Buyer's Guide to Fruits and Vegetables

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I'd like to introduce our guest blogger for the week, Lindsey Carter, Dietetic Intern.  Lindsey graduated from Meredith College last year with a Masters Degree in Nutrition. After completeing her internship and obtaining her Registered Dietitian credential, she'd like to pursue a career in Maternal and Pediatric Nutrition.

When the grocery store has so many options for fruits and vegetables how can you tell which are actually tasty, fresh, and in season? We’ve all experienced buyer’s remorse at some point, when we’ve selected a fruit or vegetable that’s past its prime, not yet ripe or just downright nasty. How can you avoid these imposters of good taste, these “lemons”?

Many know local, organic and in season options are best. However, what do you actually look for in a specific fruit or vegetable, and when exactly? Below you'll find a few tips of the trade and a seasonal guide for North Carolina produce. As you know, eating these foods in season and avoiding the "bad apples" of the bunch can change your fruit and vegetable experience from drab to fabulous!

Fruit or Vegetable	Season	What to Look For?
Apples	August-February	Choose fruits with smooth skin, avoid apples with bruises or spots
Beans, Green	June-September	Choose bright colored beans free of blemishes
Beans, Butter	July-August	Look for ones that have tender skins that are green or greenish-white in color and do not have any signs of mold or decay. Fresh beans should be firm, dark green and glossy, and free of blemishes, wrinkling and yellowing. If they have been shelled, you should inspect them carefully since they are extremely perishable.
Blueberries	May-July	Avoid stained containers which can indicate bruising. Blueberries should be plump and firm with a dark blue color and waxy, silvery “bloom.”
Broccoli	April-May October-November	Stalks and stems should be firm. Florets should be dark green-purple, with floret clusters that are compact. Avoid yellowing broccoli.
Cabbage	May-December	Cabbage should have very few loose outer leafs. Choose cabbage heads that are firm and dense with shiny, crisp, colorful leaves free of cracks, bruises, and blemishes.
Cantaloupes	July-August	A ripe cantaloupe when tapped on will sound dull and deep and should be heavy for its size. If you press gently on the top of a ripe cantaloupe (the stem end, where the vine was attached) with your thumb, you should feel it give way very slightly.
Corn	June-August	Husks should be fresh, moist, tight and green. Kernels at the tips should be small and plump not shrunken. Larger tips mean corn is over mature. The silk should be light golden and moist. Avoid corn with brown and brittle silks.
Cucumbers	June-November	Select bright green firm cucumbers, avoid those that are wrinkled or yellowed.
Eggplant	June-August	Look for firm, heavy, smooth skinned eggplant. Avoid shriveled and flabby eggplant with brown or yellowish coloring.
Grapes	August-October	Choose compact bunches with good color. Grapes should be firm and firmly attached to stems.
Leafy Greens	March-December	Select crisp leaves with vibrant color.
Okra	July-August	Look for small, young pods that are no more than 3 inches long (these are the most tender). Choose pods that are clean, fresh and green and that snap crisply when broken in half. Avoid pods that look dull and dry.
Peaches	June-September	Look for peaches with skins that show a background color of yellow or warm cream. Avoid rock-hard peaches and choose those that yield slightly to pressure along the seam, even if they may otherwise be fairly firm.
Peanuts	Year Round	Whole peanuts should be heavy for their size. Upon shaking the peanut should not rattle, rattling suggests the peanut has dried out and past its prime. Shells should be free from cracks, dark spots and insect damage
Peas, Field	July-August	Avoid pale, flabby or damp peas
Pecans	November-December	Select heavy-meated bright golden colored kernels that are sweet in flavor and solid in feel.
Peppers, Green	June-August	Choose those which are deeply colored and free of wrinkles, avoid soft spots or other indications of age or decay. Shape and size do not matter.
Potatoes, White	June-July	Select firm and smooth potatoes, avoid those with wrinkling that are soft or have a green tinge
Potatoes, Sweet	Year Round	Choose firm, medium-sized sweet potatoes that are tapered at both ends. Skin should be smooth without brown spots.
Pumpkins	September-October	When choosing pumpkins for cooking, avoid the large carving varieties, which are thin-walled, stringy and tasteless. Instead choose small but heavy, about 5 to 7 pounds with at least an inch of stem (the longer the better) and have no blemishes or soft spots. Shape is not important.
Squash	May-September	Choose heavy for their size with glossy, unblemished thin skins.
Strawberries	April-June	Choose berries that are firm, plump, free of mold, and which have a shiny, deep red color and attached green caps.
Tomatoes	July-September	Rich vibrant color, with smooth skin. Avoid wrinkles, cracks, bruises, or soft softs. Ripe tomatoes will yield to slight pressure and will have a noticeably sweet fragrance.
Watermelon	June-August	To tell if a melon is ripe press on the end opposite the stem, if ripe it will yield noticeably to the pressure of your finger. Choose melons that are heavy for their size and free of bruises or other damage. Check the navel, or stem end, for excessive softness and/or mold.