How To Tell If Honeydew Is Ripe

When you shop for honeydew melons, there are a few things you can check to see if they’re ripe. First, feel the weight: honeydew should be heavy for their size. Next, smell them—if they smell strongly of melon and have no blemishes or soft spots, then they’re likely ripe. Finally, buy them in season (June through October). If all these signs line up and you choose an unripe honeydew anyway…well…you’ll have something interesting to show off at your next dinner party!

Feel it.

How to Tell if a Honeydew is Ripe by Feeling

One way to tell if your honeydew is ripe is to feel it. This method may be more reliable than looking at the exterior of the melon, as sometimes they can appear ripe even when they’re not. To do this, gently press on the top of each melon and feel for softness or firmness. A ripe honeydew will feel soft to touch, while one that still needs time on the vine will feel firmer and less yielding under pressure.

Smell it.

Smell it. If the melon smells sweet and fragrant, it is ripe. If it smells sour, it is not ripe. You can also open up the top of the melon with your knife and see if there are spots inside that look like black or green mold; if so, don’t eat it! The surest sign that a honeydew has reached its peak ripeness is when you take a bite and find no flavor—this means that all of the sugars have been converted into fermentation, leaving behind little more than watery pulp in your mouth (which isn’t very pleasant).

Buy it in season.

• Buy it in season.
• When honeydew is out of season, it can be imported from warmer climates. This is more expensive and less reliable than local produce.
• The same goes for other foods like watermelons or strawberries—the closer you get to the source, the better quality your food will be. Generally speaking, imported products are also less fresh and may be from another country or hemisphere altogether (like New Zealand).

If a honeydew is ripe, it will feel heavy for its size, smell strongly of melon, and be in season where you buy it.

A ripe honeydew melon should have a strong and sweet smell. It should also feel heavy for its size. The skin of the fruit will be smooth, but it will wrinkle as it ripens. When choosing a ripe honeydew, look for one that is mostly green with yellow stripes around the top, bottom and sides of the fruit.

When purchasing your next melon at the market or farmers’ market (or if you’re lucky enough to grow some yourself), take note of all these factors so that you can tell if it’s ready for eating!

If you want to know if honeydew is ripe and ready to eat, feel it. If it’s heavy for its size, smells strongly of melon, and is in season where you buy it, then chances are good that it’s been picked at the right time.