How to tell if fruit is ripe: Personal Methods

[TaoPath]

Just wondering what are your personal methods of knowing if your favourite fruit is ripe

Also, any there any secrets on how to you speed up the process on some fruits (I heard to put a banana in a brown bag, and oranges next to the window…not sure if this is correct though)

Any help would be much appreciated, thanks!

x

[GoingUnder]

I tend to feel the skin. My favourite fruit is melon (Honeydew or Galia) and I know it's ready when the skin 'gives' a little.

As for ripening fruit, one of the surest ways of doing so is to add bananas in the same bowl as whichever fruit you want ripened. Bananas give off ethylene gas. But keep an eye on the bowl - leave it too long and you'll have humming apples walking towards the bin...

[Andrew Gubb]

oranges and melons don't ripen once removed from their plant. so if it's not ripe when you've bought it, it'll never be ripe.

[Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi]

I smell 'em.

[ssandra]

Melons, if you press on the top and you smell the melon, it is ripe.

Pears, if you put them next to banana's they ripe faster.

For the rest, I always tell my fruit guy when I want to eat it, and he picks out the right ones...

[ChrisGinsburg]

It's just a matter of knowing what each fruit looks and feels like when it's ripe. On a side note, ripening bananas can help other fruits ripen faster.
Answers.com - Why does placing ripe bananas next to other fruits cause them to ripen faster

[ginkgo]

It is different with different fruits. How can you tell if an apple is ripe? Did you ever eat one that was not ripe? Apples are always ripe. Bananas turn yellow. Avocados give when you press on them. They can ripen faster if put it a brown paper bag that has other fruit in it like bananas.

[Andrew Brunelle]

Originally Posted by Lakshyayidhi Lakshmihi

I smell 'em.

I knew a guy that worked in a grocery store and he used to always smell the cantaloupes when a customer bought them, to see if they were ripe. Some fruits change color, while others are more challenging. Just get used to the idea of what a ripe (insert fruit here) smells like and you'll be fine.

[Gabo]

I can't for the life of me pick good peaches. They're never ripe at the store, and whenever I pick one and wait for it to ripen, it seems to go immediately from rock hard to brown. Any tips?

[russianrocket]

Originally Posted by Gabo

I can't for the life of me pick good peaches. They're never ripe at the store, and whenever I pick one and wait for it to ripen, it seems to go immediately from rock hard to brown. Any tips?

I'd love a tip for this as well. 4 out of 5 store visits, they are rock hard. Every last one of them.

[firenexx]

When I buy rock hard ones, I keep them in a brown paper bag or in a wooden bin with my bananas. They usually ripen well.

[garentee]

I have heard tell from those in the know that there is an app on an I phone that will tell you when a watermelon is ripe..

[masteredfate]

Best way to ripen peaches is in a paper bag. You have to pick ones with a good tone on the outside (color, a little fuzzy on the outside), so that within 4-7 days you will have a super juicy, delicious peach. My husband is a whiz at cantalopes and things. I don't know how he does it.

[Clint Cora]

In my case, I find that bananas ripe too fast. I stick them in the fridge as it seems to slow it down a bit.

[russianrocket]

Originally Posted by Clint Cora

In my case, I find that bananas ripe too fast. I stick them in the fridge as it seems to slow it down a bit.

The fridge seems to ripen them way to fast for me actually

[essayy]

Orange is my favorite fruit. When i have lots of orange juice my skin gets fresh..

[Clint Cora]

Originally Posted by russianrocket

The fridge seems to ripen them way to fast for me actually

I read an article that the fridge will darken the skin around the banana faster but for some reason, the inside will not ripen as fast. So that's why I tried this out. If all fails and I can't eat my bananas fast enough, I'll freeze them! I don't mind since I usually eat my bananas with frozen yogurt anyway