How to choose the right ripe and sweet watermelon: signs of maturity
This amazing berry, which can be difficult to break away from, has a pleasant sweet taste, perfectly quenches thirst and contains a great variety of useful vitamins and elements - ideal for summer. However, difficulties may arise at the time of buying a watermelon, because every year there are more and more unscrupulous sellers who put up for sale not only tasteless fruits, but also often simply dangerous due to the high content of nitrates. Therefore, in order not to overshadow your summer meal and please yourself with the most delicious pulp, you should know some of the subtleties of choosing a ripe watermelon.
By the way! About, how to choose a delicious and ripe melon written in detail in this material.
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The benefits of watermelon for the human body
It is important to choose a high-quality, ripe watermelon not only because of its taste, but also because of the nutrients in its composition. The more natural the product, the more benefits it will bring to your body.
The berry contains vitamins of group B, A, C, E, as well as iron, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus. Watermelon has such beneficial properties as cleansing the liver, kidneys, improving metabolism, lowering cholesterol and general strengthening of the body.
Note! The high content of nitrates can harm the body and negate all the beneficial properties of the berry, so it is very important to choose good-quality products.
How to choose a ripe watermelon: tips and tricks
Every person wants to eat only natural, first-class and healthy products. Unfortunately, some sellers go to various tricks to sell low-quality goods and get more profit. To prevent this situation from happening with the purchase of a striped berry, you should know some signs of a ripe watermelon and recommendations for choosing a fruit.
Video: how to choose a ripe, tasty and sweet watermelon
These tips will help you choose the right sweet, ripe and healthy watermelon:
Tip # 1. Be careful about the appearance of the fetus... It should not have any cracks, dents, scratches or any other damage. Otherwise, damage can become a convenient "entrance" for germs and bacteria. The berry should have contrasting, bright stripes. The crust should be shiny and not matte. As a rule, ripe watermelons have a hard crust that is not easy to pierce with a fingernail.
Tip # 2. Pay attention to the date... When grown naturally without chemicals, the fruits ripen in the second half of August until the end of September. Try not to buy fruits at an earlier date, because unscrupulous producers for early ripening stuff the plant with growth stimulants, chemical fertilizers.
Tip # 3. Focus on size... Do not dwell on too large fruit (perhaps it is "stuffed" with chemicals) and too small berries (there is a big risk of choosing immature product).
Council number 4. Ripe watermelon should have a yellow or orange spot... This means that the fruit naturally ripened in the fields and was in contact with the ground, absorbing the warm rays of the sun. In a normal fetus, the spot size should be about five to ten centimeters. But don't choose a product with a white spot., it indicates that the berry was not allowed to ripen on melons!
Tip # 5. There is an opinion that watermelons can be "girls" and "boys"... It is believed that girls are the most delicious fruits and they have fewer seeds. Male berries are slightly larger in size, and their lower part is convex, there is a small speck. In female specimens, the lower part is most often flat, flattened, the speck is larger.
Tip # 6. When choosing a watermelon, it is highly not recommended to cut off a piece of pulp from the fruit to determine ripeness... Indeed, by the time you transport the fruit home and start treating, microbes can multiply in it.
Tip # 7. Buy berries in the right places... More detailed information on this issue is waiting for you below.
Tip # 8... If you want to choose a safe, tasty ripe, nitrate-free watermelon, you you should check with the seller if he has a certificate for the product... If the seller does not have such a certificate, then you should doubt the quality of the product and look for another point of sale for juicy berries. Also, early sales of watermelons may indicate a high content of harmful substances.
Tip # 9. Take a close look at the stem (i.e. the tail) of the fruit... A quality, ripe watermelon should have a yellow, dry tail. The presence of a lethargic, greenish stalk indicates the immaturity of the fetus. A very dry tail may indicate that the product is overripe or spoiled. Some sellers want to cheat and cut their ponytails to sell low-quality goods.
Council number 10. Identify ripe watermelon sound will help... When tapped or clicked ripe watermelon should make callsth soundj. Although there are experts who claim thatripe berries should be it is deaf sound... And some believe that the sound, in general, is not able to help check the watermelon for ripeness, since watering affects the deafness or sonicity of the sound - if the fruits are well watered before harvesting, then they will be sonorous, if watering was not carried out, then deaf.
Video: how to choose a ripe watermelon: signs of sweetness
By the way! How to choose delicious and ripe melon, you can read in this material
How to do a watermelon nitrate test at home
Unfortunately, it is difficult to choose a ripe watermelon without nitrates, because it is almost impossible to independently check the fruit for their content when buying, unless, of course, you have a special device for determining nitrates - a nitrate meter. But you can do a little experiment at home and understand whether to eat the product or not.
There are several signs indicating a high nitrate content in watermelon:
- The berry has white or yellow streaks, as well as seals in the pulp.
- When the fruit is immersed in water, it sinks to the bottom and does not float (a quality product must float).
- Place a small amount of pulp in water for 15 minutes. If the liquid turns bright pink or red, then the berry has a high nitrate content. And if the water becomes a little cloudy or pale pink, then the berry is of high quality.
Advice! The highest concentration of nitrates in the berry is near the crust, so you should not bite the watermelon in these places.
Where is the best place to buy watermelons
It is important not only to be able to choose the right ripe watermelon, but also to buy a valuable food product in the right places, the quality of products largely depends on this. When choosing a place where you plan to buy a treat, you should pay attention to the following recommendations:
- It is highly discouraged to choose a watermelon at points of sale near highways, since melons and gourds absorb heavy metals and other harmful substances in the exhaust gases.
- Berries should be kept in clean trays and neatly arranged.
- Avoid points of sale where watermelons are spread out on the floor and may come into contact with dust and dirt.
- The seller must have a complete set of documents required for the sale, have a medical record.
- It is not recommended to buy food in spontaneous markets, it is better to give preference to special stores, fairs.
It is possible to determine the ripeness of a watermelon in the market or in a store without any problems, knowing only small recommendations and exact signs of ripeness. The main thing is not to rush into the purchase, because it is better to wait and buy a tasty and healthy product during the season than to buy it much earlier than the usual ripening period and there is a harmful delicacy stuffed with chemistry. Enjoy your shopping and delicious watermelons!
Video: how to choose a watermelon and check for nitrates with your own hands at home