Pomegranates

These lovely pomegranates, called zakuro in Japanese, were a gift from a student of mine. Many of my students have gardens with fruit trees and it's not uncommon for them to share their bounty with me and their fellow students. I've received persimmons, sudachi (a tiny lime-like citrus fruit), mandarins and various other types of orange, all of which are received gladly by everyone. But this is the first time a student has shared pomegranates, and somehow the other students seemed far less enthusiastic than I was. I think the pomegranate fad never made it to Japan, where they grow widely but are not well appreciated due to their tartness. In Japan, the sweeter the fruit the better, and with so many options people don't tend to bother with the sour stuff. I think the general consesus was that these zakuro would make lovely seasonal decorations but they weren't fit for eating. The lady who gave them away even seemed a bit apologetic, saying they were just going to be thrown out otherwise.

But I was just thrilled to be given these, and for free-- I'd have to pay at least $5 per piece (assuming I could even find them). Not only is it a delicious fruit, but it's incredibly beautiful. And I love the way it takes me back to my childhood: I have vivid memories of eating them when I was little, how I'd grow frustrated at all the work involved just to get a small amount of flesh, but never be able to stop myself. Strangely, it was one of the few exotic fruits (exotic by Canadian standards, anyway) I remember eating as a child-- I didn't taste mangoes, papaya, starfruit and the like until I was far older.

Japanese pomegranates seem to have browner skins and paler seeds than the ones I'm used to, and are a bit more sour than I remember. They take the same amount of work to eat though, and after eating half a pomegranate's seeds I realized I didn't have to patience to continue. So I made pomegranate juice.

This is what I got from one and a half pomegranates. The top is pink and foamy because my juicer is part of my Magic Bullet mixer and I can't get juice without a bit of whipping action. No mind, the foam was pretty and may even be normal for pomegranate juice for all I know. This was the first time I've had it fresh (and only the second time to have pomegranate juice at all-- like I said, the stuff never became trendy here).

It was terribly sour, but once I'd sweetened it a bit it was so so good. If I could drink this stuff every day I would be a happy girl (and healthy too? I have a vague idea that this stuff is good for you but don't know exactly how). Next year I think I'm going to offer my student cash for her whole crop...

Comments

[Kat]

that is so great! I've heard it is packed with Vitamin C so it will help ward of colds!

[Kat]

"off" that is.

[Paul Attinello]

They are kind of troublesome to eat... but the dried or semidried seeds are great in cooking; maybe if there are a lot left over you can let some dry out.

[annie]

i found that gently loosening the seeds in a bowl of water under running water makes the whole process quicker and less messy... the membranes can be easily separated from the seed plus theres less chance of finding surprise red stains on your shirt(just remember to keep the pom under water while prying apart):p

[Oanh]

I enjoy reading your website, the yummy foods *drools*.

Pomegranates are delicious and healthy for you but it's sooo expensive in the US. This time of the year, they are tiny and the supermarkets charged you $3.99 per fruit :-/

[Mama BoK]

For the life of me.. i never know how to eat pomegranate.. or maybe .. i'm just lazy..! but there was a kid that used to work for us.. and he loves them. and being so ex here.. he still buys them.. ;)

[june2]

They are super healthy, being ultra high in anti-oxidants. Those must lack something, I know our citrus (valencia, mandarins,etc) can get sort of sour and I think it has to do with needing to fertilize properly. If they aren't well-liked in Japan, probably no one takes the trouble to fertilize. A shame, as when they are dark red and sweet inside, they are sooo good. Juicing yours was a great idea!

[Trig]

That's exactly why pomegranates are so trendy, it all started when they were discovered to be one of the "superfruits". It's their antioxidant content that makes them so healthy.

[tabehodai]

Hi Amy,
you're such a lucky gal! It's not everyday that one gets free pomegranates to juice. The good news is that you can buy them bottled with no artificial sugar and preservatives added.

The ultimate anti-oxidant power drink I'd recommend is to blend pomegranate juice with frozen blueberries (yeh get them on a frozen food discount day) and caspian yogurt. It's the best body booster drink to start off a day!

Keep up the wonderful blog!

[lydia hamre]

Beautiful! What a sweet gift.

[cheryl kettell]

An alternative -- I've recently read that it is possible to roll the pomegranate carefully to break open the seeds and release the juice (being cetain not to break open the peel). Then, stick a straw through the peel and suck out the juice. Haven't tried it as yet. But, just bought two large poms for $3.00 US and will try it soon.

[june2]

MMmmm....I just came across a fantastic pomegranite recipe that I copied out of a Krishna cookbook! I thought I'd share it with you since it's right here:

Rose Pomegranite Drink
1 Tbs rose water
1/4 tsp cardamom
3/4 cup honey
1/4 cup lime juice (I would skip this if yours are tart)
2/3 cup pomegranite
5 cups water and 1and1/2 cups of fresh rose petals if you have organic ones (not likely in Nov!)

I suppose this is a warm weather drink, but it could be great anytime if you love rose water, and I dooooo : )
Enjoy~

[Amy]

Thanks for the comments and recipe!

Annie, I was fine with just an apron, but then again these weren't very juicy. Will do it underwater next time.

Tabehodai, I can buy real pomegranate juice in Japan? Where??

Cheryl, I've tried that! My sister-in-law bought Iranian pomegranates that came with a bag in case the pom broke) and straw. It was a lot of work, but I got a surprising amount of juice out of mine.
These were beautiful red pomegranates with clear smooth skin, but the Japanese ones I've seen have uneven skin with little cracks, so I'm not sure it would work with them. I hope yours worked though!

[baboo]

Yo Amy,
Just back from BC and Frank. Re pomegranates: I WAS IN DOWNTOWN WYNNDEL (YOU CAN TELL YOU"RE IN DOWNTOWN WHEN THERE ARE NO CARIBOU IN SIGHT) AND THE ONLY FOOD STORE WAS AN OVERWAITEA (SP??) AND IT HAD VENISON PEPERONI AND ABOUT A THOUSAND CASES OF RED RIPE POMS> WHO KNEW???
BABS

[tabehodai]

I lived in real inaka Japan and I found REAL bottled pomegranate juice in the foreign supermarkets and in the local supermarkets. The foreign supermarket one was actually cheaper than the one sold at the local supermarket. Although both were Japanese brands?

Oh, I did a quick search and what luck! I found it! Hope you can enjoy it! http://www.rakuten.co.jp/zakuro/444087/

[aja]

Pomegranates are very popular here in Israel & very cheap in season ($2/kilo or free if you have friends with trees)

Lately there has been a very pale-seeded variety with juice that is almost as sweet as applejuice.

Popular ways of drinking it is are either mixed with orange or carrot juice (fresh of course).

The seeds are also really good when added to a tabbouleh salad (go easy on the bulgur wheat and increase the parsley x3)

They are supposed to be very good for your kidneys (like cranberries) and lately there have been articles published about how they are also good for preventing or combatting breast cancer.

[Amy]

Baboo, sounds like a swank place. I hope I can make it out there sometime, under happier circumstances.

Thanks Tabehodai!

Aja, thanks for the tips. I wish they were that cheap here!