JUJUBES. 



39 



Fig. 13.- 



-Small honey jujubes, not as high priced as those shown in 

 figure 14, though of as good, if not better, flavor. 



There is an article often served to foreigners in China in homes and 



in hotels looking strikingly like the Persian date. This is the cele- 

 brated " Mi tsao," or 



honey jujube (figs. 



13 and 14). To pre- 

 pare this the Chinese 



take large, sound, 



dried fruits and boil 



them thoroughly in 



sugared water, after 



which they are taken 



out and dried in the 



sun or wind for a 



couple of days. 



When sufficiently 



dry they are given a 



slight boiling again 



and are partly dried. 



When dry enough to 



be handled, the skin 



is slightly slashed lengthwise with a few small knives tied together. 



Then ths fruits are 

 given a third boiling, 

 now, however, in a 

 stronger sugar water, 

 and for the best grades 

 of honey jujube honey 

 is added. When this 

 process is finished 

 they are spread out to 

 dry, and when no 

 longer sticky are ready 

 to be sold. The best 

 grade of these honey 

 jujubes sells for 40 

 cents Mexican a 

 pound, and is obtain- 

 able in only a few of 

 the larger cities of 

 China. In case the 

 American people 



should take to growing the jujube, they would find a ready market for 



the better varieties for use in the manufacture of various confections. 



204 



Fig. 14.— The best of the Chinese honey jujubes. These are excellent 

 candied fruits which deserve to become well known in America. 

 The trees withstand considerable alkali and drought. 



