[Ripe Persimmon]
As Basho (1624-1684) said in his haiku, "There is no house without a persimmon tree in an old village," every house in a mountain village had a persimmon tree. It is said that in the old days, when a bride went to marry a Japanese persimmon she would take a seedling with her and plant it in the garden of her new bride's house, and at the end of her life, the branches of the large persimmon tree were used as cremation wood and chopsticks to pick up her bones. The nutritional benefits of persimmons are so well known that there is a saying, "When a persimmon turns red, the doctor turns blue." Persimmons are rich in vitamin C, which acts as an antioxidant, and potassium, which helps prevent excessive salt intake. Eating persimmons before drinking alcohol is also said to help prevent hangovers by breaking down the alcohol with tannins. I am sure the wife must have enjoyed her days eating lots of persimmons.
As autumn deepens, the leaves fall and the heavy orange-colored persimmon fruits are begging to be eaten, but if left to ripen for a bit, they often ripen quickly. I rather prefer hard persimmons, and this year I tried various arrangements of ripe persimmons.
First, a quick and easy way to make persimmon sherbet. Simply wash the persimmon, wrap it in plastic wrap, and put it in the freezer. When you eat it, cut off the hefty part like a lid and take it with a spoon. It is too easy. It seems that the nutrients in persimmons are contained in the skin, so you can also eat the skin, so give it a try. And the persimmon jam. It is very stylish with cinnamon and rum. I am not usually a big jam eater, but I highly recommend persimmon jam because it can be used not only with bread and yogurt, but also with salads, cheese, and as a marinade. I added lemon juice at the end so it was not as sweet and refreshing as I expected. Using the juicer from Azmaya, you can squeeze every last drop, and the colon shape is cute and stable. And I worked hard on the homemade Worcestershire sauce made with persimmons. The mixer did the hard work, so all I had to do was boil it down. The sauce was made without using sugar or water! You can use it as a regular sauce, in curry, or as a seasoning for frying mushrooms and meat.
This year, I received a lot of persimmons that my parents' neighbor's wife might have brought. I was able to enjoy persimmons so much. I hope everyone enjoys the short fall season.
Persimmon jam:
4-5 ripe persimmons
30% of persimmon sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
Cinnamon or rum to taste
1. Put finely mashed persimmons and sugar in a saucepan and reduce to a simmer.
2. Add cinnamon and rum to taste, and finally lemon juice.
(Do not boil down too much after adding the lemon juice)
Persimmon Worcestershire sauce:
3-4 ripe persimmons
1 onion
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
3 cloves garlic
1 can of tomatoes (about 400 g fresh tomatoes)
Half a ginger sprig to a pinch of ginger
About 30g salt (adjust to taste)
About 100 ml soy sauce
About 100 ml vinegar
Spices (amount to taste)
Cloves
Cinnamon
Black pepper (whole)
Bay leaves
1. Put onion and garlic in a blender and saute slowly in a pan.
2. Mix ripe persimmons, carrots, celery, tomatoes and ginger with a blender.
3. When 1 is fully cooked, add 2 and bring to a simmer.
4. Add salt, spices, soy sauce and simmer gently.
5. Add the vinegar and bring to a boil, then put the mixture into a hot jar, cover with a lid, and turn upside down to degas (to avoid losing the vinegar flavor).
Azumaya's Juicer
https://www.shokunin.com/en/azmaya/juicer.html
Koishiwara Ware's Plate and Bowl
https://www.shokunin.com/en/koishiwara/mame.html
References
https://colocal.jp/topics/lifestyle/itoshima/20211126_145134.html
https://health2sync.com/ja/blog/persimmon-nutrition/
