How to buy kiwi: How to Choose Kiwis: 6 Steps with Pictures

Then, pick up the kiwis and apply light pressure with your fingers. You want ones that give slightly when you press them but don’t feel mushy or overly soft. It’s also a good idea to smell the kiwis to see if they have a pleasant citrus smell, which means they’re ripe. If the kiwis smell unpleasant, they may be overripe. While some people choose kiwis that are ripe because they want to eat them right away, others choose unripe kiwis in order to ripen them at home and eat them at a later date. Whether you want ripe and ready-to-eat kiwis or unripe kiwis, know How to properly select them in order to fully enjoy the benefits that the fruit can offer.

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When looking for locally grown kiwis, keep an eye out during late fall and early winter. American fruit is mostly grown in California, with the majority of kiwi cultivation occurring in China and New Zealand. Look for firm (but not rock-hard) fruit without soft spots, blemishes, or mold. You can eat the whole of your Zespri Kiwifruit, including the skin.

One mini kiwi has a smooth green exterior and is called a kiwi berry. Other varieties are grown in various parts of the world with a range of sizes and sweetness but are not commonly available in stores. Kiwi is a sweet and lightly acidic fruit, somewhere between a strawberry and ripe pineapple. Unripe kiwis are tarter and more firm than ripe kiwifruit. The peel is thin and fuzzy, and the interior is tender, similar to a ripe peach but with tiny black seeds. The seeds are edible and provide a bit of crunchy texture to the smooth flesh.

A firm Zespri Kiwifruit that is stored at room temperature will take about 2-3 days to ripen. If you are finding it really hard to peel the kiwi, remember that the skin is edible, too. But instead of cutting the kiwi in half, use the knife to cut off both ends — the tough stem and blossom part. A tablespoon is optional, depending on How you plan to cut up your kiwi. But since every kitchen is more than likely to have flatware, keep one on hand in case you decide to use one of the slice and scoop methods below. If you’ve never done it before, However, cutting a kiwi can pose quite a challenge.

One serving of kiwifruit contains more potassium than a banana, the Vitamin C of two oranges, and the amount of fiber in a bowl of bran cereal. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 133,214 times. If you slice kiwi with the skin still on, the fruit will lose less of its juice. But if you want to enjoy the fruit’s tangy, sweet taste, and reap its many nutritional benefits, you’ll need to learn How to prepare it properly.

Of course, unless you plan to eat your kiwi immediately, most people opt to buy firm kiwis and eat them as they ripen. Kiwis will usually ripen in a few days to a week when stored at room temperature (don’t keep them in direct sunlight). If the kiwi is firm and does not give to pressure, then it is unripe. If the kiwi gives off a fragrant, citrus smell, then it is perfectly ripe and ready to eat. However, if the kiwi gives off a pungent, sweet smell then it is most likely overripe.

Picking Ripe and Ready-to-Eat Kiwis

The Zespri Gold Kiwifruit is usually soft and ready to eat when you buy it. One of the best ways to enjoy Zespri Kiwifruit is to cut it in half and scoop the flesh out with a spoon. Ripe kiwis can be stored in the fridge in a bag for up to 7 days. The Misen paring knife is the perfect size to slice and dice a kiwi. The best cutting boards for cutting a kiwi is one with grooves or trenches that can catch all the fruit’s juice.

You don’t want damaged fruit that will ripen unevenly. Aside from being little powerhouses of nutrition, kiwis are refreshingly delicious. Their unique flavor is unlike any other fruit, and despite their odd form, preparing them is actually quite easy.

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Similar to pineapple, kiwifruit does not work well with gelatins due to an enzyme that breaks down collagen. However, this same enzyme also makes it a natural tenderizer for meat. Use kiwi to add fresh sweetness to any number of dishes. Kiwifruit grows on a woody vine and is popular in fruit salads and used as a colorful garnish thanks to its bright green interior. Kiwifruit is relatively new to commercial agriculture, first arriving in Europe in the mid-20th century from the fruit’s first large-scale grower, New Zealand. A Kiwi is also a flightless bird native to the island nation, and its brown furry feathers resemble the outer skin of a kiwifruit.

If you have none of these fruits in your pantry, you can also bury the kiwi in a container of uncooked rice, which traps in the kiwi’s own ethylene. Kiwifruit is best stored at room temperature for up to a week away from ethylene-producing fruits—unless you want to ripen them quickly. The fruit continues to ripen after being picked, and the process can be sped up by placing kiwis in a paper bag with an apple or banana.

EAT

And their small size — not much larger than an egg — can be cut in many ways, from standard slices to fun star shapes. Place the kiwi in a paper bag alongside other fruit to help speed up the process. Other fruits, like apples, oranges, bananas or pears. Firm Zespri Kiwifruits that are stored in the fridge will take 5-7 days to fully ripen. If you don’t want it to ripen too quickly, keep it separate from apples and bananas. The skin of an unripe kiwi has a greener hue, and may not be as hairy as ripe kiwis.

cut, scoop & enjoy

Best when fresh, kiwifruit is typically eaten raw when ripe. To check if a fruit is ripe, press gently with your thumb. If the fruit gives slightly, similar to a ripe peach or mango, then the kiwi is ripe.

(Underripe kiwis usually have a hard core and a slight astringent taste.) If it’s too soft, the fruit is overripe and will be difficult to slice. A better option for these softer kiwis would be to blend them into a shake, smoothie, or refreshing summer sorbet. The most common type of kiwifruit available in supermarkets is a variety called Hayward.

The Zespri Green Kiwifruit can be rather firm when you buy it. Such unripe kiwifruit will be too sour to eat and should be kept at room temperature and they will ripen in a few days. You can also speed up the ripening process by storing kiwifruit in a paper or plastic bag together with other ripe fruit such as banana, apple, etc. Ripe fruit contains ethylene, a natural emitted gas that hastens the ripening process. Zespri Gold Kiwifruit, However, is usually ready to eat and needs no further ripening. When you go to choose kiwis at the store, start by looking for kiwis that are brown and fuzzy on the outside, which is a sign that they’re ripe.

“Ripe” can mean different things to different people. A store-bought kiwifruit might be perfectly ripe for one person, but not quite ready for someone else. Fortunately, Zespri Kiwifruit’s versatility means you can easily control the ripening process. On the other hand, the protein-dissolving actinidin enzyme also makes kiwifruit a natural meat tenderiser. Simply peel and mash a kiwifruit and spread the pulp on a tough cut of meat.

Check if a kiwi’s ripe by pressing it gently with your thumb — if it yields to slight pressure, it’s ripe. Freezing your kiwifruit means you’ll always have kiwifruit on hand when you need one. It’s best to buy Zespri Green Kiwifruit when they are still firm, and then leave the fruit to ripen for a while. Store ripened kiwifruit in the fridge, as they taste best when chilled.