Tidings Magazine

Melons

I heard that a good Crenshaw melon is probably the most delicious melon in the world. While in Brazil, I had the opportunity to taste Pele de Sapo (“frog skin”) melons, which look like an elongated pumpkin. These beauties certainly don’t take a back seat to any melon I have ever served. Right now, they are being exported to Europe, but I look forward to their appearance next to the popular Galia, which you can find now in Canadian supermarkets.

Look for a well-shaped, unbruised melon. Don’t depend on squeezing the stem end: you may be feeling the softness resulting only from other customers’ squeezing! There is no infallible method for choosing a great melon, as it always depends on the melon being harvested at the precise point when all its sugars have developed but it is not yet too ripe. When the melon is unripe, it ends up tasting like a cucumber!

Keep melons at room temperature until ripe. Cut in half, remove the seeds from the sections you are planning on eating. Then cut each half into wedges. Melons are best when eaten at room temperature or just slightly chilled. Spanish melons are often served with prosciutto or smoked fish. Or cut into cubes and sprinkle with Sherry to serve as a tapas.

Refrigerate uneaten melon for a day or two at most. Wrap it to prevent its ethylene gas from affecting other foods in the refrigerator. 

Pomelo

Rich in vitamin C with some B vitamins, and low in calories and sodium, the massive pomelo is believed to be the ancestor of the grapefruit. It’s the largest of all citrus fruits, with a very thick aromatic rind and a sweetish yellow or pink flesh, much sweeter and generally more coarsely textured than grapefruit.

Choose firm, not hard, pomelos — the heavier, the better. If they are very light in weight, they won’t be juicy. Avoid those that look dried out at the stem end.

They can be refrigerated for about a week, but are juiciest when eaten as fresh as possible. Though it can be used to make juice, it’s great in salads; the peel can be used to make candies. You can also try heating pomelo segments for a minute or two in the microwave, then flavouring them with a splash of Pernod and honey.

Be adventurous with your fruit! Just make sure that it’s properly ripened when you eat it. One of my biggest complaints about restaurants is that they rush tropical fruit to the table, serving up great-looking slices of what tastes like acid-treated Styrofoam! We’ve all had an unwelcome surprise pucker from unripe tropical fruit here in North America, but I was surprised to find it in Brazilian restaurants as well. What a shame!

(Thanks to Julia Richardson for allowing me to use her sources.)

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