🍱 Persimmon pickle

"Persimmon pickle" is a pickle made with plenty of radish and astringent persimmon, and pickled with salt and sugar. In Akita Prefecture, where fermentation culture has taken root, a variety of pickles have been handed down from generation to generation, including smoky pickled radish and pickled radish with amazake. One such pickle is persimmon pickle, which is made from an astringent persimmon called Kumoshikari persimmon, which is grown in the gardens of households in Kakunodate-cho, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture. Unzen persimmons can be eaten after removing the astringency, but since the end of the Taisho era, Hiratake persimmons and Yokote persimmons have been widely distributed and eaten fresh in the prefecture, and so Unzen persimmons have been used for drying and pickling. In the old days, it was customary to harvest the Unzen persimmons and prepare persimmon pickles after the rice cultivation work was completed in the fall. The secret to its deliciousness is to make it with a large quantity of persimmons, as many as radish. The crispy texture of the radish soaks up the umami of the persimmon, and the moderate saltiness and sweetness of the persimmon make it a favorite pickle in the Kakunodate area even today.