How to use pears:
Pears are quite versatile and can be used any way you would use an apple - fresh eating, in salads, sauce, baked, in quick breads, etc.

Storing and ripening pears at home:
The ideal temperature for storing unripe pears at home is between 32-38°F with high humidity. Conditions such as this can be closely met by storing UNripe pears in a plastic bag in the crisper section of the refrigerator at up to 38°F. To ripen pears, keep at room temperature for 3-4 days until they yield to gentle pressure at the stem end. To hasten ripening, place pears in a paper bag and fold the top closed. Refrigerate ripened pears to slow further ripening or eat at once. Note: not all pears will change color upon ripening.

ASIAN PEAR NOTES:

Asian pears comprise a large group of pears that are crisp in texture and, when mature, are good to eat as soon as harvested or for several months after picking if held in cold storage. This ready-to-eat feature may make them more acceptable to some people than European pears that are usually served when soft and juicy, which condition takes about a week to occur after removal from cold storage. Asian pears do not change texture after picking or storage as do European pears such as 'Bartlett' or 'Comice'. Often Asian pears are called apple pears because they are crisp and juicy like apples but with a different and distinctive texture. They also are called salad pears, Nashi (Japanese for "pear"), Oriental, Chinese or Japanese pears (Nihonnashi). All Asian pears today are selected seedlings or crosses made within Pyrus serotina.

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PEARS	DESCRIPTION
Abate Fatale	Availability: Sept. Mid Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Anjou (Buerré d'Anjou)	A sturdy salad pear, best when eaten fresh. Very juicy when ripe, and a sweet mellow flavor. Shows no color change upon ripening, but yields slightly to gentle pressure. Origins: Belgium, 1800 Availability: Sept. Late Storage: Up to 5 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Soft, mild goat cheese, Brie Wine Pairing: Sauvignon Blanc, Champagne
Bartlett, Red Bartlett	An excellent fresh eating pear, but also a choice preserving, canning or cooking pear as it holds its shape and flavor with cooking. Ripens to bright yellow from light green when still unripe. Availability: Sept. Early Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Saint Andre, Fontina Wine Pairing: Brut Champagne, Merlot
Bosc (Buerré Bosc)	A crisp pear with coarse texture, excellent for fresh eating or for baking, poaching, sauce, etc. Does not change color upon ripening but will yield slightly to gentle pressure. Origins: Belgium, 1807 Availability: Sept. Late Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Aged white cheddar, Parmigiano Reggiano Wine Pairing: Cabernet Sauvignon, Barbaresco
Butter	Origins: Availability: Sept. Mid Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Cascade	Availability: Sept. Mid Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Chateau Royale	Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Comice (Doyenné du Comice)	One of the sweetest and juiciest of all pears, with a fine, melting texture. Excellent for fresh eating, as a dessert pear, an accompaniment to fine cheeses, or as a salad pear. Origins: France, 1849 Availability: Oct. Mid Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Stilton, Roquefort Wine Pairing: Ruby Port, Sauternes
Concorde	Availability: Oct. Mid Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Flemish Beauty
Forelle	A smaller pear variety, excellent dessert, snack or lunch box pear. Ripens to yellow with brilliant red blush or freckling, abundantly juicy and crisp texture even when ripe. Origins: Germany, 1806; Grown for its beauty. Availability: Oct. Mid Storage: Up to 4 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Port Salut, Maytag Blue Wine Pairing: Dry Riesling, Late Harvest Riesling
Lariza	Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Mederis	Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Packham's Triumph	Resembles its parent, the Bartlett, but arrives later in the season. Rich outstanding musk flavor, very juicy. Origins: Australia, 1898 Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 4 months at 32-38°F.
Seckel	Tiny pears with ultra-sweet flavor. Good for dessert, pickling or as a snack or lunch box treat. Origins: United States, 1790 Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F. Cheese Pairing: Fontina, Havarti Wine Pairing: Pinot Noir, Beaujolais
Starkcrimson	A salad pear, best when eaten fresh. Lightens from deep wine red to claret when ripe and yields slightly to gentle pressure. Availability: Sept. Early Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Taylor's Gold	This russeted Comice has a rich sweet flavor and delicate perfume, Origins: A natural Comice mutation from New Zealand. Availability: Sept. Early Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
ASIAN PEARS	DESCRIPTION
20th Century (Nijisseiki)	This is the best flavored and most popular Asian pear in Japan and California. It originated in Japan in about 1900 and was responsible for the high popularity of pears in Japan. It is round, yellow-skinned, easily bruised, but stores well. Origins: Japan, 1898 Availability: Sept. Late Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Atago	Extra large Korean pear, noticeably sweet and juicy fruit with a golden brown skin. Origins: 20th Century X Imamura Aki Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Chojuro	Also known as "The Rum Pear," the Chojuro is juicy and delicious, with a rich rum-like flavor. It is beautiful and large, with a dark, thick golden skin and crisp white flesh. Origins: Japan, 1898 Availability: Oct. Mid Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Daisui Li	Crisp, juicy and sweet, the Daisui Li is a unique and exceptionally flavorful Asian Pear. Large in size and round, with yellowish green skin. Availability: Oct. Late Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Hosui	The Hosui is copiously juicy, crisp, mild, and sweet, with golden papery skin. This variety is most often found in mass markets. Origins: Japan, 1954 Availability: Sept. Mid Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Kawa	Availability: Oct. Mid Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Kosui	Small, flat, extremely sweet and complexly flavored fruit with a tender bronze-russet skin. Availability: Sept. Mid Storage: Up to 2 months at 32-38°F.
Olympic	This is an old Korean and Japanese cultivar that ripens in October and stores well. The fruit is brown-russet, somewhat elongated and slightly irregular in shape. At harvest it has only fair flavor, but flavor improves in storage. Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 5 months at 32-38°F.
Seuri	Also called "The Candy Pear," the Seuri is a very sweet and uniquely flavorful Chinese variety. Availability: Oct. Late Storage: Up to 3 months at 32-38°F.
Shin Li	Prized for its rich and appealing flavor, the Shin Li is large, sweet, and very juicy. The crisp bright white flesh is covered by a yellow russeted skin. Availability: Oct. Late Storage: Up to 4 months at 32-38°F.
Shinko	The Shinko is large and round to slightly flattened with a beautiful bronze-russet skin. Fruit flavor is excellent. Availability: Oct. Early Storage: Up to 4 months at 32-38°F.
Shinseiki (New Century)	A large (up to 2 pounds), beautiful, yellow, early ripening Asian Pear, the Shinseiki is sweet, very juicy, and flavorful, with a hint of tartness near the core. Origins: Japan, 1945 Availability: Sept. Late Storage: Up to 4 months at 32-38°F.