Guide to Types and Varieties of Nashi or Asian Pear

Asian pears are real pears, even if they look more like apples. Asian pears or nashi is yellow-green fruit that has a round shape and plump texture that you might have the urge to cup them in your hands and just stare at their lightly speckled skin for a minute before you take the first juicy bite.  There are two types of Nashi or Asian Pear, there is the Chinese variety of Asian pears which have the standard pyriform, or pear-shape figure that we see with European pears. Asian pears can have different skins too: Some types have a smooth surface. Some types do not. And even if we often think of them having a warm sandy brown color, they can also come in different colors such as yellow, green, and reddish. In this article, we are going to talk about different types of Nashi and Asian Pear.

Types and Varieties

There are three types of Asian pears, the round or flat fruit that has green to yellow skin, the one with bronze-colored to light bronze russet, and the one that has a pear shape along with green or russet skin. These are the several types of Nashi or Asian Pear:

  • Shinsui – This is an early maturing Asian pear that has a brown color along with a reasonable size. It usually matures in mid-July.
  • Shinseiki – This Asian pear has a round and yellow skin along with firm flesh. It matures late in July, and you can store this variety for up to three months. The threes of the Shinseki Asian pear are self-fruitful, which means they don’t need any pollinators. The fruit holds on the tree well, and it often bears fruits four times in one season.
  • Hosui – This variety of Asian pear has a very juicy, sweet, and abundant fruit that has bronze skin and low acid levels. It often ripens during early August, and this has become a new popular fruit in California and Japan. The Hosui Asian pear gives both growers and consumer satisfaction because it’s a great bloomer, and it tastes delicious.
  • 20th Century Asian Pear – This Asian pear variety is considered to be the best flavored and most famous of all the types of Asian pear that can be found in California and Japan. This variety originated in Japan in the 1900s, and it was responsible for the popularity of pears in the country during that time. The 20th Century pear has a round shape with a yellow skin that can be easily bruised, but you can store this fruit for over six months.
  • Chojuro – This Asian pear variety has firm flesh and brown skin. This is a highly productive tree. Still, it is slowly losing popularity because it is not as juicy compared to the newer Asian pear variety. The Chojuro Asian pear often matures in mid-august, and it can be stored for over five months.
  • Kikusui – The Kikusui Asian pear has a flat shape along with a yellow-green color and a tender skin. You can store this fruit for over 3 months, but because of its dull-colored skin, it makes it look less attractive compared to other Asian pear varieties. Nevertheless, it’s size and flavor is the same as the 20th-century Asian pear.
  • Niitaka – This is a substantial Asian pear variety, and it has a brown-russet color. This variety is known for its large size and average flavor. It is a very vigorous fruit producer and often ripens during early September.
  • Tsu Li – This Asian pear variety has a long and football-shaped look along with green colored skin. It has a long storage life of six to ten months, and it gets better the longer it is stored. As it ripens it mid-September and it develops a greasy feel on its skin as it gets older.

Shinko – This Asian pear variety has a large, round, and slightly flattened appearance along with a bronze russet skin. The flavor of this fruit is perfect in hot climates, but you can only store them for about two months. The tree of the Shinko Asian pear is extremely productive, and it is an annual bearer of heavy crops.

Exit mobile version