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I have been asking this questions to a few native English speakers but none have given me a satisfactory answer, and it has been bugging me for so long.

What is the English word for the flavor that found in green fruits like green bananas or green persimmon? The closest I have found is bitter, but if you have eaten those 2 fruits, you would know it is not bitter. In Vietnamese we say “chát”, which when put in Google Translate it came out as “acrid” but the explanation doesn’t sound right, so here I am asking this.

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Astringent

Astringent is a taste that puckers the mouth, numbs the tongue, and constricts the throat. This taste is caused by astringents such as tannins.

The astringent taste is in unripened bananas, unripe persimmons and cashew fruits.

Astringent (taste) - Wikipedia

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  • I associate astringent with citrus-y white wines that cleanse the palate (by resetting other tastes). In contrast, green bananas leave a taste in my mouth. But good find on the Wikipedia reference.
    – rajah9
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 11:56
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    I think that this is the most correct answer, but would like to point out that the word "astringent" is a bit on the obscure side, and I (Am Eng speaker) have heard and used the phrase "mouth puckering". It's a bit more informal, but the phrase "Those are some really mouth puckering bananas. I'd let them ripen a bit more." would be valid in my social circles.
    – JonathanZ
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 21:27
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    For what it's worth, I've heard neither phrase, and I'm sure the OP's initial experience struggling to get a satisfying answer from native speakers is evidence that most people just don't have a term for this.
    – Asteroids With Wings
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 23:09
  • @Asteroids With Wings - "astringent" is familiar to me and I'm no cook. I thought of the word and only afterwards did I discover that there was a Wiki article about it.
    – chasly - supports Monica
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 23:26
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    @rajah9 Like many flavor words, there are slight differences when talking about wines. Technically though both are still astringent, because the important part is the physiological reaction (which actually isn’t a taste, it’s an involuntary contraction of the mucus membranes in the mouth, just like the sensation produced by capsaicin isn’t a taste but an inflammatory reaction), and both are still caused primarily by tannins.
    – Austin Hemmelgarn
    Commented Oct 27, 2020 at 2:18
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I think the closest answer is tannic, which comes from tannins:

A yellowish or brownish bitter-tasting organic substance present in some galls, barks, and other plant tissues, consisting of derivatives of gallic acid.

(Copied from Lexico)

I believe the sensation from green bananas is produced by a similar process as tannins in red wine. For me that is a particularly unpleasant feeling that makes me grimace and pull my lips over my teeth.

It can easily be confused with bitterness but is quite different from the sourness of lemons, etc.

So, you could say

These green bananas are very tannic.

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  • The Lexico link gives as example a description of the taste of a wine. I don't think people who are not wine experts would use the word in everyday conversation.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 10:56
  • @KateBunting possibly so. I did learn it while working selling wine.
    – Matt E. Эллен
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 11:36
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    While I closely associate tannic with red wines, strongly-brewed tea also comes to mind.
    – rajah9
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 11:48
  • @rajah9 yes, I know what you mean! I think that's the same thing, too.
    – Matt E. Эллен
    Commented Oct 26, 2020 at 12:09
  • As we Vietnamese use the same word for both wine flavor and green banana, i would say this is the right answer. Now i would have to use both words to describe this then
    – Khắc Hoàn Nguyễn
    Commented Oct 27, 2020 at 10:49

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