Grrrrrr Melons

Not just supermarkets. I bought a 1/2 watermelon from a greengrocers in London a few days ago... I was really disappointed because t was hard as rock and no flavour whatsoever . I left it soaking in a little water in the fridge for a couple of days, it didn't change the texture or taste

pascal30

before cutting the melon try pressing the area where the stalk was.. it should be soft.. then smell to see if it smells sweet.. I hope this helps.. I wish someone could give advise on mangoes though..

Personally I don't press fruit, if it isn't ripe it might bruise and go bad at a later stage. I'm lucky to have a good sense of smell and usually just sniff them, though this doesn't work with all types such as water melons.
I've just about given up on mangoes, you don't get much of a smell at all and even those that do smell good are often stringy inside. We usually buy them prepared in chunks or slices, though even then you can't always tell, other than that ripe mangoes tend to be a deeper colour. By the time you've peeled and stoned a mango you probably don't pay that much less per 100g compared to the packs.

If you have an airing cupboard leave them in there for a day or two, they do ripen eventually. Same with any fruit in particular Avocado ripen really quickly in there.

Press the ends and smell the melon. When I lived in US I was told this and generally it's true,if you can press ends in it should be ripe and also you should be able to smell it.

Take them back!
Lidl is excellent for exchanging fruit or veg that’s not up to expectations!
What a waste of money!
We have such poor quality fruit & veg in UK?
Why?
I’m holidaying in France, wow such quality stuff! No comparison. All beautifully fresh, ripe and tasty - nothing plastic wrapped. Just delicious.

Press the non stalk end and if the melon is ripe it will be softish. Try several to assess differences and get a feel for the shipment. If you buy one just keep it till the beige disc where the flower was, becomes a bit softer - not very soft but not rigid.

Try buying from a market stall. The owner will usually help and they have the experience and know the origins. They also want to increase their clientele so are more likely to be giving you good advice.

First of all, a melon's skin has to smell of cat pee [I kid you not] for it to be good. Also, and I got this from a hotel kitchens employee, make a saturated solution of sugar and put the lemon cubes in it - they will absorb the sugar by osmosis, and become fine. But since you got a refund - all's well that ends well.

OnwardandUpward

I've had the opposite! Many melons we've bought are mushy in the middle this year. It seems very hard to get them right.

Same here! However I have also had hard, unappetising melons too. Recently I paid £3 for an M&S Limelon and was most disappointed as it was so unripe.

I wish I’d thought to take mine back to Sainsburys! Cut Galia melon in half scooped out seeds ….took a spoonful…yuck! Dry and consistency of a rotten sponge! Straight in food waste!

Melons are supposed to smell like cat's pee to test for ripeness. So, I believe!

I have recently been on holiday and the hotel served portions of fresh fruit salad during breakfast - there was several varieties of melon included but none were that tasty to be honest and were very disappointing. May be the chef didn't know how to test for ripeness but more likely he couldn't care less.

I try and buy as little supermarket fruit as possible. I grow all sorts and if there is a glut I freeze them, I just find fruit that has been stored and chilled is never the same. Bit sad at the moment as my blueberries have just finished, but loads of raspberries ripening and they seem to carry on till Christmas every year.

I’ve stopped buying melons as they never seem to live up to my expectations! Either hard and don’t ripen or go soft and mushy very quickly. Maybe my expectations are too high!!!!

1summer

I recently bought a piel de sapo melon from Sainsburys only because it was on offer. It is absolutely delicious.

I saw one of these last year in Lidl and thought id give it a.go. Wow! Much nicer than honeydew! Haven't seen any since though. I like Galia. I find Watermelons wishy/washy, that and too many blasted seeds. Similar to pomegranate, too fiddly.

I can't remember the name of the one I bought, but it was different from the usual ones.

Too heavy to lug back to lidl.

I had a honeydew melon in my online order recently that was hard as a rock at the end. I left it on a sunny window ledge, and it took 2 weeks to soften up, but it lovely in the end.

you should not press melons it only makes a bruise. But definitely smell them. When you get a good ripe smell they are ready to eat. also I support our local market as much as possible, and they usually know much more about their products than the supermarkets and also are happy to sell smaller amounts, and as I live alone I find them the best answer and here the market is on wednesdays and saturdays so that suits me.

Just bought a cantaloupe melon , GC love them and were coming for lunch. It was soft to the touch and felt ready to eat. Cut in to it and it was tasteless and dry, not fit to eat!

I planted some of the seeds from mine, so perhaps next year I'll produce an inedible melon or two.

You could pickle it or make some chutney. Look for recipes using unripe melon.

I always give melons a gentle squeeze, if firm will be unripe, slightly soft ripe

I just looked up the one I bought...

The Matisse melon, also known as the Ivory Gaya, Sugar Baby, or Snow Leopard, has a sweet flavor and a texture similar to white chocolate. The melon has a creamy white or alabaster peel with flecks of jade and yellow, and its flesh is succulent and juicy

We always used to rely on one end becoming slightly softer, to indicate ripeness. I bought a honeydew three weeks ago which was quite firm. I waited, …. and waited. After two weeks, and no softening anywhere, I bit the bullet and cut it, fully expecting it to be hard as a turnip, but it wasn’t too bad, at least it was edible. There was just no way of knowing whether it was ripe, or not. I’ll be reluctant to buy another one.

I feel not only are melons poor quality now but have shrunk in size a lot too. I love them but have stopped buying them, so disappointing.

Coming from France I bought a melon in the local Aldi. I couldn’t believe how tasteless it was… disgusting, it should be illegal to sell such a lovely fruit. Aldi must know what they are buying.