Nashi 梨

Asian pears: crispy, juicy, delicious.  And because they are much firmer than their European counterparts, can be used as a substitute for apples in most recipes.  Asian pears are high in fiber as well as vitamins K and C.

How to Prepare
You can prepare an Asian pear the same way you would apples.  Just decore and start cooking!

Easy Asian Pear Recipe

The first year I was in Japan there were some Asian pears hanging out in the clearance bin of my local supermarket.  Regardless of the fact that I had eaten Asian pears plenty of times in the States, for some reason I was under the delusion they were apples.  So I bought them with the intention of making some applesauce with them.  Even when I got home and was decoring and chopping up these "apples" I was thinking, "Gee, these are some juicy apples!"  It wasn't until I had finished making the "applesauce" that I realized they were Asian pears.  A really dumb moment in my kitchen but it turned out to be delicious!

Pearsauce

Serves 4

Prep Time: About 30 mins

Ingredients:

• 6-8 large Asian pears, peeled, cored, cut into small pieces
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cardamom or cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger

Preparation:
1. Combine all ingredients in heavy medium saucepan. Cover, bring to boil.
2. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until apples are very tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.
3. Cool slightly.
4. Smush pears with a potato masher or a pork for chunky sauce. For smooth sauce, transfer to a blender and blend until smooth.
5. Finished!

One thing my great-grandmother would always do when she made homemade applesauce was to serve it warm with a dollop of sour cream on top.  It's just as delicious when done with this pearsauce.