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7/30/2019 Dried Persimmons111912a
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Dried Red Persimmons
Hachiya persimmons prepared in the
traditional hand-dried way of Asia.In Japan the dried fruit is called
hoshigaki(),In China it is known as
shi-bing(),In Korea it is known as
gotgam (hangul: ),and in Vietnam it is called hng kh.
byGary Westendorf
Fall 2012
1WILLOW STREET
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Hachiya Persimmons
Hachiya persimmons areprized by some for when they
are eaten at the peak of
ripeness, the fruit turns in to
a succulent sweet pudding.
This fruit is translucent on
the outside and the gelatin
on the inside can be eatenwith a spoon.
Harvest SeasonHarvest takes place during
October and November
while the astringent fruit isstill hard. Here leaves are
beginning to turn color.
Picking
The persimmons are removed from their branches using
pruning shears. Cutting branches with multiple fruit higher
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up and pruning away wispy branches
will strengthening next years growth.
Pruned away all but 1/2" on both
sides the stem, leaving a "T" which
will be used to hang the fruit to dry.Fruits can be stored in fruit crates for
several weeks if kept in a dark, cool,
dry place. Ethylene gas
is a product of decayingfruit and will accelerate
the ripening process,
along with other gasses
like alcohol and carbon
dioxide.
Pealing
Here I leave a quarter todime sized peal on the tip
of the fruit. I am told this
will prevent the ripening
juices from dripping out during the drying process. 3WILLOW STREET
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HangingUsing a fairly heavy
weight string (13lbs test), I
tie a knot about every 6".
This
results in about 16 loops per string
when hung from the eaves in the
back of my garage. The exposure
here is Westerly and with the
winter sun low
in the sky, there
is very little
direct sun
exposure. The
fruit can toleratesome sun but
most of all need
air, lots of it. 4WILLOW STREET
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Drying ProcessAfter the fruit are hung,
they are gently messages
by hand every few days to
break up the insides and
smooth the outside. In
about 45 days, they form
a white residue on the
surface called the bloom.
This when we like to serve
them on a wine and cheese platter. Paring which wines and
cheeses will have to wait.Summary
The results are not in for this years harvest. I have picked
and processed some 800 fruit. I expected to have some loss
due to varmints (squirrels, raccoons, skunk, and yes my
trusted dog Jester) to eat some. What I found very interesting
is that although Jester has taken quite a liking the raw
persimmons, he does not have an interest in the pealedhanging fruit. I read somewhere that due to the astringent
nature of the fruit, a pealed persimmon forms a second
skin that seals in the sweet ripening fruit and somehow
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renders the fruit less appealing to prey, both insect and
mammalian.
Now after 2
weeks, I have lost
only a few fruit.
Overly ripened
or wounded fruit
drop off their
stems into a
sizable "SPLAT". That's all for now! The challenge is to figure out how to post a PDF document
on Facebook?
6WILLOW STREET