The Persimmons of Xinpu – Delicious Fruits Enjoyed Fresh or as “Cakes”
Racks of bright-orange persimmons rest on top of an arbor, drying in the sun. Their hardening skins reflect the sunlight, and the effect is like staring directly into a field of electric light bulbs. From the months of September through January each year, the town of Xinpu in Hsinchu County is famous for dazzling visitors with scenes like this one.
By Owain Mckimm From Taiwan Tourism Website
Whereas other towns use indoor ovens to dry their persimmons, Xinpu retains the traditional method of letting the fruit back in the sunshine. The autumn winds here are dry, strong, and frequent, and because of the nearly impenetrable soil, excess water is easily drained away, so that the air remains fairly dry even after a rainfall – perfect conditions for making persimmon cakes.
Driving through the streets of Xinpu, we pass an elementary school featuring a wall covered with an enormous mosaic of a persimmon tree with fruits ripening, yellow to red, on its branches. Persimmon cakes have been made here for over 170, and are an intrinsic part of the local Hakka culture.
Don’t let the “cake” fool you. There’s no flour or icing involved in making persimmon cakes. They are referred to as “persimmon cakes” (shi bing) in Taiwan because the Chinese word bing means both a flat-topped cake and something shaped like one. Before being packaged, the dried persimmons are molded into a nest-like form which, to those who decided the name long, long ago, resembles a true cake.
We arrive at Jinhan Dried Persimmon Education Farm in the early afternoon. The entrance is filled with crates of persimmons, and we hear the clang and grind of machinery from the building to our right. The farm is owned by Liu Xing-wu, a former salesman, who now runs the persimmon factory here. Making persimmon cakes has been his family’s business for three generations.
He takes us into the small factory, where a group of workers is busy peeling persimmons. The fruits are put into a machine that takes off most of the skin (the cause of the clanging we had just heard outside), after which the top and bottom are cleaned by hand.
“The workers here are all locals from farming families,” says Liu. “Many of them have their own farms and produce but depending on the season, if they have time, they come here to work.”
I’m curious about the different kinds of persimmon used – the crates we saw on our way in held persimmons of different lengths, sizes, and shapes – so I ask Liu to explain the various types and their qualities.
I learn there are three main types of persimmon grown in Taiwan. “This type is called ‘Bull Heart’ persimmon,” he says, holding up a large round fruit. The Bull Heart persimmon is juicy but not quite as sweet as other persimmons. “One of the reasons why Xinpu has been successful at making persimmon cakes with the Bull Heart variety is the area’s favorably dry conditions. The natural drying of these persimmons, which easily rot, is much easier here than in other, more humid, areas.”
He leads us over to another crate. “This variety is called the ‘Pen’ persimmon.” The fruit in his hand is long and shaped like a stubby carrot. “This kind of persimmon is more suitable for growing in colder climates, like Japan or Korea, but it’s now adapted to the hot plains of Taiwan as well.” The variety now grown in Taiwan has in fact been nicknamed the ‘Honey’ persimmon, because of its sweetness.
Originally, Pen persimmons were not dried, Liu’s wife Zeng Gui-mei tells us, but eaten fresh. Belonging to the non-astringent group of persimmons, they are naturally sweeter, and can be enjoyed when red and ripe.
“It’s only in the last three years or so that we discovered that you can make persimmon cakes from this kind of persimmon as well. The Pen persimmon is more gelatinous, and when you cut it open its insides look oily and shiny,” she says. When dried they are incredibly sweet and juicy, but they generally take longer to dry than other varieties.
Finally, Liu takes us over to his arbor, where the third variety of persimmon is being exposed to the afternoon sun. “This type of persimmon is the reason we make persimmon cakes in Xinpu,” he says, reaching up and removing a small fruit about the size of a Mandarin orange. “It’s called the ‘Stone’ persimmon, and is perfect for drying due to its low water content and high sugar levels. With Xinpu’s autumn winds, all you need to do is put it out in the sun and it will become delicious.”
Zeng describes the Stone persimmon as tender, fragrant, and chewy. “Until recently, people in the city preferred to buy the Bull Heart persimmon, because they thought bigger is more beautiful. But over the last few years the local Stone persimmon has made a comeback because of its better quality,” she says.
Farmer Liu is also keen to tell us about the Hakka people’s relationship with drying persimmons. “To make high-quality persimmon cake you need three things. The first is Hsinchu’s Stone persimmon, the second is the area’s dry autumn winds, and the third is the Hakka people.” He explains that the Hakka have the habit of preserving food by drying because they have what Liu jokingly calls “refugee genes.” “Anything that is not consumed freshly, we dry,” he says. “For example, beans and turnips – and persimmons are no exception.”
Eager to try our hands at making some of these traditional cakes ourselves, we ask Liu if he can talk us through the process. It turns out that due to Xinpu’s naturally dry climate (the winds bring the humidity down to around 30 percent), drying persimmons is a fairly straightforward task. After picking, washing, and peeling, the persimmons are simply laid out on the arbor for three days until they become sufficiently dry, then on the fourth day they are pinched so that the center (which has not become dry yet), gets pushed towards the outer surface, where it can be better exposed to the drying sun. This process is repeated, and after about 12 days in the sun and three pinches, the persimmons are ready to be packaged. Most producers of persimmon cakes in Xinpu also move the persimmons into oven dryers during the night, which usually cuts the drying time by half.
Each year Xinpu holds a persimmon-cake festival in the second week of October. This celebration of all things persimmon attracts gourmands from all over the island; visitors can taste all kinds of persimmon-related food, from persimmon mochi to persimmon ice lollies – which the casual visitor can also buy at the local farmers’ association building. The 15 local farms which cooperate with the farmers’ association in staging the festival also hold dyeing workshops during which boiled persimmon peel is used to color bags and cloth. Visitors are also invited to help out with some stages of persimmon-cake production.
When we visit another local farmer, Liu Li-jian of Wei Wei Jia Persimmon Cake Tourist Farm, he affirms our suspicious that with so many varieties and uses, the persimmon is best exploited by the adventurous, even in the face of tradition.
Liu says that he is constantly discovering new ways to treat different varieties. He has experimented with drying non-astringent persimmons, comparing their flavors with the commonly used astringent type, with soaking various persimmons instead of drying, and with organic cultivation. As a result he is able to apply the most suitable technique to whatever variety comes his way.
It’s rare to find such an experimental attitude in an area where traditions run so deeply. In Xinpu, however, where persimmons are concerned, the spirit of discovery is today enjoying its place in the sun.
Getting to Xinpu:
(Self-drive) From Taipei, take National Freeway No. 1 south. Exit at Yangmei Interchange (楊梅交流道), take Prov. Hwy 1 to the town of Yangmei, and transfer onto County Road No. 115 to Xinpu. In Xinpu, follow Zhongzheng Rd., Minsheng St., and Hankeng Rd. to the farms.
(By train/bus) Take a train to Hsinchu Railway Station and take a bus from Hsinchu’s main bus station to Xinpu. From Xinpu, take a taxi to the farms. During the annual persimmon festival, a shuttle-bus service takes visitors to farms in the area.
Jinhan Dried Persimmon Education Farm (金漢柿餅教育園區)
Add: 501, Sec. 1, Hankeng Rd., Xinpu Township, Hsinchu County (新竹縣新埔鎮旱坑路1段501號)
Tel: (03) 589-2680
Wei Wei Jia Persimmon Cake Tourist Farm (味衛佳柿餅觀光農場)
Add: 53, Alley 283, Sec. 1, Hankeng Road, Xinpu Township, Hsinchu County (新竹縣新埔鎮旱坑路1段283巷53號)
Tel: (03) 589-2352
Visitors are free to visit the farms when open, and photo opportunities are abundant. For DIY workshops, book at least a week in advance.
English & Chinese
Bull Heart persimmon 牛心柿
Pen/Honey persimmon 筆/蜜柿
persimmon cake / shi bing 柿餅
Stone persimmon 石柿
Xinpu 新埔
Yangmei 楊梅
