I have cantelopes down pretty well, but no clue how to tell a ripe honeydew. I prefer the lighter flavor of the honeydew.
Thanks!


WendySmiling in Oklahoma
www.16weeks2health.blogspot.com
12/17/10.......240/155/125

Ripe Honeydews look browny yellow, give a little when you squeeze and smell divine, you can almost smell the sweetness!

JS

I wait about a week after buying it for it to soften up a bit! If it's starting to get a little softer I know it will be ripe and sweet.

Sunflower
Raw Food Chef and Writer
Comfortably Raw
[www.comfortablyraw.com]

I've had Honeydews that have been hard on the outside but deliciously ripe, soft and sweet on the inside.

Another test is to shake the melon and if you hear the seeds rattling inside, it should be ripe. 90% reliable...

I've just been googling honeydews. Mainly because I was surprised at Jericho's message, because the 'give' and 'aroma' test have always worked for me for canteloupe and charentaise, but the bright yellow honeydews sold near me are invariably hard on the outside, with no aroma, but often ripe.

And...I've found there are different kinds, some of which do 'give' and change colour, and some that do not.

But, can I urge all who buy melons and find they aren't quite ripe, eg that disappointing hard outer layer, to take them back to the shops. Someone reminded me of this recently (in fact I think it was 'flipperjan') and of course the more we do this the more the store buyers might press for riper fruit!

I now have a test for honeydew melon ripeness!

It, along with other tests for melon ripeness, can be found here:

[debbietookrawforlife.blogspot.com]

Smell and touch .
Also what i do sometimes if in doubt cut a small hole in the melon check it out does it seem ripe and taste good .
Good Luck with honeydews my favorite melon is watermelon.

Cherimoya,

Love Peace and Happiness,

So if I see a line of honeydews at the supermarke with little holes drilled in them I'll know you've been there, Cherimoya!

well my mother taught me how to thump my melons so here i found a better way that explains the way to do it it does seemt to work ive rarely gotten a bad melon .. although i kinda wonder now if thumping me on the head just wasnt her way of inadvertently getting a shot in now and then


Step 1
Pick up a melon and hold it in one hand, near your ear if possible. Watermelons are usually too big, so you'll have to bend down close to it. "Thump" it by flicking your middle finger against your thumb and knocking against the melon.

Step 2
Thump your forehead, your upper chest and your abdomen near your belly button. Here's the rule:

If the melon thump sounds like the one on your forehead it's not ripe enough. If it sounds like the thump on your upper chest it's perfect, and if it sounds like the thump on your belly button it's over ripe.

Step 3
Just to be sure, test the ripe-sounding melons by pushing your thumbnail into the stem. If it feels firm, yet your nail goes in without too much trouble you've got a good one


of course now that i think of it , the rules could vary if you have abs of steel or a fat head

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist




Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/17/2009 06:32AM by Jgunn.

Jodi- I would love to see the reaction of a stranger witnessing that!

I like Jodi's 'thump method', but I go by
1) seeds that shake
2) soft (but not mushy) to the touch
3) weight....the heavier the better
....for Honeydews.
I thump watermelons....WY

i just intuitively grab one. sometimes i let them sit out for a day or two if it seems like they need to ripen a little bit.

jodi- your post was hilarious.... abs of steel or a fat head! hahaha!

Debbie,
I wait a few days after I bought my honeydew to drill the hole in it but I like to use the smell and touch method at the markets before I buy it.

Cherimoya,

Love Peace and Happiness,

do cantelopes and honeydews actually ripen after being picked?

so you could leave one on the counter for a couple of days and that would work?

when i thump a melon i listen for a very deep hollow sound.

so do ripe melons give off a sweet smell like a ripe pineapple gives off its own sweet smell?


i dont have much luck with buying ripe honeydews and cantelopes and there is nothing worse than an unripe crunchy cantelope.

i didnt know they could ripen after being picked, i know that pineapple will not.

No, melons don't ripen after they've been picked.

They may give the illusion of having done so, as eg cantaloupe-type melons go soft (all over) when they're rotting.

See my article above for answers to your questions.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/31/2009 05:55AM by debbietook.

If you remember the taste of fruit from many years ago, it's hard to be satisfied by what is now generally available. Pineapples used to be golden all over, ripe strawberries were soft and practically melt in your mouth (but then again they would also be rotten by the next day or two, but because they taste so good they were almost always gone the same day in my house).

huge grin - very funny jodi

Jodi,

I am going to do this the next time I go the health food grocery. But I will do it with a sort of rythm, moving my head a bit, and softly but distinctly humming Duke Ellington's "Caravan" in between thumps. Gotta give the casual observer a treat once in a while : )