On 8/28/2020 at 4:36 PM, KennethT said:I leave them out all week and they do soften and get sweeter, but that's not really ripening. That's a form of rotting. Ripening only occurs on the plant - not only is there the accumulation of water and sugars, but other flavors develop as well in the later stages of ripening that don't happen on the counter.
This is true for some fruits but not others (I think the technical terms are climacteric vs non-climacteric). Some fruits stop ripening the minute they're picked — pineapples, for instance, will get softer in a way that can be pleasant, but never sweeter. Others will in fact continue to ripen to a limited degree — stone fruits among them. A handful — avocados, for example — actually will never ripen until they're picked or fall off the tree.
On 8/28/2020 at 5:13 PM, ElsieD said:
I agree with you. The same holds true with peaches. People say that they will ripen if you leave them on the counter for a few days. To me, if you do that you end up with a softer, not to be confused with a riper peach, a mushy texture and little peach flavour.
I think this depends on exactly the stage at which the peach was picked. If they're picked under-ripe, they never get to a ripe state before they go mushy and mealy.
When I buy peaches directly from farmers who say they're picked "firm ripe," they do improve in texture and flavor if left out in a paper bag.
The key difference seems to be smell -- if they're firm but fragrant when I buy them, they usually ripen nicely. If they smell like nothing, they never get better.
(If anyone can tell me a similar trick for pears, I would love to know it. Those are the fruit that disappoint me the most.)
