Ancient Japanese Food Craft Brings Persimmons To American Palates
A traditional Japanese preparation of persimmons called hoshigaki is starting to trend in the U.S. thanks to social media. It turns ordinary persimmons into the Kobe beef of fruits.
Each autumn, as leaves fall to the ground, persimmon trees emerge from the graying landscape, their orange and red fruits gleaming like gaudy Christmas ornaments. Beloved in eastern Asia — especially Japan — persimmons get little respect in the United States, where many tree owners don't bother harvesting their crop.
Many Americans have never tasted a persimmon. But Brock Dolman is an impassioned fan. Every fall he goes foraging for them, and the bounty is almost limitless in rural Sonoma County, Calif., where he lives.
"You can drive or ride your bike around the county, and you see these enormous trees all over with just thousands and thousands of persimmons," says , the co-founder of a permaculture center and demonstration
