Name: Persimmon Lime Salsa
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 3-4 fuyu persimmons, cubed; 2-3 tbsp yellow or white onion, diced; ¼ cup cilantro (fresh basil or parsley will also work); juice of 1 lime; ¼ tsp salt, to taste

I remember my first experience trying a persimmon.

And what an experience it was…

Years ago when we first moved to Denver, I would visit this really cute mom and pop shop called Pete’s Fruits and Vegetables. It’s owned by the sweetest Greek family, which made me want to keep supporting them.

This shop always had a wide variety of fruits that other stores didn’t often carry, many of which I’d never even seen before. And they were such a bargain (which they’re usually not).

So, whenever I’d pay them a visit, I’d make sure and buy something I’d never had before.

One day, I decided to get this orange looking acorn-shaped tomato with a flower petal stem on top. It looked peculiar and because I was going to try something new, I thought, “Hmm, why not?”

I was so excited to try this new, mysterious fruit that there was no waiting until I got home. I gave it a mini bath with a water bottle in my car and a little smudge against my pants.

As I pulled out of the parking lot, I sunk my teeth in.

How to Know When Persimmons Are Ripe

There are two varieties of this mysterious orange fruit called a persimmon, fuyu and hachiya. Hachiya persimmons must be eaten when they’re completely soft and gooey or else, they’ll become astringent in your mouth. Fuyu persimmons can be eaten when firm.

Can you guess which one I ate?

If you guessed the astringent one, you’re on to me. It was one of the worst sensations (if you’ve ever eaten anything astringent then you know that I’m talking about. It’s as if all the saliva in your mouth just up and left without any warning). See yaaa.

Fuyu persimmons have a more round shape like a tomato (such as the pictures above) and Hachiya persimmons are shaped like an (orange) acorn.

Some persimmons have seeds inside (pictured above), but I find them to be very few and far between (I’m talking 1 in every 15 I’ve had has seeds.) Just keep that in mind if you ever plan to eat one like you would an apple.

Fuyu persimmons are much more common, and are what I used in this salsa. Persimmons are only in season for a few short months in the fall, but I love to take full advantage when they’re around. I’ve found that they stick around the longest at Trader Joe’s if you have one near you.

If you don’t have access to persimmons, you can also use another fruit such as pears, peaches, mango, avocado, pineapple, or kiwi fruit with similarly delicious results.

How to Use This Persimmon Lime Salsa

This fruit salsa is great on any type of…

tacos (or on top of a tostada) – shrimp, chicken, fish
served on top of your choice of protein
as a dip for chips
on top of nachos
with a Thai dish
there are so many options

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