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Pears
Pears are consumed fresh, canned, as juice, and dried. The juice can also be used in jellies and jams, usually in combination with other fruits or berries. Fermented pear juice is called perry.
Pears will ripen faster if placed next to bananas in a fruit bowl. They stay fresh for longer if kept in a fridge.
Pears are the least allergenic of all fruits. Using bananas to ripen other fruit Summer and autumn pears are gathered before they are fully ripe, while they are still green, but snap off when lifted. If left to ripen and turn yellow on the tree, the sugars will turn to starch crystals and the pear will have gritty texture inside. In the case of the 'Passe Crassane', long the favored winter pear in France, the crop should be gathered at three different times, the first a fortnight or more before it is ripe, the second a week or ten days after that, and the third when fully ripe. The first gathering will come into eating latest, and thus the season of the fruit may be considerably prolonged.
Peras de Rincón de Soto
Rincón de Soto pears are of the Blanquilla and Conference variety which have DOP protection. They are produced in Rincón de Soto, Alfaro, Calahorra, and Aldeanueva de Ebro in the province of La Rioja in Spain.
It is the traditional way of their cultivation which makes them produce fruit with some features not found in other areas. These practices are now supported with modern farming techniques. The method is based on a proper design of the plantation. Pruning and thinning of trees is done by hand as is the collection of the fruit. The trees are not watered during flowering and before harvest dates, unless weather conditions dictate, and with prior authorisation.
The pears are inspected for colour, hardness and size and only those that comply with the regulations are allowed to be marketed under the brand of “DOP Rincón de Soto Pears". The rest are used to produce juice or jam, or simply left on the ground. The people who pick the pears carry a gauge to measure them. The Blanquilla pears must exceed a size of 58 mm, and for the Conference, 60 mm in diameter. A proportion of the fruit is sold during immediately after picking and the remainder is sent to cold stores. From there, they are sent to markets and shops throughout the year.
How much does one cup of pears weigh?
Estimated US cup to weight equivalents:
| Ingredient | US Cups | Grams | Ounces | |
| Pears | fresh - peeled/sliced | 1 |
225 grams | 8 ounces |
| Pears | tinned - drained/diced | 1 |
175 grams | 6 ounces |
Conversion notes:
Every ingredient has a cups to ounces or grams conversion table. Search for the ingredient, cup to weight conversions are at the end of each ingredient page.
We also have a generic conversion table and a portions per person lookup.
