PYRUS PYRIFOLIA
Asian pears are somewhere between an apple and a pear in flavor, with a crisp, even crunchy, texture and a faint sweetness that makes them excellent in salads. Asian pear trees bear russeted, round fruit with a golden bronze color. The crisp white flesh is mild flavored, very juicy, and has a fine texture without many stone cells—those gritty bits that pears can develop. Where you might expect a luscious sweetness like a ripe Bartlett, you get only a light sweetness, and where you might expect an acid tang like an apple, you get only a subdued acidity.
THE ORGANIC FACTOR
Asian pear trees are fairly delicate, prone to a terrible fungus called fire blight as well as insect infestation, so organic orchardists do spray their trees, but not with toxic chemicals. Instead, they use one of a number of organic sprays. Sulfur, for example, is allowed in organiculture to ward off fungus and mildews. Dormant oil sprays, made from mineral or vegetable oils, are used during the tree’s dormant season to kill insects wintering over in bark crevices. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a sprayable disease that affects only caterpillars, which emerge in late spring. Liquid seaweed can be sprayed on leaves to feed them—the list of harmless sprays goes on
and on.
NUTRITION
While Asian pears lend an interesting texture and sweetness to salads and fruit compote, they don’t pack much nutritional punch. About 4 ounces provides 2.5 milligrams of vitamin C and 4 grams of dietary fiber.
Types „Two species of Asian pear are available in specialty markets. The Japanese Asian pear (Pyrus pyrifolia) is shaped like an apple, crisp, crunchy white to yellowish-white flesh, grainy, juicy, mildly sweet. The Chinese white pear (Pyrus ussuriensis) is similar to the Japanese varieties of Asian pear but more pear-shaped. Both types ripen on the tree, like apples.
SEASONOLITY
Asian pears ripen in late summer from August into September, depending on variety and where they’re grown.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
Unlike many other species of pears, such as Bartlett, Asian pears can hang on the tree until fully ripe. So look for fully ripe Asian pears. At farmers’ markets, the growers will sometimes have samples for tasting. If not, buy just one Asian pear and try it. If it’s juicy, lightly sweet, and crisp-textured but not hard, it’s ripe. Now go back for more.
STORAGE
Asian pears are good keepers. You don’t need to refrigerate them—they’ll keep for a couple of weeks in a bowl on the kitchen counter.
USES
Some people find Asian pears confounding, since we’re trained to associate sweetness with a soft texture, but Asian pears simply taste subtle when eaten out of hand. They tend to be less so when used with other foods. Their crisp texture makes them great additions to salads. Slices of fresh Asian pear are excellent splashed with a little lime juice, and a fine accompaniment to a selection of cheeses, especially mild ones such as fresh goat cheese, taleggio, and Swiss.
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