Thursday, May 31, 2012

A LEARNING EXPERIENCE

I like melon -- ripe melon.  Over the years I have been told or heard about various ways to determine if say, a cantaloupe is fit to eat.  For example, it should have a full netting.  (Maybe).  The stem end should be soft.  (Perhaps).  It should feel heavy for its size.  (Usually, if I can decide about weight vs size).  Now I have another method that, with a sample size of one, appears to be quite accurate.

The other day I went to the store specifically to buy a cantaloupe.  I tried all of the above methods, but with one hand it is difficult to hold a melon and push on the stem end.  I finally picked one that seemed heavy and headed to the checkout counter.  As the clerk picked up the melon, I asked him, “Is that a ripe one?”  “Well, it looks ripe,” he replied.  “What do you mean it looks ripe,” I asked.  “Well, look here in the netting.  There is more orange and yellow than green,” he responded.  Now that made sense to me.

So was it ripe?  Oh, boy!  Yes, and most delicious.  Now we shall be trying this method through the summer to see if it continues to work.  But I’d really appreciate it if any of you melon lovers out there would let me know of your experience with the ‘look’ method.  Thanks.


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2 comments:

  1. The guy in the produce section of Tesco once helped me pick the best reduced price cantalope.

    I wish I could tell which avocados would ripen to perfection or just rot all hard. I love when they're in season and reduced and turn all perfect. I should know that the over-priced out of season ones will disappoint.

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  2. The visual method works great, except if (like Oscar) you are partially red/green colorblind. There are also cases where fruits and veggies are purposefully exposed to CO2 to make them appear riper than they truly are. I find the best method for melons (for me) is a gentle thump and listen. The deeper the tone, the riper the melon, and so far it has worked great. If you give a gentle thump and get a very deep tone AND the skin dents, that one is a bit too ripe LOL.

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