The beginning of the pear harvest usually precedes that of apples by a week or so and concludes earlier.

Even though their skin can be a little resistant to the bite, due to the delicate nature of their flesh they are picked under-ripe.

If you have the luxury of planning ahead, buy them 3 to 4 days before required and allow them to ripen and soften at room temperature.

They ripen from the inside out. When ripe they exude their distinctive aroma and the flesh gives to gentle pressure at the stem end. A ripe pear should be both juicy and of silken texture.

Avoid bruised fruit. The subtle sweetness of a velvety ripe pear is a delicious foil to the piquancy of a blue cheese, chevre or feta.

On the nutrition side, pears are non-allergenic, making them ideal for introducing solids to babies and for folk on elimination diets, are high in fibre and a great source of Vitamin C.

Producing less than 1% of Australia’s pears, those that we do grow are predominantly for the premium priced fresh fruit market and include the Bartlett, Packham, Beurre Bosc and Doyenne du Comice.

Bartlett This golden-skinned bell-shaped fruit has juicy sweet flesh with a pleasant musky taste. Equally delicious fresh, cooked or preserved.

Packham A large white fleshed juicy pear with pale yellow skin when ripe. Often irregularly shaped, this slow ripening fruit will need up to a week at room temperature to ripen if bought firm and green.

Beurre Bosc Like the Packham, it is slow ripening. This pale brown skinned fruit has an elongated shape and enjoys long slow poaching or baking.

Doyenne du Comice Justly labelled The Queen of Dessert Pears, the flesh of the Comice is velvet-smooth and juicy. Rounded and smooth the yellow tinted green skin boasts a speckled red blush