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Nectarines and peaches.

(17 Posts)
shysal Thu 10-Oct-19 16:11:10

Any tips on successfully ripening supermarket fruits? I bought some nectarines on Monday, put half of them in a paper bag with a banana and the other half between a folded linen tea towel. They are still rock hard. Will they ever soften?

SueDonim Thu 10-Oct-19 16:18:12

Ime, they'll ripen and be edible for about 15 minutes in the middle of one night and then they'll start going rotten. hmm I gave up with the ones I bought and put them into a crumble.

Alima Thu 10-Oct-19 16:34:30

I have given up buying nectarines in a punnet. As you say, they go from rock hard to rotten at the drop of a hat. Sainsbury’s (probably all supermarkets) do a pack of 4 ripe and ready nectarines for about £2. We do enjoy those.

TerriBull Thu 10-Oct-19 16:42:14

I love nectarines definitely a favourite fruit. I did have the same problem as you shysal a little while ago. I tend to buy them in Sainsburys, packed in 4s as described by Alima, usually they are lovely but these particular ones remained rock hard. Shame! because at their best they are gorgeous

shysal Thu 10-Oct-19 17:55:28

When in season I buy the donut ones, which ripen beautifully, but they only have a short season.

Baggs Thu 10-Oct-19 18:02:35

Peach or nectarine cobbler is the food of gods.

Specially with cream.

MamaCaz Thu 10-Oct-19 18:17:15

Some fruits never ripen to a state where they are pleasant to eat, no matter how long you keep them.
My theory is that this happens if the harvesting was mis-timed - there is a fine line between picking early enough for them to 'ripen at home', and picking too soon, at a stage which means they can never ripen.

I suspect that weather/temperatures before harvesting also play a part - without enough days at the right temperature, some fruits will never be edible. The widely-fluctuating temperatures that are becoming increasingly frequent probably play havoc with fruit harvesting and ripening.

SueDonim Thu 10-Oct-19 18:39:01

Baggs try a peach/nectarine and strawberry cobbler! Fabulous.

Coolgran65 Thu 10-Oct-19 19:07:07

I gave up with supermarket fruit, except for bananas.
I buy ripe and ready to eat from M & S and can enjoy those.
And how hard is it to get a sweet orange. Last year in California every orange was a delight.. Why can't we have oranges like that.

pinkquartz Thu 10-Oct-19 19:09:20

sometimes I find putting fruit into a brown paper bag with an overripe banana helps
but the fruit is picked too soon. I don't buy so much of it anymore

pinkquartz Thu 10-Oct-19 19:10:35

coolgran65

you are joking? California is hot and sunny whereas we are damp and cold nearly all the time smile

pinkquartz Thu 10-Oct-19 19:11:29

Best oranges I ever ate in UK were when friends brought them back on the plane just picked in Spain. beautiful

giulia Thu 10-Oct-19 20:27:00

CoolGran65 If you want sweet, juicy oranges look out for Tarocco - they're Sicilian and come on the market here in Italy from late February. They are large with a thick skin (like Jaffas) but they peel easily and the segments divide cleanly. There are often deep read flecks in them, like a blood orange.

I assume they're sent also to the UK. They're becoming increasingly hard to find here on the home market as they are mostly produced for export.

The Spanish tried to grow them but without success as apparently they need the strong contrasts between day and night temperatures that they get in Sicily but which are not possible in Spain.

BBbevan Thu 10-Oct-19 20:38:43

I just leave them on a plate on the kitchen table. Those nectarines I bought on Monday were ready to eat on Wednesday . Only one left now.

Baggs Thu 10-Oct-19 21:01:26

suedonim, mmmm.... ?

shysal Sat 12-Oct-19 15:27:37

My nectarines were still not soft today so made a cobbler, it is delicious!
www.myrecipes.com/recipe/easy-peach-cobbler

SueDonim Sat 12-Oct-19 19:01:08

I bought some ready to eat peaches. Whilst they are ready to eat, they don't have much flavour. confused