How to choose the right fruits and berries

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

What you should pay attention to in order to buy the most ripe, aromatic and delicious fruits.

Peaches and nectarines

If summer could be a fruit, it would be a peach. It is better to buy them in the market. Bring it close to your face and smell. Opt for peaches with bright skins. It should be red, orange, pink. And the pulp is bright yellow, like sunflower petals. Press lightly on the peach, it should be firm and not too soft.

Nectarines should have a red skin with yellow dots. These fruits are best eaten tough so they crunch when you bite them. Eat softened food only when there are no others or when you forgot about them and then found them somewhere in the far corner of the refrigerator.

Fruits with yellow flesh are more aromatic, while those with white flesh are sweeter. White peaches and nectarines are less acidic, so they will be sweet regardless of their softness. Their aroma is subtle, floral, but not as intense as that of yellows. Choose according to your taste.

Mango

Mango should be eaten ripe, when juice literally flows out of it. The taste of such a fruit is sweet, slightly tart, and the aroma is rich. The only downside to mango is that it is difficult to peel. You will have to tinker with a knife, and also stock up on a plate and napkins so as not to leave juice stains on everything around.

Ripe mango is firm, not too soft. If the skin is wrinkled, the fruit is overripe or begins to rot inside. It should be smooth, of uniform bright color, without spots. It's okay if there are small dark spots on it. This indicates that the fruit is ripe.

Pay attention to the smell. It should be sweet and resinous. In the mango with a sour smell, the fermentation process has already begun, such fruits should not be bought. If the fruit does not smell at all, it was picked unripe. It will just be tasteless.

Grape

Look at the color of the berries. Ripe green grapes have a yellowish tint. Red grapes should have a deep wine color, without green spots on the skin. Ripe purple grapes are very dark, almost black.

Ripe berries are firm and smooth, tightly attached to the stalks. If the stalks themselves are green and flexible, the grapes are definitely fresh. Shriveled or wet berries are a sign that the grapes have gone bad.

If the berries have a whitish matte coating, that's okay. It is a natural protection against decay and moisture loss. Even if the plaque is not completely washed off, it is safe to eat such berries.

Plums

Plums of any color - red, yellow, purple - should not be too soft. When pressed lightly, the berry should spring. Do not buy shriveled or saggy berries. But avoid very hard ones too. They will not ripen even if left in a dark place for several days.

All berries should have a sweet, characteristic plum aroma. A grayish coating on plums, as on grapes, protects the berries.

Fig

It should be soft, but not too soft. Do not buy fruit if it looks wrinkled or has cracks that cause juice to flow out. But a very smooth shiny skin is not an option either. Such fruits have not yet ripened.

Figs spoil very quickly, they cannot be stored for a long time. Eat it within one to two days of purchase.

Watermelon

The flesh of the watermelon should be sweet and crunchy, firm and not too watery. A ripe watermelon, when tapped on it, will emit a dull sound, and when squeezed, it will crackle.

Look at the skin of the watermelon. It should be shiny, without cuts or cracks, with well-defined stripes. There may be a small yellow spot on the side. At this point, the watermelon touched the ground when it was growing.

Cherry

Choose dark red berries. They will be ripe. The berries themselves should be firm and shiny. The stems are green and flexible. If they have dried up and darkened, then the berries have been in the store for a long time.

Look at the point where the stalk joins. If the skin is wrinkled there, the berries were stored for a long time at room temperature. They may be sweet, but not fresh anymore.

Tangerines

Tangerines are primarily chosen for their smell. If it is rich and sweetish, the fruit is definitely ripe. To test this, lightly rub the rind with your finger.

In ripe tangerines, the peel does not adhere too tightly to the pulp. It is thin and easy to clean. And when pressed, it springs. Just don't press hard, the tangerines wrinkle easily.

Check fruit for weight. If they are heavy, then there is a lot of juice in them. Don't buy tangerines that are too soft with spots or dents. They lay for too long and began to deteriorate.

Oranges

Pay attention to the weight of the fruit. The heavier the orange, the more ripe and juicy it is. Choose hard oranges with smooth, thin skin.

But the color can not always be relied on. Some varieties, such as Valencia, revert to a greenish tint after ripening. Dark spots on the peel do not mean that the fruit has gone bad. It's just that such an orange grew in a hot, humid climate.

Bananas

If you are going to use them right away, buy ripe yellow ones with small brown spots. If you want to keep fruits for several days, choose greenish ones. These bananas will gradually ripen. Ideal for food - bright yellow with greenish ends.

Do not buy bananas that are brown or too soft. They have already begun to rot inside. And the gray color of the skin indicates that the fruit was stored at the wrong temperature. They are unlikely to be tasty.

Strawberry

The first thing you should notice is the rich, sweet aroma. These strawberries will be ripe and delicious. If the berries have no smell at all, they will taste empty.

Also pay attention to the color. Berries with white or green spots will no longer ripen. Best of all, the berries are light red. Too dark color indicates that the strawberries are overripe.

The berries must be firm, without dents or damage. If they have been left on for a long time and become too soft, use them for baking or cook compote.

Raspberries

As with most other fruits and berries, pay attention to flavor. In ripe sweet raspberries, it is full-bodied. Choose hard, dry berries that are free from damage and mold. Different varieties of raspberry have different color intensity. The main thing is that it is uniform, without green spots.

Raspberries are kept very little. Try to use it within a few days after purchase. Or freeze for future use. If the berries become too soft, grind them in a blender or boil the jam.

Blueberry

Ripe blueberries of uniform color, without redness. There may be a grayish coating on it. This is a natural protective layer.

Choose hard berries. The soft, watery blueberries have been left on for too long and have already lost their flavor. Like all sour berries, it is not stored for a long time, it is better to eat it right away.

Garnet

Choose large fruits with bright colored skins. Hold the pomegranate in your hand, it must be heavy - it means that it contains a lot of juice. The skin should be free of stains, scratches and other damage. It should be smooth without wrinkles.

If the seeds are red, but the skin has darkened from the inside, it's okay. You can eat this pomegranate. But if the seeds themselves have turned brown and softened, it is better to throw them away.

There are several ways to clean a pomegranate. For example, you can cut it in half and turn each half outward. Now take out the precious seeds one at a time. Or pour them along with the white skin into a bowl of water. The skin will pop up.

Lychee

The larger the lychee, the better. Choose hard fruits that spring a little when pressed, but do not exude juice. If the skin is wet and cracked, the inside of the fruit has started to rot.

Different varieties have different skin colors. Ripe lychees are red, orange, yellowish in color. But if the fruit turns brown, it means that they have already deteriorated. From ripe lychees, the skin is removed simply by hand. In overripe, it is denser, you will have to separate it with a knife.

The lychee pulp is juicy, white, translucent. It tastes like grapes. If it has become completely transparent, darkened or covered with specks, the fruit has deteriorated. Such lychees cannot be eaten.