Picking A Good Watermelon -- To Thump Or Not To Thump?
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NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) - It's a debate as old as the ages and a question we've all faced in the grocery store or on the side of the road when trying to pick a watermelon... to thump or not to thump?
There are a few things you should do before you prepare to lift with your legs, and not your back, and load in what you hope will be a perfectly sweet summer treat!
Ripe watermelons will have a bright skin and of course be firm --- not mushy. The watermelon should feel heavy for its size, which makes sense because watermelons contain more than 90-percent water and experts say the ripest ones have the most water.
The underside, or part that rests on the ground, of a watermelon will not have the same bright green color. If the melon wasn't picked early and actually ripened in the sun the underside will have a creamy yellow color.
According to the Texas A&M University AgriLife Extension, Texas ranks 3rd in the country for watermelon production and watermelons are the state's largest annual horticultural crop.
Now the great debate!
Some people prefer smelling and feeling for smoothness or lumps -- but most experts and arm-chair experts say thumping or tapping a watermelon is the way to go!
Texas' Warren Produce is one of the biggest watermelon suppliers in the state. If you ask co-owner Jimmy Henderson he doesn't even like thumping a melon. Henderson says a pat, with an open hand, is the best method.
The tap should resonate, or have a hollow ring. "You want to hear a good ring when you tap a watermelon… you want to hear a good ring."
Henderson warned that sometimes, instead of a hollow ring, there will be a dull thud. "Normally, that happens if they're overripe and maybe the seed cavities inside the watermelons are starting to break down, or it's bruised," he said.
Once your watermelon is cut it should be refrigerated, but an uncut watermelon, kept in a cool, dry place, doesn't need refrigeration.
So as watermelon season draws closer, you can head out on your hunt with new enthusiasm.
You should also know that watermelon is a good source of Vitamin A & C and also contains phytochemical lycopene -- a pigmentation that some scientists say helps prevent several forms of cancer.
And finally, you may have been warned as a child not to swallow the seeds, but don't worry about it. It will not harm you to swallow watermelon seeds.
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