With over 250 5-star reviews, this persimmon bread recipe has become a long-time reader favorite. The texture is super moist and fluffy, it's the perfect combination of spices, and not too sweet.
By Candice Walker on February 24, 2019 (Last updated October 31, 2023) This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
With over 300 5-star reviews, this persimmon bread recipe has become a long-time reader favorite. The texture is super moist and fluffy, it’s the perfect combination of spices, and not too sweet.
Here’s what people are saying about the best persimmon breadthey’ve ever had:
“This is the most delicious bread I’ve ever made!”
“Super moist, not too sweet, perfect combination of spices!”
“The texture of this bread is amazing.”
“Fluffy, moist, and super duper delicious!”
“…the smell was absolutely heavenly while it baked.”
Want the complete scoop on baking with this fruit? Read my thorough persimmon guide.
🌟Why You’ll Love This Persimmon Bread Recipe
Easy for beginners – I have tested this recipe thoroughly to make sure it’s accessible for beginner bakers and provided easy-to-follow instructions for every step.
Over 250 5-star reviews – Ratings don’t like, and this persimmon bread recipe is has won the hearts of many readers.
Persimmon flavor is the star of the show – Persimmons are my favorite winter fruit. They’ve got all the fall and winter spice flavors, and overripe persimmons are irresistibly sweet and delicious.
Moist texture – This bread has the texture of the best banana bread, moist and scrumptious. You’ll never have a dry, cakey bread with this recipe!
Great way to use ripe persimmons – Persimmon lovers can always eat these lovely fruits as they are, but I think they really shine in baked goods like this bread, these persimmon cookies, or these persimmon muffins.
🧾Ingredients for Persimmon Bread
Persimmonpulp – I prefer to use Hachiya persimmons because they have a better yield, but Fuyu and American also both work. Your persimmons must be really ripe and mushy (think a super squishy and soft texture) for this recipe to work best. To ripen persimmons, leave them on the counter at room temp. Then pulse them into a puree.
All-purpose flour – Some readers have tried using gluten-free flour substitutes with success, but I haven’t tested it myself.
Unsalted butter – It’s better to use unsalted butter in baking so that you can control the salt content yourself.
Whitesugar – Use white granulated or white cane sugar.
Spice mix – I use a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves to spice this bread with fall flavors. You can also substitute with pumpkin spice.
Vanilla extract – Try to use a high-quality vanilla extract for this recipe.
Eggs – These act as the binder for the mix.
Salt – I usually use kosher or sea salt in this recipe.
Baking soda – This is the raising agent that helps the persimmon bread rise. Baking soda uses the acidity from the fruit to activate.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
🧡 Pro Tip 🧡
Use very ripe and mushy persimmons for your puree. The riper they are, the sweeter they taste. Also, the mushiness of the ripe persimmon makes it so the persimmon can be evenly distributed throughout the batter. Discard as much of the persimmon skins as possible when baking for the smoothest texture.
👩🍳How to Make Persimmon Bread
Before starting, you will need to have three bowls ready: 1 large, 1 medium, and 1 small. You will also need your pureed Hachiya persimmon pulp.
Preheat your oven to 350F. Lightly grease the surface of a 9x5x3 loaf pan with butter or a non-stick baking spray. I like to use a non-stick loaf pan for easy results.
Peel your overripe persimmon and pulse them in a food processor.
In your medium bowl, sift the dry ingredients together (flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves). If you don’t want to sift them, you can also whisk them together to break down any clumps.
In your large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until well incorporated and they have a light, fluffy texture.
In the small bowl, beat the eggs and vanilla extract with a whisk.
With a hand mixer or standing mixer, slowly pour the egg mixture into the creamed butter and sugar and mix them together well.
Next, add in the persimmon puree. Mix until just incorporated.
Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients one-third at a time. Mix until just incorporated. It will be a very wet batter.
Pour the batter into the greased loaf pan. I sometimes like to top the batter with very thinly sliced Fuyu persimmons for decoration.
Cook the bread for 1 hour until a toothpick inserted into the bread center just barely comes out clean. Take care not to overbake it as the texture will not be as moist.
🧡 Pro Tip 🧡
To make sure your bread retains its moist texture, let the bread cool completely in a sealed environment. Use a plastic bag or large resealable container. Then, leave the bread overnight and enjoy it in the morning.
With over 250 5-star reviews, this persimmon bread recipe has become a long-time reader favorite. The texture is super moist and fluffy, it's the perfect combination of spices, and not too sweet.
Preheat to 350F. Lightly grease your 9x5x3 loaf pan.
In a medium bowl sift the dry ingredients. Flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar.
In a small bowl, beat the eggs with the vanilla extract.
With a hand mixer or standing mixer slowly pour the egg mixture into the creamed butter and sugar. Mix well.
Add the persimmon. Remove from mixer.
With a spoon or rubber spatula, add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients 1/3 at a time. Mix with a rubber spatula until just incorporated.
Pour into loaf pan*. Optional to top with thinly sliced persimmons.**
Cook 48-55 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool completely. I let it cool overnight and have it for breakfast!
Video
Notes
* Usually when baking in a glass pan, the temperature should be 25 degrees lower, and will take up to 10 minutes longer – this recipe has not been tested in a glass pan, but in a non-stick pan (see photos).**If you plan to decorate the top of the loaf with persimmon, know that it keeps the center from cooking evenly with the sides of the loaf. The center of the loaf will need longer to cook than the sides. For best results, do not top the loaf with persimmon. If you do, slice them VERY thinly.Additional Notes
Use very ripe and mushy persimmons. The riper, the sweeter. Also, the mushiness of the ripe persimmon makes it so the persimmon can be evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Note that the batter is very wet, so don’t be concerned with this texture.
Fuyu or Hichaya? Although I prefer to eat slightly under-ripe Fuyu persimmons for snacks on the go, the over-ripe hachiya works best in the batter of this recipe. I use sliced Fuyu persimmons for the top of the bread.
Discard as much of the persimmon skins as possible when baking for the smoothest texture.
Did you try this recipe?I’d love to hear what you think! Leave a Review to let us know how it came out, if you have a successful substitution or variation, or anything else.
359 Comments
How do you get the pulp- do I blend the whole fruits with the skin on?
Experimenting with this fruit.
If you have a powerful blender like a vitamix you do not need to peel the persimmon. I threw them in there with the skins on and the pulp is completely smooth.
I always use the skins in my blender with no problem. I’ve used a different recipe for years but will consider using this one next time. Also I tip I find is I freeze whole firm persimmons in a bag and when hey thaw the texture is perfect for blending, same as letting them get soft on the counter😊
The smell was delicious, my 3 year old absolutely had to have a piece fresh out of the oven.
I did make some changes because I am both wheat and lactose intolerant. Used 180 g of spelt flour with baking powder and used a plant based butter.
Also used an unrefined sugar, that is similar in colour to brown sugar, giving the bread a beautiful dark brown colour.
It did turn out quite oily, so next time I’ll use less butter.
It was heavenly, I have no idea how you manage to wait until the next morning.
This was my first time baking with persimmon, a great recipe.
Many thanks from the Netherlands!
I’m so glad to hear you both enjoyed it, Nanda! I’ve never baked with spelt flour… and I’m curious how it will turn out when you reduce the butter… please report back, I’d love to give it a try!
I’m inspired by the comments and will make this bread. I distinctly bought overripe persimmons. Was going to add it to a protein shake, but like the sound of this bread. I love persimmons and wish I had a tree as well Candice. Where do these trees grow?
I can’t wait to hear what you think, Carol! They are native to Japan, China, and North America, depending on the species. I do see them all over Portland!
So yummy and easy. I subbed butter with bananas due to dairy allergies. I also cut the sugar to 1/4 cup sugar. The sweetness of the bananas and persimmons made up for the sugar. My students loved it!
My friends and family loved it. But instead of sliced fuyu on top, i used the left over hachiya which eventually jellied and made a perfect topping! great for my morning coffee too.
This is excellent recipe ! We have about 4 Khaki Persimmons Trees . It was a great tree to have lots of fruits we harvest every year we give it away to our friends and family . But this year is not that really much fruits because of strong storms we had few months ago ! Some of the fruits were shaken to the ground . I was able to purée some of ripe ones . I definitely make some more and give it away for Christmas to friends and family . I add some chopped pecan nuts and chocolate chips for toppings and used Bundt cake pan . It did not take long it was gone the next day . Thank you for the excellent recipe and sharing it to us ! I give you thumbs up 👍
I’m not sure what happened, but the bread collapsed after I took it out the oven. My toothpick was dry when I checked it, but when I cut a slice of the bread, it didn’t seem to be ready even though I baked it for 1 hour. I’m also not sure what the inside is meant to look like since there’s no photo. It still tasted great though! Any insight as to where I went wrong?
Hi Elaine, I’m so sorry to hear it collapsed! My guess is that you could have used maybe a tad bit more flour, or it could have baked another few minutes. The inside should look like banana bread, and the texture should be the same. It sounds like I should test the recipe weighing out the flour. I’ll test it this weekend and add it to the recipe… my plan was to make it again anyways 🙂
This recipe is amazing! I had been wanting to try to bake persimmon bread for a while now not really knowing what to expect. I substituted with all oatmeal flour (1 3/4 cup; found conversion online) and added chia seeds. We all just ate it up. I had to make more to share with my parents who gave me the persimmons. I also used the flatter tomato like persimmons that my dad grows on his tree. So good!! This will be a staple every fall.
That sounds like such a good addition and love the idea to use oatmeal flour! Never added chia seeds before. I’m so glad you loved it, Luna… and I’m so jealous they have a fuyu persimmon tree! Enjoy!
You have educated me on persimmons. I made the persimmon muffins and I was sold. Now the bread. I think I like it even more. It’s so moist and I love slicing it and warming it up on a hot griddle with a little butter to get it crispy. Excellent!!!
This is an excellent recipe. I toyed with it by adding 1/2 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts and by using two shots of bourbon: one added to the mix after the persimmon pulp and the other sipped from a glass as I baked. It turned out great. There is just a hint of bourbon, not an overpowering taste as in some holiday breads. I also placed a rectangle of parchment at the bottom of the baking dish before adding the batter, and, after baking, the loaf was very easy to remove from the pan.
Moved to an acre almost 3 years ago with several neglected and half dead trees. We were excited to see that this fall one of the trees starting producing almost a dozen little fruits. It took awhile to find out we had Fuyu persimmon tree. I harvested my 10 persimmons 2 weeks ago and used them for thanksgiving decorations and today 4 are pretty soft so went in search of bread recipes. So glad I found yours. It was easy and delicious! I added about 1 1/2 cup pulp because that’s what the 4 persimmons yielded. I had to bake mine 60 mins to brown under the slices. Definitely will make again! Now to decide do I make cookies or what with my remaining 5 persimmons? ☺️
I am so glad to hear it, Michelle.. and I’m so jealous of your trees! Amazing!! Enjoy them. I have a persimmon muffin recipe, too, if you’re interested 🙂
How do you get the pulp- do I blend the whole fruits with the skin on?
Experimenting with this fruit.
Peel, and then blend… can’t wait to hear what you think!
If you have a powerful blender like a vitamix you do not need to peel the persimmon. I threw them in there with the skins on and the pulp is completely smooth.
Thanks for sharing, Nona! I’ve never pureed it with the skins. I’ll have to give this one a try.
I always use the skins in my blender with no problem. I’ve used a different recipe for years but will consider using this one next time. Also I tip I find is I freeze whole firm persimmons in a bag and when hey thaw the texture is perfect for blending, same as letting them get soft on the counter😊
This would have saved me so much time waiting this year. Thank you for sharing this awesome tip, Robin!
Thank you for the recipe. I have been given a bunch of persimmon so will make this cake tonight!
I just wanted to let you know that you refer to hachiya persimmon as “hochaya” in your ingredient list and as “hichaya” in your instructions.
Thank you, Siobhan… I’ll correct the type-o!
The smell was delicious, my 3 year old absolutely had to have a piece fresh out of the oven.
I did make some changes because I am both wheat and lactose intolerant. Used 180 g of spelt flour with baking powder and used a plant based butter.
Also used an unrefined sugar, that is similar in colour to brown sugar, giving the bread a beautiful dark brown colour.
It did turn out quite oily, so next time I’ll use less butter.
It was heavenly, I have no idea how you manage to wait until the next morning.
This was my first time baking with persimmon, a great recipe.
Many thanks from the Netherlands!
I’m so glad to hear you both enjoyed it, Nanda! I’ve never baked with spelt flour… and I’m curious how it will turn out when you reduce the butter… please report back, I’d love to give it a try!
I’m inspired by the comments and will make this bread. I distinctly bought overripe persimmons. Was going to add it to a protein shake, but like the sound of this bread. I love persimmons and wish I had a tree as well Candice. Where do these trees grow?
I can’t wait to hear what you think, Carol! They are native to Japan, China, and North America, depending on the species. I do see them all over Portland!
So yummy and easy. I subbed butter with bananas due to dairy allergies. I also cut the sugar to 1/4 cup sugar. The sweetness of the bananas and persimmons made up for the sugar. My students loved it!
Thank you so much for sharing, Mary Ann! I love that substitution idea… I’ll have to give it a try!
Absolutely amazing!! My first time making persimmon bread and i am so glad i chose this recipe! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I’m so glad to hear you liked it, Maddie!
My friends and family loved it. But instead of sliced fuyu on top, i used the left over hachiya which eventually jellied and made a perfect topping! great for my morning coffee too.
Sounds like such a good topping… glad you all enjoyed it, Maria!
thank you for this recipe, we love it -i add roasted pecans
Yum! Pecans are such a good addition in this one. Glad you liked it, Maura!
This is excellent recipe ! We have about 4 Khaki Persimmons Trees . It was a great tree to have lots of fruits we harvest every year we give it away to our friends and family . But this year is not that really much fruits because of strong storms we had few months ago ! Some of the fruits were shaken to the ground . I was able to purée some of ripe ones . I definitely make some more and give it away for Christmas to friends and family . I add some chopped pecan nuts and chocolate chips for toppings and used Bundt cake pan . It did not take long it was gone the next day . Thank you for the excellent recipe and sharing it to us ! I give you thumbs up 👍
I’m so glad you loved it, Maria! Pecans and chocolate chips are such a delicious topping in this one… thank you for sharing!
I’m not sure what happened, but the bread collapsed after I took it out the oven. My toothpick was dry when I checked it, but when I cut a slice of the bread, it didn’t seem to be ready even though I baked it for 1 hour. I’m also not sure what the inside is meant to look like since there’s no photo. It still tasted great though! Any insight as to where I went wrong?
Hi Elaine, I’m so sorry to hear it collapsed! My guess is that you could have used maybe a tad bit more flour, or it could have baked another few minutes. The inside should look like banana bread, and the texture should be the same. It sounds like I should test the recipe weighing out the flour. I’ll test it this weekend and add it to the recipe… my plan was to make it again anyways 🙂
Hi Elaine… here is a photo of the inside!
Was delicious and worked well with gluten-free flour. I also added cardamom for extra yum. 🙂
I’m so glad to hear it! I’ve never used gluten-free flour, and have some friends who would love it. Thank you for sharing, Jessica!
This recipe is amazing! I had been wanting to try to bake persimmon bread for a while now not really knowing what to expect. I substituted with all oatmeal flour (1 3/4 cup; found conversion online) and added chia seeds. We all just ate it up. I had to make more to share with my parents who gave me the persimmons. I also used the flatter tomato like persimmons that my dad grows on his tree. So good!! This will be a staple every fall.
That sounds like such a good addition and love the idea to use oatmeal flour! Never added chia seeds before. I’m so glad you loved it, Luna… and I’m so jealous they have a fuyu persimmon tree! Enjoy!
You have educated me on persimmons. I made the persimmon muffins and I was sold. Now the bread. I think I like it even more. It’s so moist and I love slicing it and warming it up on a hot griddle with a little butter to get it crispy. Excellent!!!
That sounds so good, Justin… I’m glad you liked it, and I’m going to have to give your serving suggestion a try!
This is an excellent recipe. I toyed with it by adding 1/2 cup of coarsely chopped walnuts and by using two shots of bourbon: one added to the mix after the persimmon pulp and the other sipped from a glass as I baked. It turned out great. There is just a hint of bourbon, not an overpowering taste as in some holiday breads. I also placed a rectangle of parchment at the bottom of the baking dish before adding the batter, and, after baking, the loaf was very easy to remove from the pan.
Love it! Such a good idea to add the bourbon… and keep a shot for yourself. Enjoy, Matt!
Moved to an acre almost 3 years ago with several neglected and half dead trees. We were excited to see that this fall one of the trees starting producing almost a dozen little fruits. It took awhile to find out we had Fuyu persimmon tree. I harvested my 10 persimmons 2 weeks ago and used them for thanksgiving decorations and today 4 are pretty soft so went in search of bread recipes. So glad I found yours. It was easy and delicious! I added about 1 1/2 cup pulp because that’s what the 4 persimmons yielded. I had to bake mine 60 mins to brown under the slices. Definitely will make again! Now to decide do I make cookies or what with my remaining 5 persimmons? ☺️
I am so glad to hear it, Michelle.. and I’m so jealous of your trees! Amazing!! Enjoy them. I have a persimmon muffin recipe, too, if you’re interested 🙂