Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

My FIL had a wild simmon tree in his yard and made wine from a batch one
year, about 1970, IIRC. Took the stuff about a year to quite fermenting
but made a fairly decent wine after it aged a couple of years. Rather
dry but I prefer a dry wine.

George

Eric Deaver wrote:
Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

Eric Deaver wrote:

Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

That whole freezing thing is a wonderful bit of folklore, but not good
science. Persimmons don't need to freeze to ripen.

We've been through this conversation before when you posted pretty
much the same kind of thing:

http://tinyurl.com/sqiq
http://tinyurl.com/sqik
http://tinyurl.com/sqj6

Pastorio

I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

Pastorio,

Like I said, I go through this about once a year. I did get "the
Curious Cook" as you suggested last year. After reading it, I tried
the method he suggested for WILD persimmon 4-5 days at room
temperature method wrapped in plastic wrap. I wrapped about 4-5 wild
persimmons together and left for a week at room temp (75 degrees) -
they were still bad tasting so I gave up. I even spoke to the
professor he referenced from Indiana University. She said that in the
mid-west, people just put tarps on the ground beneath persimmon trees
and pick up the drops each morning - freeze them whole and process
them when they had a batch. I tried this - after freezing dropped
persimmons for about 30 days - still chalky. Was going to wait a full
90 days or more in frezer when ice storm knocked out my electirc and
we had to empty freezer. Anyway, based on my failed experiment and
discussions with Dr. Crouch, I gave up on the Saran Wrap - heat
method. Have you been successful with WILD persimmon? If so, I will
try again, wrap individually and heat to about 100 degrees for 1-2
days.

Also, according to The Curious Cook, frezing for 10-90 days does
remove the astringency of persimmons but leaves them mushy.

Don't mean to rehash but I did not have very much luck last year.

Trying again,

Eric

On Tue, 28 Oct 2003 14:47:21 -0500, Bob Pastorio
wrote:

Eric Deaver wrote:

Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

That whole freezing thing is a wonderful bit of folklore, but not good
science. Persimmons don't need to freeze to ripen.

We've been through this conversation before when you posted pretty
much the same kind of thing:

http://tinyurl.com/sqiq
http://tinyurl.com/sqik
http://tinyurl.com/sqj6

Pastorio

I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

Eric Deaver wrote:

Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them.
snip
Any other ideas?




I love wild persimmons! You have to wait for them to drop off the tree
or the astringency is awful--they are often used as a prank by mean
older brothers. I harvest them either from friends' yards or a couple
of parks; by harvesting I mean picking them up off the ground after they
fall of their own accord or, if the trees are small, after giving the
tree a little shake. They are always very soft when ripe (you lose some
just from the fall from the tree) and I usually test them by seeing if
the calix will come off (if it holds tight I don't put that one in the
bucket). I usually pick them up by the bucket, but, some do freeze
whole fruits until they have enough to work with. Process through
either a sieve or a witch's hat and use the pulp in recipes--pulp
freezes very well. I know of a few in southern Indiana who reportedly
make persimmon butter or persimmon jam, but, persimmon pudding (often
more like a brownie) and persimmon bread (usually a quick bread although
I do have a yeast bread recipe that is divine when it turns out and gets
pitched when it doesn't) are much more common. Definitely an acquired
taste particularly raw due to the mushy, sticky nature of ripe
persimmons. A good source for recipes is a thin cookbook in the Bear
Wallow line--Bear Wallow Books is the publisher's name; they can often
be found in touristy areas. The seeds can supposedly tell you what kind
of winter is coming--cut one open through the middle longways and see
what the germinal plant looks like: a "fork" means a plentiful mild
winter; a "knife" means skating on lots of ice; a "spoon" means lots of
snow to shovel. Hope this helps.

PAX!
Greg

PS: Many persimmon recipes are closely guarded (I have one I cannot
share under penalty of death). It's said that some recipes out in
public have an ingredient missing--often baking soda (1/2 to 1 tsp.)
which is supposed to help with the astringency.

Eric Deaver wrote:

Pastorio,

Like I said, I go through this about once a year. I did get "the
Curious Cook" as you suggested last year. After reading it, I tried
the method he suggested for WILD persimmon 4-5 days at room
temperature method wrapped in plastic wrap. I wrapped about 4-5 wild
persimmons together and left for a week at room temp (75 degrees) -
they were still bad tasting so I gave up.

Persimmons grow wild around here in wonderful profusion. Last year, I
picked them in October and the early part of November. I put them in
plastic freezer bags and kept them at 100-105F for 24 to 36 hours
(depending on the batch) and then left them in the bags for another
couple days before eating. Not astringent.

I don't process them into anything else. Eat out of hand. See how far
I can spit the seeds.

Pastorio

I even spoke to the
professor he referenced from Indiana University. She said that in the
mid-west, people just put tarps on the ground beneath persimmon trees
and pick up the drops each morning - freeze them whole and process
them when they had a batch. I tried this - after freezing dropped
persimmons for about 30 days - still chalky. Was going to wait a full
90 days or more in frezer when ice storm knocked out my electirc and
we had to empty freezer. Anyway, based on my failed experiment and
discussions with Dr. Crouch, I gave up on the Saran Wrap - heat
method. Have you been successful with WILD persimmon? If so, I will
try again, wrap individually and heat to about 100 degrees for 1-2
days.

Also, according to The Curious Cook, frezing for 10-90 days does
remove the astringency of persimmons but leaves them mushy.

Don't mean to rehash but I did not have very much luck last year.

Trying again,

Eric

On Tue, 28 Oct 2003 14:47:21 -0500, Bob Pastorio
wrote:


Eric Deaver wrote:


Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

That whole freezing thing is a wonderful bit of folklore, but not good
science. Persimmons don't need to freeze to ripen.

We've been through this conversation before when you posted pretty
much the same kind of thing:

http://tinyurl.com/sqiq
http://tinyurl.com/sqik
http://tinyurl.com/sqj6

Pastorio


I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

When the wild persimmon is ripe it should feel mushy under the skin. If not
in a hurry to use they can be kept out at room temperature for a week or
more till ripe. You can hasten the ripening by putting them in a sack with
an apple or banana. The quickest way to ripen is to put them in the freezer
for 24 hours then defrost and this eliminates the tannin taste too. Remove
the seeds and puree. You can use the puree in cookies, cakes, brownies,
breads, puddings, and sauces. When baking the tannin taste often returns, so
use some baking soda to counteract this. Citrus juice will prevent the
browning of the fruit while baking. Place a thin layer of the puree on
aluminum foil and dry in the oven at 140º F. to 150º with the door ajar for
about 12 hours to make fruit leather.

The fruit or puree well wrapped will last frozen up to 6 months.

Bridge Lindsay


"Eric Deaver" wrote in message
...
Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them. Last year I researched every avenue I
could find on the tannins in them and figured I MIGHT be able to use
them if I freeze them for several months. Power went out for a few
days a few months into the trial and bingo no Persimmons anymore. I
did try them just before that and they were still VERY tanninie (I
know there is no such word). Even the very ripe persimmons had high
tannin content. Anyway, I also did not like how mushy they were. So
my idea this year is to take a few just as they are falling off tree
(very ripe) - I will freeze some as is to repeat last years trial and
dehydrate some others and then vacuum pack and freeze.

I also think that is might make good wine except for the tannins. But
do not tannins mellow with age? Perhaps a 10 year old Persimmon wine
will not taste like chalk?? I don't know.

Any other ideas?

Eric

I couldn't find my recipes so here is a link to some good ones.

http://home.earthlink.net/~tabletoph...ersimmons.html

Bridge Lindsay
-----------------------------------------------------------------

"Gregory H.A. Welch" wrote in message
...
Eric Deaver wrote:

Every year at this time, I see the wild Persimmon and get a hankering
to figure some way to use them.
snip
Any other ideas?




I love wild persimmons! You have to wait for them to drop off the tree
or the astringency is awful--they are often used as a prank by mean
older brothers. I harvest them either from friends' yards or a couple
of parks; by harvesting I mean picking them up off the ground after they
fall of their own accord or, if the trees are small, after giving the
tree a little shake. They are always very soft when ripe (you lose some
just from the fall from the tree) and I usually test them by seeing if
the calix will come off (if it holds tight I don't put that one in the
bucket). I usually pick them up by the bucket, but, some do freeze
whole fruits until they have enough to work with. Process through
either a sieve or a witch's hat and use the pulp in recipes--pulp
freezes very well. I know of a few in southern Indiana who reportedly
make persimmon butter or persimmon jam, but, persimmon pudding (often
more like a brownie) and persimmon bread (usually a quick bread although
I do have a yeast bread recipe that is divine when it turns out and gets
pitched when it doesn't) are much more common. Definitely an acquired
taste particularly raw due to the mushy, sticky nature of ripe
persimmons. A good source for recipes is a thin cookbook in the Bear
Wallow line--Bear Wallow Books is the publisher's name; they can often
be found in touristy areas. The seeds can supposedly tell you what kind
of winter is coming--cut one open through the middle longways and see
what the germinal plant looks like: a "fork" means a plentiful mild
winter; a "knife" means skating on lots of ice; a "spoon" means lots of
snow to shovel. Hope this helps.

PAX!
Greg

PS: Many persimmon recipes are closely guarded (I have one I cannot
share under penalty of death). It's said that some recipes out in
public have an ingredient missing--often baking soda (1/2 to 1 tsp.)
which is supposed to help with the astringency.