persimmons?

[rawstrength]

How do I know when my hitachiya persimmon is ripe? Does it have to be completely soft?
I've only eaten a persimmon once before in my life, and it was completly mushy. Can I eat it when it is only slightly soft?
I've had this persimmon for a week and I'm getting impatient!;)

[Veganforlife]

I eat mine when slightly soft, but wait and see what others say.

[rawstrength]

I just bit into my slightly soft persimmon. It is sweet but slightly bitter. Next time I will wait until it is fully mushy.

[HolyGuacamole]

You can eat Fuyu persimmons when they're still firm-ish, but as far as I know, all other varieties need to be eaten soft or they're really bitter. :)

[rawstrength]

Yeah, the outside of my persimmon is sweet, but the inside is bitter, yuck! My mouth feels all dry.
I think I need to hide my fruit until it is ripe. I also ate an under-ripe banana and an under-ripe avocado today.

[Raene]

This type of persimmon does make your mouth cotton dry. That's how it is :(
Try Fuyu if you can find em but I can't here in Ithaca...just those dry mouth ones. Lol.

[saxmaam]

Yeah, the outside of my persimmon is sweet, but the inside is bitter, yuck! My mouth feels all dry.
I think I need to hide my fruit until it is ripe. I also ate an under-ripe banana and an under-ripe avocado today.

Just a point of interest: the dry feeling is called "astringency." So Fuji (Fuyu?) persimmons are unusual in that they aren't astringent when underripe. All the others need to be soft like a sack of jelly to be yummy. But then they are sooooo yummy. And they'll ripen on the countertop.

[rawstrength]

I loved my super-soft persimmon that I had a few weeks ago. It was also Hitachiya. But the one I had today just wasn't ripe enough. I couldn't wait!

[greenday]

I just had a persimmon adventure this morning and found it NOT to be ripe enough. Like swishing my mouth with rubbing alcohol...or how I'd imagine that to be. I was concerned because somewhere in the back of my mind I recalled that they need to be ripe to eat them. I checked on Wikipedia and was actually surprised at the Medical Precaution section, wow, I didn't know! I'll copy that part here.....if you want to read the whole article just go to Wikipedia and type in persimmon:

I'd say use your own judgment on what's "ripe". Mine this morning were clearly not even though they were kind of soft and looked gorgeous inside (color and texture). Though....I've used persimmons before in a holiday nog recipe and it was DELICIOUS!
________
from Wikipedia:

Medical Precaution

Unripened persimmons contain the soluble tannin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tannin) shibuol, which, upon contact with a weak acid, polymerizes in the stomach and forms a gluey coagulum that can affix with other stomach matter.[9] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-8) The Merck Manual of Diagnosis and Therapy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merck_Manual_of_Diagnosis_and_Therapy) notes that consumption of persimmons has been known to cause bezoars (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bezoars) that require surgery in over 90% of cases. More than 85% phytobezoars are caused by ingestion of unripened persimmons[10] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-9). Persimmon bezoars often occur in epidemics in regions where the fruit is grown.[11] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-10)[12] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-11) Horses may develop a taste for the fruit growing on a tree in their pasture and overindulge also, making them quite ill. It is often advised that persimmons should not be eaten with crab (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crab) meat[13] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-12)[14] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-13)[15] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persimmon#cite_note-14), nor should they be eaten on an empty stomach.

[HolyGuacamole]

(Fuyu?)

Indeedy!
http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/001569fuyu_persimmons.php
http://tonytantillo.com/fruits/persimmons.html
I just found out all kinds of fascinating information by clicking on those two links.

I wonder why you're not supposed to eat persimmons and crab together? That's funny. Off to do more Googling. :D

ETA:
http://www.eatingchinese.org/dazha/dazha1.htm

Can't eat with the persimmon together:
The ancient medical book records : "If eat crab with persimmons together, it can make people suffer from diarrhoea . "The reason is that the crab includes the abundant protein, and persimmons includes a lot of tannic acid, the two eat together, will solidify and harden. In addition, the crab and persimmon all belong to the cold and cool things , at the same time can easily cause to uncomfortable if take it excessively . "when suffer crab抯 toxin occasionally , fry purple perilla juice to drink or smash wax juice to drink, that can all dismiss . "

http://www.newsgd.com/enjoylife/living/dining/200409070006.htm

Trap one: eating too many persimmons

Autumn is the harvest season of persimmon. The colorful outlook and delicious taste make it a favorite food for children. Rich in sucrose, glucose, vitamin C and various minerals, it helps to ease coughing. However, if you eat too many persimmons before a meal, the persimmon's gel-like substance will harden when mixed with food already in the stomach. Stomach pain, vomiting and indigestion will soon appear. It is better to eat one to two pared persimmons after a meal, so it will not produce any chemical effect in your stomach.

How interesting. I learned so much about persimmons today!

[petitoiseau]

I really love make a green smoothie of a bunch of handful greens, spirulina and a persimmon. It makes a smooth base but not too sweet, mild and in season here in Europe, "kaki" fruit yum

[blaqberry]

Oooooo, I had my first Hachiya persimmon of the season today (bought about half of what my little HFS had in stock!) :)

Yes! Hachiya persimmons are best eaten when fully ripe, nice and squishy. Fuyu persimmons are also yum ones, most often preferred while firm but I like 'em when they start to get soft but not overly mushy. Under ripe persimmons (in general) can produce an astringent/cotton-mouth like effect in your mouth. *puckers face*

[Sugar Snap Pea]

I'm thinkin' I have no desire to try persimmons!!

[rawstrength]

Yikes! I didn't know persimmons could be so scary/dangerous!

[sport]

I'm thinkin' I have no desire to try persimmons!!

You are missing a treat. They are yummy when ripe. I love them squishy but my Japanese friend likes them hard. She says that that is the way that they eat them.

[TaupeRawMan]

I enjoy the fuyu variety when it is soft and juicy. Very tasty.

[shine72]

You are missing a treat. They are yummy when ripe. I love them squishy but my Japanese friend likes them hard. She says that that is the way that they eat them.

In Japan, they do not eat things very sweet. Their cakes are much lighter and MUCH less sweet than cakes here in the U.S. Another reason you don't see a lot of fat people in Japan! :)

[Aleesha Sattva]

i got a case of 70 persimmons last week and i'm literally eating many at a sitting LOL (also mono fasting)

not upsetting my tummy at all... but they are the fuyu variety.

[Sugar Snap Pea]

Okay, next time I'm in Publix... I am the adventurous type!

[TaupeRawMan]

By the way...with the addition of persimmons to my diet, I have finally started gaining weight. Of course, I am eating 20 for breakfast a few times a week. I will be out of them in a week or so, so we will see what happens with the weight. I definitely feel more bloated than before.....