Cantaloupe comes from the family of melons and they have a very sweet flavor and smell. It is a very healthy fruit and people love to eat it because it tastes really good. We will talk about cantaloupe in this article to give you guys the correct information. Cantaloupe has a very rock-like appearance from the outside and they are slightly orange from the inside. Many of you have already known about cantaloupe. For the people who don’t know we will talk about how to know if a cantaloupe is ripe in this article.
Fruits are a great source of different minerals and vitamins. The positive thing regarding fruits is that they always taste good and refreshing so everyone can eat them happily. Fruits are essential for the overall growth of your kids. Cantaloupe can be refreshing if they are fresh. If by any chance you would buy the unripe cantaloupe then you can get a little disappointed because they don’t taste good.
There are many different ways to tell if a cantaloupe is ripe or unripe and we will discuss them all one by one. We will also talk about how to make a few unique things using cantaloupe so that everyone will love them. This article will also talk about the nutritive value of a cantaloupe along with the correct way to store them.
1. What Is Cantaloupe?
Cantaloupe is one of the members of the melon family and they are grey. It has a very rough design on its surface. When you will peel it you will see a very thin green color right under its surface. That is also sweet and it has a pulp of orange color underneath it. The cantaloupe has seeds inside them and they also carry some benefits.
The seeds are also being used to grow fresh cantaloupe vines. There is an interesting fact about cantaloupe and that is when we pick them from their vines they stop the process of ripping. It is important to pick only ripped cantaloupe because they will not ripen on their own. Buying good fruits is important for your body because it is an essential need of our bodies.
2. How To Know If Cantaloupe Is Ripe
There are many different ways to detect if the cantaloupe is ripe or not and it is important to have correct information. If you can buy the correct cantaloupe it will be very friendly for your everyday expenses. In this section, we will try to give you all the possible ways to examine a cantaloupe.
2.01 Smell The Fruit
Smell plays a very important role when picking fruits from supermarkets or other markets. While buying a cantaloupe smell the individual fruit to detect the smell. If the cantaloupe has a very strong and musky smell it would mean that it is in perfect shape and it is ready to be eaten. Now it is not guaranteed that if the cantaloupe is smelling good and fresh it would be sweet. The only way to test that factor is by tasting the cantaloupe while buying it.
If the cantaloupe doesn’t have a smell that means that the cantaloupe is still unripe. Unripe cantaloupe has the same benefits as ripped ones but they are not sweet. The pulp of the unripe cantaloupe is not juicy and is tight to bite. If you are willing then you can grow them in your backyard. Not everyone knows that they are grown in the winter season because they get it in the market in summer.
2.02 Weight The Fruit
It is an effective way to tell if a cantaloupe is ripe or not. Now to do this you just have to compare the weight of one cantaloupe with another. Whichever is the heaviest in comparison is the ripe one. The ripe fruits usually weigh more because they are juicy from the inside and have a very refreshing pulp. If you see a cantaloupe which is very light in weight it means that it is still unripe.
The unripe cantaloupes will not be ripped even if you leave them out of your fridge for a few days. It is necessary to buy the correct fruit unless you have some use of the unripe cantaloupe. It is more than better if the cantaloupe has a refreshing smell along with being heavier in weight. This can be a great combination if you want fresh and sweet cantaloupes.
2.03 Tap The Fruit
This technique works with all different kinds of melons. If you tap the cantaloupe with your hand and it makes a hollow sound that would indicate that the cantaloupe is still unripe. Now if the cantaloupe makes a sound like you hit something heavy it would mean that it is ripe and juicy from the inside and you can enjoy it right away. This technique doesn’t work properly with other fruits. If you are still confused then try some other methods like smelling fruit or weighing it.
2.04 Squeeze The Fruit
If nothing seems to work then try squeezing the cantaloupe gently. Make sure to not squeeze with a lot of pressure because it may cause the cantaloupe to burst right there. If the cantaloupe is in the right shape then put pressure on it with your thumb.
If you find it is very soft on some spots and tight on the other other spots it means that it may be rotten or squeezed because of some unwanted pressure on it.
Sometimes while exporting the ripe cantaloupes they get squeezed but it doesn’t mean they are bad. You can find this kind of cantaloupes for a little cheaper price in farm markets. Everyone should buy according to their wealth. As long as the cantaloupe is not rotten or burst open it is fine to buy it.
2.05 Cut The Fruit
If none of the above techniques is working for you then you can try it. While buying fruits from the farm markets you can ask to cut and taste the fruit before buying it. It can help people to buy only the sweet cantaloupes. However, don’t try to take advantage of the people selling it in the markets.
3. Benefits Of Cantaloupe Seeds
A lot of people know about the advantages of eating cantaloupe every day but they don’t know the possible advantages of cantaloupe seeds. Cantaloupe seeds are rich in many vitamins such as vitamins A, K, etc. They are proven to be an ideal choice for high fiber. People who pay extra attention to their bodies can also use them as a good source of protein.
4. How To Store Cantaloupe
Correctly storing fruits is as important as buying the ripe fruits so it plays an important work. If you want to store the cantaloupe then simply put them in a paper bag and leave them on your kitchen cabinet. If you will keep the whole cantaloupe in the fridge it will not taste that good.
Now if you don’t have time to cut them every time you want to eat then keep them in pieces. Cut the cantaloupe and store them in an airtight container and then you can put it in your fridge. People who want to make cantaloupe smoothies can freeze them. It is better to eat cantaloupe within a week of cutting them.
5. Different Things To Try With Cantaloupe
Cantaloup can be used to make many different things and in this section, we will talk about some of them.
5.01 Jelly
Jelly can be a good option to present healthy things to your kids in unique ways. People like to eat jelly so wouldn’t it be better if you made it healthy too? To make jelly you only need three ingredients such as cantaloupe juice, sugar, and gelatin.
Start by warming the juice and adding the sugar to it. Stir it until the sugar melts completely and the quantity of sugar you want to use depends on you. At the end just add some gelatin and whisk it together. Now put it into different molds of different shapes and put them in the fridge to set for a few hours. When it is ready serve the cantaloupe jelly in a beautiful dish.
5.02 Popsicles
It is a summer fruit so many of us would like to enjoy cantaloupe popsicles. To make these blend the cantaloupe and add some sugar in it. You can also add some whole pieces of cantaloupe to it. Now add a mold and pour the mixture in it and put it in the freeze for a few hours. When they are ready enjoy them on a sunny evening.
5.03 Smoothies
Smoothies are always great to have and they are very healthy to have in the breakfast. It is very simple to make it. Cut the cantaloupe into small pieces and freeze them. It is advisable to keep them in the freezer a night before using them. Now just take them out and blend with some sugar. If you don’t like sugar then you add some honey to it. Someone can add some other fruits or berries along with the cantaloupe.
6. Final Note
We talked about cantaloupe in this article and its benefits in brief. Cantaloupe belongs to the huge family of melons and they are very sweet to taste. It has a very rock-like structure on the outside but they are really sweet if they are ripe. This article also talked about the appropriate way to store cantaloupe. Cantaloupe seeds also have some very good benefits and we have talked about it in some portions of this article.
