Ok so this as an actual question. I've only tried a dried mission fig and it tasted like a damn raisin. How do you all eat these? Do you eat the skin also when you pick them? Do you eat the whole thing? I will have plenty to taste in a few years but for now I'm just curious.

Fresh off the tree is best, in my opinion.  Pick and Eat. Skin and all.  If they are very thick skinned, I may only eat the skin on the bottom and scrape out the middle with my teeth.

Those that survive long enough to make it into the house may end up in Jam or baked with bacon wrapped around them. mmmmm..

The flavor of fresh figs is like night and day compared to dry.  I eat them with the skin, all the way to the stem.  I'll sometimes slice them in half just to appreciate the texture and characteristics of the flesh.

Brian that's a very legit question!

If you have the luxury of picking your own fresh figs off of the trees then you are very lucky, since true ripe figs are only on the tree, they don't ripen after picking them. So you have the choice of tasting the true ripe fig taste. In Mediterranean people peel the figs before eating, you just pull the skin back from the part it was attached to the tree and they can peel like bananas. I personally eat the skin and all...it's a great fiber sourse, good for you.

*To make Fig preserve you need to pick the figs that are firmer that the perfectly ripped ones. Also, on top of that, to add more crunchiness you treat them with "cook's" lime (by preparing Lime Water and holding the figs in it for an hr or so, then putting the figs in fresh clean water for 4 hrs or so..) then you cook them with sugar of your choice , slowly and not to bring it to boil at all...Let them sit under sun for few days and jar them. During the cooking process you could add few cloves for aroma (it's a traditional flavoring).

*For jam, it's easier, just chop them up and cook them with sugar of your choice and jar them.

*Have you heard of Lamb dish with Figs, oregano and bay leaves in the oven? Yeah.... to die for.

*Figs with cold-cuts...Prechiutto wrapped figs with either blue cheese or Fetta or Goat cheese in it. With a touch of mint leaf on top...Perfect for Champaign or Wine occasions.

Edit: I have frozen ripe figs for 3 years and when thawed they still taste as good as ever.

Enjoy Figs in any form you desire;)

The skin on fresh figs is full of antioxidants and usually tastes great.  Sometimes I eat some skin separately and pith separately and then the pulp separately to get each's flavor contribution, then I eat them in varying combinations.  In Violette de Bordeaux the skin tastes like concord grape juice.

I pick them dead ripe off the tree during season and eat the figs with skin on.

Try peeling the skin off a fresh fig for your own curiosity and eat just the skin you will find it has much flavor .

Reading over the years those that peel the skin usually have some of the types that are thick skin which translates
to chewy rubbery etc.

All the above and here are many more recipes

http://www.pinterest.com/byrdladyj/fig-recipes/

I eat the whole fig, skin and all. The skin would have to be like leather for me not to eat it. I don't like to waste anything and like Bob said the skins hold a lot of goodies for ya.

Like everyone else is saying figs are best dead ripe and fresh from the tree. I like to pick off the stem and break the fig in half before eating it. I always like to see the inside of the fig before eating it. And its good to check for bugs. Nothing beats a fresh fig. Hope you get to enjoy a lot of them this year.

More great fig recipes:

https://www.valleyfig.com/recipes

first, you will have to walk around the tree. look at the figs. choose those that look ripe then feel to see if they are ready. i always have my knife with me, so i use it to remove the fig that i'm going to taste. once taken off the tree, i'll look at the fig to see if i need to clean it. usually dust some things off the fig, maybe remove an ant or two... then take a good bite into it. if it's as small as St. Rita, whole fig is a bite.

then, i'll usually use toothpick to remove rest of the ants between my teeth :)

I put the whole thing in my mouth (why I prefer small to medium varieties), wrap my lips around the back side, then pull by the stem while pressing the goodness against the roof of my mouth with my tongue.  If the skin is tender, it will pull off the stem and stay with the rest of the fig to be eaten.  If the skin is tough, it will (mostly) adhere to the stem and I won't have to chew on it.

People eat fresh figs their own way.  One in a hundred people will not like figs.. go figure.  It all depends on your tastes.  
You may like the whole fig skin and all from some varieties but may only like the interior flesh from other thicker skinned types.  Try it anyway you like.
But don't stop at just eating fresh figs.  Freeze and dry some figs to eat during the winter and for special recipes. 
happy figging
   

Seriously, put it in your mouth and chew.

I can't believe there is a post about how to eat a fig.

CAPS LOCK OMG!

Yes, believe it. I grow Japanese maples but stumbled onto figs recently.

Brian I grow 14 varieties of Japanese Maples, they are gorgeous specimens , I am turning them into Bonsais. Do you produce them?

Here is a blast from the past:

[video]http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuIIOrtKfPs[/video]

Ha!  James I had forgotten about this character.  Kinda wish you did too after seeing it again.  Creepy dude right there.  haha

Hello Aaron I am currently selling large quantities of bare root Acer Palmatum 'Atropurpureum. I sell them locally and online. This year has been amazing so far. I also started grafting some varieties last year. Still experimenting with that. I had a pretty poor percent of scions that took.

James, that is not you in that video, huh? Desert King in the video?
Brian, you have no idea what you have missed in your life. You need to visit with these amazing fig friends and taste some this summer or fall. After doing that, you will kick yourself for not having done sooner. 

 You can visit UCDavis and have  a real fig forest experience... I wish I could do that.

Seriously, some people eat them skin and all. Others peel and eat them. Some cut them in half and "scoop" out the flesh. Be aware that for some figs, much of the flavor is in the peel/skin.

Love that video!  Hey, the man enjoys his figs... can't knock that.

Whoa, what did I get myself into here?  Please say the fig culture is not indicative of that guy.
Come to think of it, he strangely resembles my uncle...

Nate

That video is first thing I thought of when I saw this thread!