For best taste, make sure the cantaloupe ripens while still attached to the plant. If you want, you can still remove it and let it mature for a few more days to improve its color, texture and juiciness.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Recognizing Ripe Cantaloupe On The Plant
Step 1. Check the color of the cantaloupe
Never pick the fruit when the outer skin is still green, as it is certainly unripe. It will most likely be ready when it reaches a light brown or yellow color.
- Don't rely on color alone. Cantaloupe melons are undoubtedly unripe, but light brown or yellow ones may not be fully ripe yet.
- Even if the melon is not ripe yet, the color will still indicate that it is no longer unripe and is almost ready.
- Try to ripen the fruit on the plant. Unlike other fruits, melons, after they are harvested, do not produce sugar and therefore no longer become sweet. The color and texture may change, but the flavor does not.
Step 2. Check for cracks around the stem
Usually the melon is ready when there is a crack that completely surrounds the stem of the fruit.
If you are unsure about the depth of the crack, try pressing lightly on the side of the cantaloupe stem. With your thumb, press directly on the side of the stem. If it is ready, with a little pressure the melon should start to detach from the stem
Step 3. Collect the Cantaloupe
If it has reached a suitable color and the crack around the stem is deep, the melon is ready and should be harvested right away.
Don't wait too long. If the melon falls off the plant it will overripe and the flavor and texture will suffer
Method 2 of 3: Ripe the Cantaloupe
Step 1. Know what to expect
As mentioned before, the taste of Cantaloupe melon does not change after it is detached from the plant, as it does not contain starches which turn into sugars. The texture, color and juiciness can however improve. However, this procedure will bring benefits to both ripe and slightly unripe melons.
Step 2. Place the melon in a brown paper bag
Use a bag large enough to hold the melon with a little extra space. The fruit should not be crushed inside the bag. Ideally, you should leave some space for air to pass through.
- Make sure you close the bag with the melon inside to make it begin to ripen.
- The closed bag will trap the ethylene produced by the melon when it ripens. The production of ethylene increases with the presence of more ethylene. As a result, the sealed bag will have a high content of this substance, making the melon ripen faster.
- Use paper, not plastic, bags. Those made of paper are porous and release carbon dioxide, facilitating the entry of oxygen. Without this flow of air, the fruit could begin to ferment.
Step 3. Consider putting an apple or banana in the bag
If you put a ripe banana or an apple in the bag, the amount of ethylene will further increase, speeding up the ripening of the melon even more.
Ripe bananas and apples produce high levels of ethylene, which is why they are more recommended than other fruit
Step 4. Let the melon mature at room temperature
It should usually mature in two days, or even faster.
- Make sure you put the cantaloupe in a place that isn't too cold or hot. Avoid damp, drafty areas.
- Check the melon often to prevent it from ripening faster than expected.
Method 3 of 3: Determine the Maturity of the Cantaloupe
Step 1. Check the stem part
If you bought the melon and you have not picked it up with your own hands from the garden, check that it has no stalk pieces attached. If so, it means that it was harvested earlier than expected and that it is not ripe: do not buy it.
- Also check the peel around the stem - if there are drops in the peel, the melon may have been harvested too early.
- Check that the attachment of the stem is slightly indented. This indicates that the fruit was easily detached from the plant. If, on the other hand, the stem attachment is protruding, it could mean that the melon was harvested when it was still unripe.
- Avoid cantaloupe melons with soft stems and damp spots around them. This indicates that the fruit is overripe.
Step 2. Look at the "net" on the peel
The peel should be covered with a thick, rough layer of well-defined mesh over the entire surface.
This "net", however, stands out more in some parts of the fruit. Don't expect it to be uniform
Step 3. Check the color
If you didn't grow and harvest the melon yourself, check the color of the skin carefully before buying it. It should be golden, yellow, or light brown.
A green peel indicates that the melon is unripe
Step 4. Use touch
Press gently on the end of the cantaloupe. When you do, it should give way slightly. If it is hard you should continue to ripen it for at least another day.
- On the other hand, if the melon yields too much or is mushy, it means that it is too ripe.
- Also, you should lift the cantaloupe before choosing it. If it's ripe you will feel heavy.
Step 5. Smell the Cantaloupe
Smell the melon from the opposite end of the stem. The "base" of the fruit should be right under your nose when you inhale and you should smell that familiar cantaloupe fragrance.
- If you don't smell any smell, try letting the cantaloupe mature for about another half day.
- If you don't know the smell of cantaloupe melon, know that it has a remarkably sweet aroma.
- The opposite end to the one where the stem is present is the part that begins to soften and also the one that releases the aroma. As a result, the scent is stronger there.
Step 6. Finished
Advice
- When ripe, you can keep it in the fridge (whole) for up to 5 days.
- Ripe cantaloupe slices should be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days. Leave the seeds: they will prevent the pulp from drying out too quickly.
- Ripe, diced cantaloupe should be stored in an airtight container for 1-2 days.
