are getting so large! I like to peel the skin off and cut them up like an apple and eat them that way. The flavor is wonderful.
Ask Evita for my email address, contact me for my mailing address, and feel free to ship all excess fuyu to me.
Hi, every year I look forward to Halloween because not only are pumpkins found easily but also persimmons, all of the previous post mention peeling them, I never have just slice and eat…and they are wonderful from firm to very ripe. Just don’t buy the astringent persimmons because they will suck the saliva right out of your mouth and leave a weird film on your teeth. Fuyu’s are my persimmon of choice!!
Hi Evita!
Just found this site, excited by the interest you have generated about fuyu persimmons!
Looking for foreign language descriptions I was surprised to find that in the Spanish speaking world it is still consider too astringent to eat “fresh”.
I am also surprised that nobody has called you on the way to slice a fuyu:
You slice it across to reveal the beautiful star shape. Make the slices 1/8 of an inch thick, and sprinkle some lime juice on them -mmmmmm!
Hi Ramon,
Thank you for your comment, and yes, I had no idea how many people enjoyed and are interested in this fruit. However, I am glad to see all the excitement as it is such a delicious one and so worth trying!!!!
And thanks for sharing about the slicing method! You are so right about revealing the star shape pattern…..I think I tried that once, but then reverted to making wedges. Thank you for the helpful tips!
Fuyu Persimmons are wonderful in bread pudding recipes, just add 2 cups to a recipe that makes 1 9×9 dish. Perfect for Thanksgiving!
Another bonus to growing oriental persimmons that I haven’t seen anyone address on here is that they begin to bear heavily at a very young age compared to other fruits. And they don’t have to be sprayed for the typical fruit tree diseases that apples, peaches, pears, etc are susceptible to.
Excellent additions Kellie! Thank you!
Costco usually gets them in late fall. A pack of 8 is $6.49 in Austin Costco. I was able to pick up 3 packs today Nov 2011.
Thanks for sharing this useful tip!
I was searching the web when I came across persimmon. I asked my sister if she had ever tried a persimmon. She had not. Just yesterday she came home from the grocery store with a couple fuyu’s. I decided to look online to know when to eat them. After checking out your site & readi
ng the comments, I can’t wait to taste them. I am going to make dome jam & give them as X-mas gifts. Thanks for all the great ideas from all of you.
I first encountered fuyu persimmons two days ago picking up groceries at Food Bazaar here in Brooklyn. I love exotic fruit and entered the store with the express intention of discovering something new to love. I was not prepared for the amazing taste of the humble fuyu persimmon. Since first trying it this morning, I am absolutely addicted. As I have told several interested friends on Facebook, “fuyu tastes the way fruit does in a really good dream” — and if you’ve ever eaten anything delicious in a dream and wanted to take it with you when you woke up, I’ll bet you know what I’m talking about!
Like Evita said, an exact description of the taste of a fuyu is elusive. It is definitely sweet — but in a way so incredibly subtle yet absolutely vivid and unique, it puts sugar and honey to shame. The flesh is textured, smooth and yielding to the bite; it literally melts in your mouth; and its upper core has the exact consistency of jelly.
In the old days, TV commercials used to call raisins “nature’s candy”. If that’s the case, the fuyu persimmon must be nature’s jam preserves. One taste will do you in. Prepare to buy or grow lots of these. The fuyu will make you wonder why the FDA shows apples, oranges and bananas when urging kids to eat lots of fruit servings daily. The fuyu in a cage match would destroy all three of those guys. It’s taste suited for an Emperor.
Research; track down; obtain; buy; wash; bite; eat.
See you in bliss!