Picking ripe fruits can be tricky. So if you want to avoid picking fruit that’s overripe and unripe, the best thing you can do is learn how to ripen fruit. Here are some tips you can start doing.
These tips will help you avoid wasting money on fruits that are close to rotting. We also included some ideas on what to do about overripe fruits.
How To Ripen Fruit: Try Flour in a Bag
The first tip is a method called “flour in a bag”, perfect for avocados.
All you need is a paper bag and flour. Just put the avocado in a paper bag, cover the fruit with flour, and seal the bag. Easy, right?
The flour soaks up residual moisture, keeping your fruit safe from mold and bruising. The flour also helps concentrate the ethylene gas released by the avocado.
Cook Unripe Fruit
Did you know you can also enjoy unripe fruit by cooking it? Poaching is the best technique and fruit ripener. Doing so brings out the fruit’s natural flavors.
So if you’re craving for that sweet and sour taste, go ahead and cook your fruit! It’s also a great way to soften the fruit, and it even decreases its bitterness.
How to Ripen Mangos
You’re surely familiar with how to know when mango is ripe. The color of a mango’s peel tells a lot about its quality.
Are your mangoes still looking a little pale? Try this clever “rice in a bowl” hack from India. It involves covering unripe mangoes in uncooked rice, quite similar to the paper bag method as it traps ethylene, too.
Simply put your mangoes in a bowl and cover them completely in uncooked rice.
You’ll need to be more careful with this method, though. Avoid being stuck with over-ripened mangoes by checking on the rice-covered fruits every 6 to 12 hours.
Ripen Peaches Quicker
Do you love peaches, but you don’t know how to tell if peaches are ripe?
If yes, then you probably always find yourself wishing you could “help” them ripen perfectly. Here are a couple of tricks you can easily do.
Leave peaches out on the counter where they can get direct sunlight. A spacious counter is ideal for this method as peaches generally shouldn’t be touching one another. But keeping them in a bowl is okay, too, as long as you don’t stack too many on top of each other.
Direct sunlight helps speed up the ripening process but do make sure the spot you pick for your peaches doesn’t get too hot. Too much heat will give your fruit mushy spots.
You can also try the linen cloth method.
For this, you’ll need two clean linen napkins or cotton tea towels. The first step is to lay down a clean napkin or tea towel in a dry area. Flatten the napkin and arrange your peaches stem-side down, making sure they don’t touch. Then lay the other napkin or towel on top of the peaches and tuck in the sides to close off fresh air.
In just a few days, you’ll get a whiff of that strong, delicious peachy smell. That means they’re ready!
What To Do With Overripe Peaches and Other Ways To Use Overripe Fruit
On the other hand, if you find yourself stuck with overripe fruit, don’t fret! Food should never go to waste.
You can use overripe fruits for baking. Get creative with a cobbler, cake, or pie and have the entire kitchen smell heavenly.
Or you can turn the fruits into jam so you can still enjoy them with the usual breakfast or afternoon tea staples. And if you’re eager to get into that healthy lifestyle, then toss the fruits into a blender and whip yourself up a delicious smoothie!
Takeaway
It’s great to know that learning how to ripen fruit is not complicated at all. All the materials that you need for each method can be found at home. The next time you buy fruit, you already know what to do.
Source: Hungry Harvest, The Spruce Eats, Food52, Kitchen Stories