Persimmons by Post
One of the nicest things about being a food writer is the frequent foodie freebies that the postman delivers.
A Spanish Persimmon
A couple of days ago I received a nice little white box tied with red ribbon from “Foods from Spain”. My husband Dan was very excited and thought there might be a cheese or a salchichon inside, but alas, it contained two persimmons–also known as Sharon fruit (though I much prefer persimmon to something named after a Shazza). Dan frowned but I was delighted.
Apparently they are in season from October to mid-December in Spain, coming from the Ribera del Xuquer valley near Valencia. They are as firm as an apple and not particularly juicy, but have a slick flesh and taste vaguely of mango.
It seems persimmons should be elevated to superfood status, as they are high in antioxidants, vitamin A, C, and potassium, they lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of clogged arteries.
Curiously, they also lower the density of alcohol in the blood and CURE HANGOVERS! Now that is incredible. I did a little googling and indeed there have been some studies proving that eating persimmons will lower alcohol density, but when the persimmon was consumed was unclear. I mean, do you have to eat a piece of persimmon in between each drink to avoid a hangover? Surely it’s too late to eat one the morning after? I am planning to try this at home.
November 21st, 2008 at 4:26 pm
Hi Celia
I'm glad you liked them - I hope the trial went well!
The Spanish persimmons are particularly large compared with Sharon Fruit. Great for kids as well…
Kind regards
Dominic