Persimmon substitute

Best substitute

Canned pumpkin puree (for Hachiya pulp)

1 cup puree for 1 cup persimmon pulp

Best for persimmon pudding

Different taste

First work out which type your recipe wants, because the answer is completely different. For crisp sliced Fuyu in a salad or on a cheese board, a firm ripe mango or a crisp Asian pear tossed with a squeeze of lemon is the closest swap at 1:1. For soft Hachiya pulp in persimmon pudding, cookies or bread, canned pumpkin puree or well-mashed very ripe banana replaces it cup for cup, with pumpkin the better choice in savoury-leaning bakes and banana the better one where you want sweetness. Persimmon's job is sweetness plus body: Fuyu supplies crunch and honeyed sweetness, Hachiya supplies a thick, silky, almost custardy puree that carries moisture and structure in a batter.

Other persimmon substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Very ripe mashed banana (for Hachiya pulp)
Different taste
1 cup mashed banana for 1 cup persimmon pulp
The best answer if what you want back is the sweetness and the slippery, custardy texture rather than a neutral base.
What changes
Best for
persimmon bread, cookies, muffins, pancakes, smoothies
It tastes clearly of banana, and there is no hiding it, so this works when you are happy for the bake to become a spiced banana bread by another name. Use fruit with blackened skin, and cut the recipe's sugar by about 2 tablespoons per cup since banana is sweeter than persimmon.
3Firm ripe mango (for crisp Fuyu)
Different texture
Use the same amount by volume, plus a squeeze of lemon
Matches the honeyed, faintly floral sweetness of a Fuyu better than anything else, and holds its shape in slices if you pick fruit that is ripe but still firm to the thumb.
What changes
Best for
autumn salads, fruit plates, cheese boards, salsas, tarts
Softer and juicier than a Fuyu, so it will not give you that apple-like snap, and it can look wet on a plate. The lemon is not optional: persimmon has a low, gentle acidity and mango has almost none, so without it a salad tastes flabby.
4Crisp Asian pear or a sweet crisp apple such as Honeycrisp (for crisp Fuyu)
Different taste
Use the same amount
The right answer when the point of the Fuyu was texture: thin crisp slices that stay crisp next to a dressing.
What changes
Best for
salads, slaws, cheese boards, grain bowls
Both are more watery and more simply sweet, without the warm honey-apricot note of a persimmon. Apple browns, so slice it last or toss it in lemon juice. Asian pear does not brown as fast and is the closer of the two.
5Cooked and pureed sweet potato or butternut squash (for Hachiya pulp)
Different taste
1 cup puree for 1 cup pulp, thinned with a tablespoon of water or milk if stiff
A good pantry-free option when there is no canned pumpkin: roast until completely soft, then blend smooth.
What changes
Best for
persimmon pudding, steamed puddings, loaf cakes, muffins
Sweet potato is naturally sweeter than pumpkin and therefore closer to persimmon, but it is also starchier, so a pudding sets firmer and can turn slightly gluey. Blend properly smooth and do not overmix the batter afterwards.
6Dried persimmon, soaked and pureed
Different texture
4 oz dried persimmon soaked in ½ cup hot water, blended, yields roughly 1 cup pulp
The only substitute that actually tastes like persimmon, and worth hunting for in a Korean or Japanese grocer if the flavour is the whole point of the dish.
What changes
Best for
persimmon pudding, persimmon cookies, sauces and compotes, tea and sujeonggwa
Deeper and more caramelised than fresh pulp, closer to a date, and the puree is never quite as silky because of the skins. Remove any hard calyx and the seeds before soaking, and blend for longer than you think you need to.

What is Persimmon?

Persimmon is a glossy orange autumn fruit, also sold as kaki or sharon fruit, that comes in two types doing two completely different jobs: squat Fuyu, eaten firm and crisp like an apple, which is there for crunch and honeyed sweetness, and acorn-shaped Hachiya, mouth-puckeringly astringent until it collapses to jelly inside and is then scooped out as a thick pulp that carries sweetness, moisture and body through a batter.

Cooking tips

The single mistake to avoid: never bite into an underripe Hachiya. Astringent persimmons are loaded with tannins that dry your whole mouth out in a way that feels like something has gone wrong with you rather than the fruit. A Hachiya is only ready when the skin is translucent and it feels like a water balloon, which is well past the point most people would call spoiled.
Fuyu is the opposite: it is meant to be eaten firm. If you are unsure which one you are holding, squat and tomato-shaped means Fuyu and safe to slice; tall and pointed at the base means Hachiya and it must be jelly-soft first.
To ripen a Hachiya fast, put it in a paper bag with a banana or an apple for a few days, or freeze it solid overnight and thaw it. Freezing breaks down the tannins and is the standard shortcut when you need pulp tonight.
Persimmon pulp reacts with baking soda and thickens dramatically, sometimes almost setting in the bowl. This is normal and is why traditional persimmon pudding recipes are so dense, but it means you should mix and get the batter into the oven promptly rather than letting it sit.
Persimmon has very little acidity of its own. Any time you substitute another sweet fruit for it, add a squeeze of lemon, because both the original and the swap need a small lift to stop the dish tasting flat and one-note.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave the persimmon out?

Not in persimmon pudding, bread or cookies, where the pulp is a large share of the batter and is providing most of the moisture and structure. Leaving it out gives you a dry, crumbly failure, so you have to put something of similar consistency in, and pumpkin puree is the safest. In a salad or on a cheese board, yes, leave it out or use any firm sweet fruit you like.

What is the difference between Fuyu and Hachiya, and does it really matter?

It matters more than any other distinction on this page. Fuyu is non-astringent and is eaten crisp, sliced into salads or eaten out of hand like an apple. Hachiya is astringent until fully soft and is used almost exclusively as pulp. Substituting a firm Fuyu into a recipe calling for Hachiya pulp gives you a chunky, watery batter, and eating a firm Hachiya is genuinely unpleasant.

Is sharon fruit the same as persimmon?

Sharon fruit is a trade name for a non-astringent persimmon variety, so treat it exactly like a Fuyu: eat it firm, slice it for salads, and do not expect it to give you soft pulp. It is often sold slightly firmer and blander than a good Fuyu, and the skin is thin enough to leave on.

Can I use persimmon jam or dried persimmon instead of fresh?

Dried persimmon, soaked and blended, is a genuinely good substitute for pulp and is the only option that still tastes of persimmon. Jam is trickier because it is mostly sugar, so if you use it you need to cut the recipe's sugar substantially and accept a stickier result. Neither will give you crisp slices.

Do I peel persimmons?

Fuyu skin is thin and perfectly edible, so slice and go. For Hachiya you do not really peel it at all: cut off the top and scoop or squeeze the jelly-like flesh out of the skin, then pass it through a sieve if you want a completely smooth pulp.

Related substitutes

More fruits substitutes

Persimmon substitute

Other persimmon substitutes

2Very ripe mashed banana (for Hachiya pulp)

3Firm ripe mango (for crisp Fuyu)

4Crisp Asian pear or a sweet crisp apple such as Honeycrisp (for crisp Fuyu)

5Cooked and pureed sweet potato or butternut squash (for Hachiya pulp)

6Dried persimmon, soaked and pureed