Take Advantage of Missouri-Grown Asian Pears This Month

Hallelujah. Asian pears, grown right here in Missouri, will be at the Maplewood Farmers’ Market from Eureka’s Claverach Farm late summer and early fall. Imagine the sweet taste of apple blended with the flavor of a buttery pear. The juicy white flesh crunches, the texture similar to water chestnut, with a slight, not unpleasant grittiness. Eaten out of hand, diced in salads, poached, baked or cooked stove-top, these fruits are sweet.

The common Asian pears have a spherical shape, flattened a bit top and bottom. The skin colors vary – light yellows, gold, almost orange, brown, green and mottled. One variety, Ya Li, has a bit more of a pear shape. Each variety has a subtly different flavor.

In supermarkets, the fruits nestle in squishy mesh or in neat single rows on cardboard trays molded to their shape to guard against bruising. Unlike European pears, which can be picked a bit early, Asian pears must be harvested ripe and refrigerated quickly. Most of the stickered fruits I’ve seen have a California label. The extra packaging and the thousands of miles the fruit travels to get here made indulging my tastes for Asian pears a guilty pleasure. So finding locally grown golden Shinko pears and beautiful green and brown Korean Giants surprised me, pleasantly.

Ten years ago, Claverach owner Sam Hilmer explored the possibilities of tree crops, planting a small orchard with 15 Asian pear trees. He didn’t fence the small stand. Deer devastated a few young trees, but Hilmer found the trees disease-tolerant, pest-resistant and easy to grow. “They’re able to survive the hostile environment of a Missouri summer,” Hilmer said. That doesn’t mean growing Asian pears isn’t challenging: Orchard crops take up valuable space on a small farm, and because the pears are harvested ripe, a refrigerated storage facility is a necessity. “More space,” Hilmer said. He’s not planning to expand his orchard.

Still, he would encourage commercial growers and home gardeners to consider Asian pears. “They’re not bulletproof but [are] pretty resilient. I never spray. The hands-off approach works with them. You couldn’t do that with regular apples or European pears.”

I asked Hilmer and partner Joanna Duley how they used the pears. “I eat them right off the tree,” said Hilmer. Duley agreed she likes them best out of hand, but she does toss Asian pear chunks in salads. “You can grate them, too, for a slaw,” she added. “With ice cream – the Shinkos,” Hilmer said. “They have a butterscotch taste I like with ice cream.”

Last year, I used them in place of apples in a classic Waldorf salad with diced celery, golden raisins and toasted pecans tossed with a mayonnaise and sour cream dressing, the extra crunch and the hint of pear flavor a nice change. I had little experience with recipes for Asian pears, but testing made for great fun. A salad of Asian pear slices with orange sections, grapes, toasted almonds and thin curls of orange zest came to life tossed with a dressing of two parts dark wildflower honey to one part balsamic vinegar. The recipe called for pomegranate seeds, too, but I’ll have to wait for winter to add them.

I was surprised to find this watery fruit held its shape and handled easily when cooked. All my cookbooks advised peeling Asian pears before cooking. A vegetable peeler worked better for me than the paring knife.

Braised red cabbage with Asian pear chunks, currants, carrots and onions in a liquid of dry red wine, apple juice, vinegar and brown sugar paired nicely with a roasted pork tenderloin. A chutney with butter, sweet white onion, fresh ginger and diced Asian pears got hot with the addition of sambal oelek, a wonderful Indonesian chile sauce with lime, salt and tamarind. The chutney, spooned over whipped gingered sweet potatoes, was habanero hot, but so good.

A main dish salad of grilled chicken tossed with quinoa, thinly sliced celery and julienned Asian pear in a spicy vinaigrette worked well. For dessert, cored and peeled Asian pears poached with orange juice, sliced, then topped with a small scoop of French vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of blackberry syrup looked and tasted great.

If you are already a fan of this underappreciated fruit, you’ll enjoy the taste difference local makes. Claverach’s quantities are limited, but you’ll find Asian pears at most supermarkets and ethnic stores throughout the fall. Add them to your must-taste list.