Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with unripe

Choosing one rock-hard avocado over another

sunshinesky — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 10:48:42 -0800

Choosing from a bin of unripened avocados. I like to pride myself on my fruit and veggie selection skills, but I haven't yet managed to figure out what to look for in unripe avocados. I do know how to choose a nicely ripened one, but my grocer rarely has any softer than a rock.

One recently bought avocado went through all manner of ripening techniques over the course of 2 weeks before it finally began to feel soft. When I opened it to eat, it looked fine, but was still quite stiff, fibrous, even bitter, despite 'feeling' right on the outside. I'm thinking this one was a poor choice from the start, as I've never had to wait that long for one to pretend to ripen.

I am honestly afraid of this happening again. I love avocados and it was a test of my patience to wait so long for that one and be so sorely disappointed. They cost too much for such mistakes!

So, my question: Are there any good markers to look for in an unripened avocado? Bonus points for telling me what to avoid!

Tough Avocado

tangerine — Mon, 20 Mar 2006 18:20:19 -0800

What can I do with an (open) unripe avocado? A few minutes ago, making a salad, I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. I cut open a hard, unyielding, positively crunchy avocado.

Is there anything I can now do with it, or have I wasted a perfectly good fruit?

Why is my fruit rotting while it's unripe?

TungstenChef — Tue, 21 Sep 2004 04:03:45 -0800

Why is my fruit rotting while it's unripe?
This just started happening this year when I moved to Arizona. Softer fruits (peaches, mangoes, tomatoes and the like) are turning moldy/rotten in a matter of 2-3 days. If I eat the side that isn't rotten, it's still hard and unripe. Do I have some strain of super bacteria infesting my domicile?