Chinese Pear, Pyrus pyrifolia, San Diego, California
4,495 views · Published 4 October 2012 · 2:43 · Indexed 20 September 2026
Channel: Melvin Wei · 2012 · Science & Technology
It took me a while to recognize the fruit of this tree. As it was fenced in, I could not get in close enough to examine the peel. The leaves resembled those of orange tree leaves in shape, but with jagged edges/tiny serrations. By appearance, the fruits are Asian pears, but I cannot tell what cultivar this tree is from since the coloration is a little more orange than what I've eaten before. Chinese pears go by a variety of East Asian monikers, and are commonly called Asian pears in the United States. Chinese pears are crispy and juicy with thin peels. The best way to eat these is to refrigerate them, wash and peel them, then eat them raw like most fruits. The fruit flesh is grainy and crunchy, moreso than a watermelon, with a high water content and very subtle juice flavor that is much lower in fructose than other fruits. If you haven't tried these I highly recommend it! They are marketed as apple pears in the United States in regular supermarket chains but that is a misnomer, as they bear no relations to the fruit of the apple tree.
