While we love New York City, there's something to be desired on the food scene when compared to the West Coast. Of course, we have some of the most talented chefs in the world, but we're limited by geography and farming conditions when it comes to unique seasonal fruits and vegetables.
We feel that there are a few foods we've discovered while out on the West Coast that need to make their way over into the hearts and bellies of New Yorkers, and no, we're not talking about In-n-Out.
We already have some of these fruits and vegetables, but they aren't as predominantly available at supermarkets and farmer's markets as they are in states like California.
The West Coast has a leg up on the East Coast growing season. They have sunshine and fair weather almost all year round, including many months of Indian summers.
We have the ominous threat of snow and winter tundra temperatures, which isn't the best for growing unique, sometimes delicate, seasonal fruits and vegetables.
Simply because we have a limited growing conditions does not mean that we should miss out on the opportunity to experience the flavors of these fairly common West Coast foods.
Here are some West Coast foods that NYC needs to import and embrace.
1. Persimmons
leggcreekfarm Native American persimmons on a tree I just found in the woods. I collected some of the fruit to use the seeds for new trees! 😊 - - #americanpersimmon #persimmon #persimmons #leggcreekfarm #nativeplants #fruittree #edible #wildandfree #easttexas
You've probably seen these little orange, tomato like fruit at farmer's market, but passed right over it. We guarantee that you've probably heard of them, but never knew what they were or tasted like, and we need to change that.
Persimmons are fruits. The most common persimmons in the US are the Fuyu and Hachiya. The Fuyu looks like a small beefsteak tomato, where as the Hachiya looks more like a roma tomato.
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The Hachiya should not be eaten until fully ripe (or else it will be too astringent and tanic to eat), where as the Fuyu can be eaten at any stage of ripeness.
Persimmons are great in puddings, tarts, cakes, salsas, chutneys, etc.
Or, just eat them raw like an apple.
2. Finger limes
six_test_kitchen Today I discovered local finger limes, grown in Nipomo, California. #sixtestkitchen #arroyogrande #local #localproduce #fingerlimes
We have a really hard time finding these little nuggets anywhere near NYC. Imagine less-acidic lime juice in a little caviar ball that bursts in your mouth.
That little caviar bubble of delicious citrus is actually the pulp of a finger lime.
Like their name suggests, they look similar to fingers as they are long and cylindrical. They come in a plethora of colored skins such as brown and red, but the most prominent is green.
To remove the fruit from the skin, cut the finger lime in half, and push out the pulp like you would try to push out the last bit of toothpaste from the container.
The pulp is excellent as a garnish (think margarita night), or on salads, desserts, and pretty much anywhere you would use lime.
3. Sunchokes
When some of us went to school on the West Coast, we found this foreign root vegetable on almost every single menu. It took a while, but we finally tried it, and were blown away.
Sunchokes, also known as Jerusalem artichokes, are tubers that look very similar to ginger roots. They have a particularly nutty, almost sweet flavor.
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We like our sunchokes roasted or mashed, but have enjoyed them in soups and raw in salads or salsas.
Our favorite variation of a sunchoke dish is as a seasonal dessert pudding made with roasted sunchokes, made by Pastry Chef Robert Vallejos at Spruce in San Francisco.
4. Tri-tip Steak
If you've ever been to California, you've probably seen or heard about tri-tip. It's a cut of meat that Californians go particularly nuts about.
Tri-tip is the triangular tip of the sirloin steak. It's usually lean and muscly, with only a small peppering of fat.
Because of its lack of fat, which is generally the source of flavor for a steak, it typically requires seasoning, marination, or sauces
,5. Kumquat
kat_foodstylist Lovely sunny kumquats on an autumn day about to become jam. #kumquat #recipetesting #food #middleeast #cake
No, it's not just a funny name. It's actually a fruit.
Kumquats are tiny little inch-sized citrus (or citrus-like depending on scientists who can't figure out if it's related to other citrus) fruits that are slightly oval.
Kumquats taste sweet and tart, and can be eaten whole, flesh and all. The flesh is much sweeter than the acidic pulp.
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Most people on the east coast are aware of kumquat jellies and marmalades, but these little fruits can be eaten raw, candied, placed raw on salads, baked into tarts and cakes, poached, or used in chutneys and compotes.
6. Quince
Quince paste, jams, jellies, and marmalades are made using quince. Again, it's an actual fruit.
The quince fruit is a yellowish green in color that looks almost like a pear and an apple had a baby, but the bottom of the pear/apple becomes the top leafy stem for the quince.
Quince aren't generally eaten raw. It is much harder than a pear or apple, and much more acidic and astringent. Once cooked, it is softer and sweet.
Apart from jams, jellies, marmalades, and compotes, quince is excellent peeled then roasted, baked, or stewed in a sugar syrup.
7. Pomelo
Think really large, green grapefruit. You've probably seen these mammoth citruses in a supermarket, but passed right along due to their lime green peels.
Pomelos are typically sweeter and less acidic than grapefruits. Although the name suggests a hybrid, the pomelo is actually a natural fruit from Asia.
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You can pretty much eat this delicious fruit the same way you would a normal grapefruit. You can use the juice in salad dressings, salsas, granitas, sorbets, and drinks. You can eat it raw, or make it into jam or marmalade.
8. Pluot
Pluots are called many things. Some people call them plumots. Some people call them apriplums or apriums. These are all variations of the generation of the plum x apricot crossbreed.
Other people call them plumpercots... okay maybe that last one is just us. We feel that the people who named pluots missed out on the plumpercot softball tossed right over the plate.
There are quite a few variations of the pluot, ranging from all colors in the orange, pink, red, purple spectrum. One of our favorites is the "Dinosaur Egg" variety.
They're sweet and a bit less acidic than a plum, but more acidic than an apricot.
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[Feature Image Courtesy Instagram]