THE MEDLAR is a rare fruit in the United States, and that’s a shame. It was a favorite dessert fruit of 19th-century Britain. A box of moist sawdust or bran would be brought to the table along with a decanter of port. Fully bletted medlars would be fished out of the box, and the pulp inside—something of the consistency of apple butter—would be spooned into a bowl and mixed with sugar and cream. A bite of medlar, a sip of port, and there you have it: a Victorian dessert.

What? You’ve never heard of medlars? And what’s a “fully bletted” anything, let alone a medlar?

Medlars grow on a handsome tree that’s a member of the rose family, along with the hawthorn, quince, and apple. If you consider the fruits of any of these plants, they have an opening at the blossom end, surrounded by a raised fringe of calyxes. Medlars are no exception, having a very large opening in which you can see the fruit’s five seed capsules. Each fruit is about the size of a golf ball.

Mature medlars must undergo a process called bletting; that is, they need to decompose and soften. This is not so strange. We do it to our persimmons in the fall and winter. To prevent spoilage, the medlars are usually bletted in a box of moist sawdust or bran, where the inner pulp turns brown, acidic, and soft, with a brisk flavor of decaying apples and cinnamon that many like, but some don’t. The pulp is certainly sweet, with an 11 percent sugar content when ripe.

Medlars aren’t grown in commerce but may occasionally be found in farmers’ markets. Ask the purveyor whether they’ve been grown organically.

NUTRITION

Medlars are sweet yet low in calories (around 50 calories per 31⁄2 ounces). They have good stores of potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, and vitamins B and C. Medlars have antioxidants and are high in soluble fiber.

TYPES

There’s only one type, but several varieties. Take whichever you can get—there are many, including Royal and Giant Russian. You are most likely to get Nottingham, which is the most widely planted and is reputed to be the most highly flavored and the best in cultivation.

 

SEASONALITY

When the fruits are mature and ready for picking—usually in late fall after the first hard frost—their skins are green and hard and astringent. They must then undergo bletting over several weeks after being picked. If you’re traveling in England in December, you might find medlars in the stores then.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

Finding medlars at a farmers’ market will be sheer serendipity—but they are out there. Just don’t eat them until they are fully bletted, a process that will take them to late fall or winter, depending on the temperature where they’re stored.  ....read more