Black sapote

Diospyros nigra · Fruit

40 pairings

Black sapote is the tomato-sized fruit of a tropical persimmon tree (Diospyros nigra), native to Mexico and Central America. When fully ripe its flesh turns glossy dark brown to near-black and softens to a smooth pudding-like custard, earning it the nickname "chocolate pudding fruit" — though it is botanically unrelated to cocoa.

Picking a good onedrag

UnderripeOverripe

Just gone softAny patch still firm is still astringent. Wait until it dimples all over and rests on a flat spot, then halve it and spoon it out.Nearly there

SkinGreen dulling to a muddy olive-brown

SqueezeDimples under a thumb, shoulders still firm

CalyxLobes lifting away, edges gone brown

Smell at the calyxFirst faint sweetness at the stem end

Reading a just ripe one. Move the slider and the rest of this page — nutrition, pairings — re-scores with it.

What one gives you

85%

Usable yield

About 290 g of pulp · skin, calyx and a few flat seeds off — borrowed from persimmon, as USDA lists no refuse for black sapote

341 g

Typical weight

one specimen

Preparing