Kaki (persimmon)

45890442_m (1) — The best way to eat a juicy kaki is to cut it open and scoop out the flesh with a spoon

Best eaten: Raw
It is hard to avoid kaki in autumn as it is the time of the year when the juicy, succulent fruit is ripe for harvest. You can see the fluorescent orange orbs hanging from trees or strung up to dry. There are two varieties of persimmon — fuyu, which is eaten while hard and crisp, and hachiya, which is best when ripened to a jelly-like consistency. The hachiya persimmon is also traditionally the variety that is dried, which results in a dense, intensely sweet treat that can be relished long after autumn has passed.