The Pick of the Crop

How can you pick the most delicious fruits and vegetables? Follow our check list to help select the best of the best.

Thump your watermelon, make sure to listen for a hollow sound. Pick the heaviest melon for its size and look for a mild yellow underside. A heavy melon is a juicy one.

Don’t buy slimy lettuce. Limp lettuce is old, make sure your head has crisp, unblemished leaves.

Peaches that give when you apply light pressure, have a fragrant aroma and no dark or mushy spots taste the best. Remember that peaches ripen most on the tree; for a little further ripening, place peaches in a brown paper bag on a counter for a day or two to soften.

Nothing should be sprouting on your onions,shallots, garlic, or potatoes. They should feel hard to the touch, soft ones are probably overripe or dried up.

Firm-textured, deep-red cherries stay tasty in the refrigerator for several days and in the freezer for up to one year. Avoid cherries that are too dark or too soft.

Cantaloupe should have a yellowish tinge to the rind and should yield to soft pressure at the ends and have a fragrant aroma. Melons with the stem still attached are immature and will not yield the best flavor.

The ‘eyes’ of a pineapple tell you if it is ripe; make sure they are all roughly the same size. Unlike a lot of other popular fruits, pineapples will continue to ripen if stored at room temperature.

Apples should be crisp and hard and blemish-free.

The freshest grapes, are firmly attached to the stem. The grapes stem should look green and healthy not dry and brown.

Pick up an orange to test how heavy it is. The heavier the orange, the more juice it contains and the sweeter it should taste.