Picking a Perfectly Ripe Melon with Confidence

Selecting a perfectly ripe melon can be quite a comical task for us shoppers. We knock, smell and examine the melon thoroughly. Sometimes we make an effort to receive input from other nearby shoppers who are attempting the same task. They often answer with a chuckle and say, "You don't want my advice." So, you are left once again to do the guess work on your own. You hope with trial and error you will improve your skill of becoming an expert melon selector. Instead, you come home to yet another disappointment after cutting the melon open to find that it's hard and inedible again. Is there really an effective method to picking the perfect melon? Yes, and you may be surprised in what really works when selecting three of America's top-selling melons.

Watermelon

The watermelon should be heavy for its size due to its 98% water content. Its rounded shape should be symmetrical. A dull green color is a promising indication that it's mouth-wateringly ripe. There should be a yellow-cream colored spot where the melon rested on the ground prior to harvesting. Now turn it over to the opposite side, this is the top. The color between the bands should be consistent. Don't select a watermelon that is dark green with a whitish bottom spot, this would indicate that it's still immature.

Thump the melon with an open palm and listen for a hollow sound. This mildly hollow sound would most likely indicate that it's ripe, but it could mean over ripe too. A tighter sound would indicate that it's not yet ripe enough.

Honeydew

This melon should be heavy for its size. Look for pale yellow-green honeydew with beige veining. The color of the melon should be similar to its flesh color. Not only will this indicate that it's ripe, but sweeter as well. Avoid buying a tan colored honeydew this would still be to immature for consumption.

The blossom end should give slightly when pressed and contain a mild aroma. A strong aroma would signify as an over ripe melon.

Cantaloupe

Look for a beige melon with gray webbing. The color should be uniform all the way around. Webbing should be fairly well defined. The cantaloupe should be slightly soft at the blossoming end and extremely fragrant. Don't select a green melon with tan webbing because it would still be immature. This melon should be heavy in its size.

The spot where the stem used to be attached is called the full slip. This area should be smooth and slightly indented and free from stem remnants.

Don't be fooled with an entire bad batch of melons. I have found this on many occasions where the melons were are all immature or severely damaged. If you can't easily select a melon from the tips above then chances are that the melons are not of good quality, try again next week!

Now you can finally shop for that melon in confidence. Go ahead and try it, you will be pleased when you come home to find that the melon tastes fresh, sweet and succulently delicious. Enjoy any forthcoming melon purchases without wasting another dime.