Persimmon Chutney

June 1, 2006

An unblemished persimmon is beautiful to behold. It’s one of those fruits that just seems to be made for a still life painting. [In fact, after this article was published an Otaki, NZ reader, Sheila Sharp, wrote in to agree with me and included a card featuring this print of her painting of three lovely persimmons. "I felt the same and had to paint them, though none of ours are unblemished. I called it Nothing's Perfect."]

Persimmons are versatile and it’s a good idea to buy them in various stages of ripeness. Harder, crisper persimmons can be sliced or diced and used in both vegetable and fruit salads. The softer fruit can be spooned out and the pulp used for muffins, cakes, ice cream, pie fillings and puddings.

Persimmons can be peeled or not. However, I think the skin is a little tough and prefer to peel them. A soft-fruit peeler with its sharp little teeth is ideal for this. An ordinary potato peeler will work on the firmer fruit.

In the United States, folklore has it that by splitting open persimmon seeds, one can predict the sort of winter that lies ahead. If the shape inside is that of a spoon, they will be shoveling snow. A fork shape indicates light snow and a knife portends cold, cutting winds. As the seeds can be rather slippery and you need to cut open at least 10 for a supposedly accurate reading, I decided to keep out the doctor’s surgery and retain all my fingers.

For today’s recipe I used a mix of soft and firm fruit so that the soft would melt down into a mush and the firm would retain shape in the finished product. When choosing persimmons, don’t worry too much about black marks on the skin. These don’t affect the flesh. I use non-stringent Fuyu persimmons.

This chutney will work well with chicken pie, a curry, cold meats, or in a slabby cheese sandwich. The quantity will yield three small jars.

Persimmon Chutney

6 Fuyu persimmons
1 apple, peeled and chopped
2 small red onions, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/4 cups white vinegar
12 dried apricots, chopped
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger
2 small red chillies, deseeded and sliced finely
1/2 teaspoon crushed cardamom seeds (smash in mortar)
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
2 cloves

Place all ingredients except the persimmons in a large pot. Bring to the boil then simmer for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile peel the persimmons, removing any seeds - some may not have any. Chop, but not too finely. Add to the vinegar mixture, bring back to the boil and simmer for a further 20-25 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If the mixture is still fairly liquid, cook some more. You want a thick porridge-like consistency without any free liquid floating on top. Bottle immediately in sterilised jars and screw down lids. Let mature for a few days to give the flavours time to mingle and soften. Refrigerate once opened.

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