Posts Tagged ‘how to pick a watermelon’

A few months ago I was at the store buying watermelons for a teacher luncheon. I was tap, tap, tapping away on the melons when I saw another mom from my PTA watching me.

She said, “Can I give you some advice?”

“Sure.”  I said.

“The best melons need to ripen on the vine before they are picked. Look for a spot where the melon was sitting on the ground…

“That spot should be dark yellow, the darker coloring the better, and have some scars. That’s how you know it was allowed to ripen before it was picked and you have a good, sweet watermelon.”… if that spot is white, or if the melon doesn’t have a spot, it was picked too early.”

We’ve used her advice all summer long and have enjoyed some of the best watermelons ever.

My son Ben, who is the best watermelon picker in our family, also adds his advice:

He says the heaviest melons are the juiciest. He loves to pick them up and compare weight. He also taps the melons.

A good watermelon should sound thunk, thunk – like it’s hollow and resonant. Ben also looks for a melon that has a nice shape and is dark green.

So there it is, the best watermelon picking advice I’ve ever been given and I’m happy to be able to pass it along. I’d love to hear your favorite melon picking tips too.