TODAY.AZ / Society

How to choose a watermelon?

31 July 2015 [19:00] - TODAY.AZ

/By AzerNews/

By Laman Sadigova

Who doesn’t love sweet, juicy, cold watermelon on hot summer days?

But choosing the perfect watermelon isn’t as easy as it seems to be. Watermelon is somehow like a present: you’re pretty sure that you will like what’s inside, but you are never really sure until you open it. If you find a bad one, you may spend the next couple of days in front of the bucket.

Since you cannot stealthily peel back the wrapping of a watermelon in the grocery store to sneak a peek at what’s inside, you’ll have to employ some different techniques to determine its ripeness.

Here are some tips that will help you when choosing a watermelon:

1. Bright and contrasting stripes

First of all, the degree of a melon is an indicator of its maturity. A good watermelon stripe should have as much of brown color contrast as possible.

Moreover, the darker the color of the creamy spot, the longer it was on the vine sweetening up. If it is white it means that this indicates an unripe melon.

2. Shiny surface

A watermelon’s surface has to be shiny and firm enough so that not even a nail can pierce it. When ripe, the fruit dries at the tail, that is, stops the ingress of moisture and the crust hardens. If the nail easily penetrates into the crust by rubbing it and it smells of freshly cut grass, it means that the fruit is immature.

3. Large, but not huge

A large size is not a guarantee of its good taste or maturity. It is better to choose fruit of medium size, respecting the rule of "golden mean." When you pick up the melon, it should feel like it weighs more than it should for its size.

4. It sounds hollow when tapped

A hollow sound means that there is a lot of water inside the watermelon. While you’ve got the watermelon in your arms, make sure it’s uniformly shaped. Irregular bumps indicate that it may have gotten inconsistent amounts of sun or water.

5. Turn it

Turn your watermelon over and check out the bottom, which should have a creamy yellow spot. This is where the watermelon sat on the ground while it soaked up the sun at the farm. If this spot is white or greenish, your watermelon may have been picked too soon and might not be as ripe as it should be.

Azerbaijanis do love watermelons! Here, in Azerbaijan, a summer day without a watermelon is not complete.

There is even a local tradition of eating watermelon with local white cheese, with or without bread. The mouthwatering combination is in the dreams of Azerbaijanis year round and everyone rushes to buy watermelon as soon as summer arrives.

URL: http://www.today.az/news/society/142580.html

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