Autumn doesn’t just begin with a date on the calendar.
In Japan, it also begins when you look into the distance and see persimmons in a tree, bright amid the branches like small suns that decided to stay when summer left.
In the countryside, a persimmon tree often stands just beyond the veranda, beside a vegetable patch or at the edge of a small field.
And then there are the strings.
Walk through a Japanese village in late autumn and you may see lines of dried persimmon - hoshigaki - hanging from the eaves of an old house. Each fruit has been peeled, strung up and left to dry slowly in the cold air, sugar blooming on the surface like a fine white frost.
Even for Japanese who grew up in cities, these scenes stir nostalgia for a world they may not know firsthand but which exists in the collective imagination as an age when the seasons felt closer.
More Than Dessert: Uses of Kaki Leaves and Wood
The Japanese name for persimmon, kaki, has been adopted as its part of its scientific name: Diospyros kaki, the most widely cultivated species of the genus, Diospyros.
Derived from Greek - dios (divine) and pyros (grain or food) - the name can be translated as 'divine fruit' or the 'food of the gods'.
A persimmon tree does more than bear fruit; it bundles food, building materials, medicine and seasonal decoration all into one tree.
The dried leaves, a rich source of vitamin C and tannin, are steeped to make a caffeine-free tea, a traditional drink said to prevent colds, lower blood pressure and improve skin quality.
In parts of Nara prefecture, a major kaki producer, sushi is wrapped in persimmon leaves, which not only prevent it from drying out but also add aroma to the rice. More importantly, the tannin in the leaves have anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties.
Persimmon wood, known for its strength and beautiful grain, is also prized. It finds its way into buildings and interiors, and into the hands of craftsmen who shape it into furniture, inlay pieces and tea utensils.
The American persimmon, a related species, is known for being so hard that golf club heads can be made out of it and, in Japan, wood from the kaki tree has been used for the same purpose.
The fruit is more than a source of sugar. Kakishibu - persimmon tannin - is made by crushing unripe astringent persimmons, extracting the juice and allowing it to ferment for about six months before using it as a coating or finish for wood.
Health Benefits of Persimmons
There's a traditional Japanese saying: 'When the persimmons turn red, doctors turn pale.'
It implies that once the persimmons are harvested, people become so healthy they don't need to pay for a doctor. The proverb reflects a time when fruit sugar, vitamins and fresh produce were scarce in winter. Persimmons were valued - and planted - because they provided nutrients at this very time of the year.
Persimmons are rich in vitamin C and vitamin A, promoting eye and skin health, as well as boosting the immune system. One Japanese persimmon can provide more than half the recommended daily intake of vitamin A and a significant amount of vitamin C.
The fruit is high in dietary fiber, which supports digestion and contributes to a feeling of fullness.
Kaki are also packed with antioxidants, which help to neutralize free radicals and may reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and chronic inflammation.
In addition, persimmons contain potassium and manganese, minerals tied to heart health, blood pressure regulation and enzyme function.
But even the 'food of the gods' is best enjoyed in moderation.
Astringent varieties such as Hachiya persimmons are high in soluble tannin when unripe, which can cause serious digestive issues.
Here are a few recommendations from dietitians:
Eat only the ripe fruit, especially when it comes to the astringent types.
Avoid eating lots of persimmon on an empty stomach.
Peel persimmons if you are sensitive to tannin, as this is concentrated in the skin and outer flesh.
Limit your intake to one or two medium-sized persimmons a day, especially if you have a history of digestive problems or kidney stones.
The Unofficial National Fruit of Japan
Beloved in both China and Japan, the oriental persimmon - Diospyros kaki - appears to have originated in the basin of China’s Yangtze River. It was cultivated there over 2,000 years ago before traveling east.
Written records suggest that the persimmon had been introduced to Japan from China by the Nara period (710-794), and archaeological sites from the Jomon and Yayoi eras have turned up persimmon seeds, hinting at an even earlier connection between kaki and the Japanese archipelago.
Early persimmons in Japan were mostly the astringent varieties that stayed mouth-puckering even when the fruit ripened, unless dried or processed in some other way.
Then came a quiet botanical revolution.
During the Kamakura period (1185-1333), a natural mutation created a sweet persimmon, a non-astringent type that could be eaten without any processing. Known as Zenjimaru, this is considered Japan's oldest sweet persimmon, or amagaki.
In the 18th century, another chapter in the story of kaki unfolded - not in a Japanese orchard but through the eyes of a Swedish naturalist. Carl Peter Thunberg (1743-1828), a student of the great taxonomist Carl Linnaeus, arrived in Nagasaki in 1775 as a physician with the Dutch East India Company.
At the time, Japan was under a strict policy of national isolation and Westerners were confined to the small island of Dejima. But Thunberg, by trading medical knowledge for local information, gradually won permission to travel beyond the island.
In 1776, he was allowed to accompany a Dutch embassy to the shogun's city of Edo, giving him the chance to collect specimens and document plants across the country.
Among these was a tree bearing vivid orange fruit that he encountered in Hakone. Captivated by its beauty and flavor, he named it Diospyros kaki Thunb. - 'kaki, the food of the gods'.
Following Linnaeus’ classification system, Thunberg included it in his monumental Flora Japonica (1784), a work describing more than 800 Japanese plant species and one that would introduce the Japanese persimmon to the scientific world.
Through Thunberg’s naming, the word, kaki, entered the international vocabulary of botany, making it one of the few Japanese plant names to become a global scientific term.
During the Meiji era, national surveys and breeding programs helped spread non-astringent varieties such as Fuyu and Jiro across the country. Today, there are said to be some 1,000 varieties of persimmon in Japan, many adapted to tiny pockets of climate and soil.
Although not officially designated as such, the persimmon is widely regarded as the national fruit of Japan. This view is said to have its roots in a comment by chef Kaichi Tsuji, author of Kaiseki: Zen Tastes in Japanese Cooking, who declared, 'Were Japan to name a national fruit, the persimmon would surely be it'.
Types of Japanese Persimmon
In Japan alone, there are around a thousand varieties of kaki but these can be broadly divided into two types:
Amagaki: sweet, or non-astringent, kaki. Varieties include Jiro and Fuyu, which dominates the market. Low in soluble tannin, these persimmons can be consumed as they are once ripe. For an even sweeter fruit, let them ripen for a few days at room temperature.
Shibugaki: astringent persimmons such as Hachiya, Hiratanenashi, Saijo and Ichida. Shibugaki have high tannin content even at harvest, so the persimmons must be processed to make them edible.
The Japanese kaki is also divided into four groups based on astringency but, for most of us, the classification is simple:
Astringent persimmon = eat only if the astringency has been removed by, for example, drying.
Non-astringent persimmon = ready to eat once ripe.
Hoshigaki: A Delicacy through the Ages
In pre-modern Japan, dried persimmons were valued as a source of winter nutrition but hoshigaki was also one of the country's earliest forms of confectionery.
By the Heian period (794-1185), dried persimmons were already being used as ceremonial sweets and, in the 16th century, tea master Sen no Rikyu is said to have served hoshigaki as a sweet to accompany matcha during tea gatherings.
Even today, hoshigaki carries a ceremonial weight, particularly when turned into New Year decorations.
Around this time of the year, regional dried persimmons - such as dojo hachiya-gaki, the giant, jam-like kaki from Gifu - are beautifully packaged and presented as seasonal gifts.
While often served as dessert, hoshigaki also adds a sweet accent to savory dishes and a touch of luxury to holiday feasts, even those outside the Japanese culinary tradition.
You could, for instance, slice it finely for a cheese board or wrap pieces of it in lightly browned bacon or prosciutto.
Here's another finger-food suggestion: remove the stem from a handful of dried persimmons. Slice each fruit down one side, spreading it open like a bun.
Tuck in a piece of butter or cream cheese. Or go for broke and add both - 1 part butter to 2 or 3 parts cream cheese. Press it gently closed.
The combination of salty, creamy fat and the chewy sweetness of dried persimmon has earned this dish cult status among kaki enthusiasts.
Whether paired with a bowl of matcha or a glass of wine, hoshigaki - like fresh, ripe persimmons - delivers the season in a single bite.
By Janice Tay