What Can I Cook With Persimmons? Good Questions

Q: A friend gave me a bag of persimmons. Although ripe, they are lacking in flavor and have very thick skin. They also look like they should be used in the next few days.

Do you have any suggestions of how I can cook them? I'd prefer some relatively healthy and easy suggestions.

Sent by Olga

Editor: Olga, congratulations on your persimmons. They can be so delicious. Here are a few ideas from the site archives on what to cook with them.

• Persimmon Magic - Simple dried slices
• Persimmon Oat Muffins
• Persimmon and Mozzarella Salad
• Persimmon Tart

Readers, do you have any suggestions for Olga?

Next question?

(Image: Dana Velden)

Comments (14)

Braise with pork or chicken; make a soup -- ginger, curry or coconut milk are great flavor partners for persimmon but I especially love a chestnut soup with persimmons and sweet potatoes; make jam or persimmon paste (like membrillo); persimmon pudding (I think Joy of Cooking has a recipe for one).

Baking the persimmons with honey and spices could bring some extra flavor to them.

Since they're lacking in much flavor of their own, perhaps making a spiced persimmon chutney would jazz them up.

My grandmother used to make Persimmon cookies all the time while I was growing up. Its kind of like a fig newton...soft, spiced and sweet. Here's a similar recipe to what she used to make that I found. http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/persimmon-cookies-i/Detail.aspx

How about a traditional southern persimmon pudding? I don't have my grandmother's recipe, but here's a likely looking contender: http://southernfood.about.com/od/dessertrecipe1/r/bl30118q.htm

Send me a slice!

persimmon cookies and persimmon chutney!

I put my extra persimmons this year in the freezer whole. I'm finding them very handy semi-thawed for mixing into yogurt at lunch and topping melons. The skin sheets off the persimmon under a gentle stream of warm water and all the flesh is easily accessible. have fun.

If they are Hachiya persimmons, which have a more elongated shape, let them ripen, scoop out the pulp and freeze it. To hasten ripening, simply put the persimmons in the freezer and freeze them solid. Take them out, and when they defrost, they will be ripe. I don't know how it happens, but it does! Sunset magazine has a great persimmon chutney recipe, and here is my mother-in law's fabulous cookie recipe: http://bit.ly/67LWMV

If I put my native persimmons in the freezer before they were fully ripened, they still were full of harsh tannins when I thawed them. Maybe the asian persimmon varieties are different but I would wait until the persimmon is ripe before freezing it.

I don't know the recipe, but my grandmother makes these delicious persimmon cookies! There might be a recipe somewhere on the internet!

(Well, it looks like someone has already posted a recipe earlier in the comments, so even better) Good luck!

OOh, I'm so glad you posted my question. By the time I saw all of your suggestions, I've already made Lemony Persimmon Muffins.

But I'll defintely take a look at these if I get more persimmons in the future.

Thank you!