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Persimmon pork stew shows off Fuyu's savory side

Recipe: Blend of colorful winter fruit, vegetables beats winter blahs

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED DEC 16, 2018

Fuyu persimmons brighten pork stew, a perfect dish for an almost-winter day. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Fuyu persimmons have a colorful savory side.

Crisp like an apple but with more sugar, flat Fuyus complement other late fall and winter flavors with an intriguing caramel-like sweetness.

They also add something else to a dull brown stew: A punch of color. When cooked, Fuyus retain their brilliant orange hue. There are no winter blahs in this stew.

With an abundance of backyard Fuyus, I created this persimmon pork stew, experimenting with the mix of fruit and vegetables that complement the cubes of leftover pork roast. Chunks of persimmon, sweet potatoes and carrots add a lot of orange to the bowl as well as flavor. Because the meat is already cooked, this stew comes together in under an hour.

Fuyu persimmons also are abundant right now in farmers markets. One note: Don’t try this dish with astringent Hachiya persimmons (the pointy varieties); their tannin overwhelms the stew.

This stew has an unusual blend of flavors.

Persimmon pork stew
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 pound fully cooked pork roast, cut into cubes
¼ cup flour
Salt and pepper to taste
2 to 3 tablespoons mild-flavored extra virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, peeled and diced
8 white mushrooms, washed and quartered
½ cup red wine
1 ½ cups chicken broth
½ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
½ teaspoon thyme
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into coins
1 large Fuyu persimmon, cored, peeled and diced (about 1 cup)

Instructions:
Coat cubes of pork roast with flour, mixed with a few dashes of salt and pepper in a plastic zippered bag.

In a Dutch oven or large pot over medium heat on top of the stove, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Brown pork cubes in batches, so not to crowd the pot, until nicely crisp. Remove from oil with slotted spoon; set aside.

Sauté onions and mushrooms in the reserved oil, adding more if needed. Once onions are soft, stir in red wine and deglaze the pot. Add chicken broth, seasoning and thyme.

Return pork cubes to pot. Add sweet potato and carrots. Bring the pot to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer, stirring occasionally. Cook 30 minutes.

Add persimmon. Cook 15 minutes more until persimmon and sweet potato cubes are tender, but not mushy. Adjust seasoning, adding a little more salt and pepper if desired.

Serve hot.

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RECIPE

A recipe for preparing delicious meals from the bounty of the garden.

Keywords:

recipes recipe gardening Sacramento cooking seasonal cooking winter fruit persimmons fall orchard fruit

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Garden Checklist for week of March 16

Make the most of dry breaks between showers. Your garden is in high-growth mode.

* Pull weeds now! Don’t let them get started. Take a hoe and whack them as soon as they sprout.

* Prepare vegetable beds. Spade in compost and other amendments.

* Prune and fertilize spring-flowering shrubs after bloom.

* Feed camellias at the end of their bloom cycle. Pick up browned and fallen flowers to help corral blossom blight.

* Feed citrus trees, which are now in bloom and setting fruit. To prevent sunburn and borer problems on young trees, paint the exposed portion of the trunk with diluted white latex (water-based) interior paint. Dilute the paint with an equal amount of cold water before application.

* Feed roses with a balanced fertilizer (such as 10-10-10, the ratio of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium available in that product).

* Prune and fertilize spring-flowering shrubs and trees after they bloom. Try using well-composted manure, spread 1-inch-thick under the tree (but avoid piling it up around the trunk). This serves as both fertilizer and mulch, retaining moisture while cutting down on weeds.

* Cut back and fertilize perennial herbs to encourage new growth.

* In the vegetable garden, transplant lettuce and cole family plants, such as cauliflower, broccoli, collards and kale.

* Seed chard and beets directly into the ground. (To speed germination, soak beet seeds overnight in room-temperature water before planting.)

* Before the mercury starts inching upward, this is your last chance to plant such annuals as pansies, violas and primroses.

* Plant summer bulbs, including gladiolus, tuberous begonias and callas. Also plant dahlia tubers.

* Shop for perennials. Many varieties are available in local nurseries and at plant events. They can be transplanted now while the weather remains relatively cool.

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