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| I Ate a Biwa... | (Entered May. 29, 2009) | Sponsors: | |||||||
You probably know them as those funny little orange things you sometimes see in the fruit section of your supermarket, but never buy because a) they're usually ridiculously expensive and b) you don't trust them. If they were any good you'd have tried them already in your home country right? What are they? The name on the package says ’biwa', and a quick dictionary check translates that to 'loquat'. Loquat might be fun to say, but it doesn't inspire much confidence...
To me, biwa look a lot like those Japanese persimmons (called kaki) which I don't really like, so my expectations were low. However it was a classic case of judging a book by its cover. Although they may look hard, dry, and tasteless, they turned out to be pretty good! Biwa taste kind of like pears and have the same consistency, but are slightly tarter, lighter and less juicy. At first I wasn't sure how to eat a biwa, so I brought out my knife and cutting board and prepared to hack them up in a way that ensured the most pleasing taste.
But it turned out they don't need any cutting. If they're ripe, the skin can be pulled off easily with no mess and little fuss. Just nibble away at the fruit, but don't accidently swallow too many of those big brown seeds inside as they're poisonous. If you're like me, you can have a great time imagining that you're eating orange grapes.
Other interestings tidbits? Another cultural milestone surpassed! |
Food for Thought... |
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