Persimmon

Early settlers in the Midwest and southeastern portions of what was to become the United States found they were in for quite a culinary experience upon encountering native persimmons for the first time. For as delicious, creamy, and sweet as the perfectly ripe fruit can be (they should be so ripe, in fact, that they are just about falling apart), taking a bite of an unripe persimmon will surely make you pucker and reach desperately for a glass of water to wash away the unpleasant sour and bitter taste and the peculiar dry feeling it leaves in your mouth. But through trial and error, and from seeing that the Native Americans used persimmons extensively (to make puddings and breads, among other foods), the settlers were soon supplementing their diet with the bountiful wild persimmon. Wild persimmons have a different flavor and are much smaller than the Asian variety, usually known as Japanese persimmons, which are found in the markets in the fall.