Where Is Hami Melon a Specialty? Here's How to Handle It If You Buy an Unripe One

Hami melon, also known as muskmelon or sweet melon, is a common summer fruit that is deeply loved for its abundant flesh, sweet taste and high nutritional value. So where is Hami melon a specialty? What should you do if the one you bought is unripe?

1. Introduction to Hami melon:

1. What kinds of Hami melon are there?

There are many varieties of Hami melon, more than 180 in total, among which the common ones in daily life include Xizhou honey, Donghu melon, Black Eyebrow, Red Heart Crisp, Yellow Egg, Xuelihong and so on.

2. Is Hami melon a hot-natured or cool-natured fruit?

Hami melon is a cool-natured fruit, suitable for eating in summer. It can generally be eaten directly, or made into fruit salad, or juiced, and it can have a heat-clearing effect. However, people with a cold constitution, those menstruating, and those who are pregnant should not eat it. Even healthy people should eat it in moderation.

2. Where is Hami melon a specialty?

Hami melon is a specialty of Xinjiang and the Dunhuang area of Gansu. Among these, the Hami melons produced in Jiashi County in southern Xinjiang, Hami and the Turpan Basin are of very good quality. They are sold all over China, and the price is not expensive, so most people can afford them.

In addition, Hami melon is also planted in other regions of China, but the planting areas must have many natural conditions such as high summer temperatures, dry air, scarce rainfall and long sunshine hours, so that the melons grown are sweet.

3. What should you do if the Hami melon you bought is unripe?

If the Hami melon you bought is unripe, do not eat it. You can first put it together with ripe fruits such as apples, bananas and pears, then seal it in a plastic bag for 2-3 days and take it out. Of course, if conditions permit, you can directly inject ethylene gas into the plastic bag and leave it for 2-3 days. If it is still not ripe after 2-3 days, then do not eat it.

When buying, if you do not know whether a Hami melon is ripe, you can use the following methods to tell:

Method 1: Press with your hand

No matter which kind of Hami melon it is, the top will become soft when ripe. So when buying, if you gently press the top of the melon with your hand and it feels soft, that means it is ripe and you can buy it.

Method 2: Look at the skin color

No matter whether the Hami melon has green skin or mottled skin, the top of the head will turn white when ripe. For yellow-skinned Hami melons, the top will turn bright yellow when ripe. If the color has turned white or yellow, that means it is ripe.

Method 3: Look at the tendril of the melon

When a Hami melon is ripe, the tendril at the fruit node will wither and turn yellow. If you go to the field to pick them and see that the tendril has withered and turned yellow, that means it is ripe and can be picked.

Method 4: Look at the fruit stalk

For netted Hami melons, when ripe, the fruit stalk at the rear end of the melon is slightly sunken and smooth and greasy, with a dense network of veins. For Hami melons with no netting or half netting, when ripe, the fruit stalk at the rear end becomes bright and colorful, with obvious mottling, all fuzz shed, a firm surface and a smooth, greasy feel. For some varieties of Hami melon, when they are 90 percent ripe, an abscission layer forms at the fruit stalk, and it easily falls off naturally.

Method 5: Smell the aroma

No matter which kind of Hami melon it is, when ripe, a rich fruity aroma is released from the navel end of the fruit. So you can smell the fruit navel to see whether there is a fragrance. If there is, that means it is ripe.

Method 6: Look at the scars on the melon skin

Look at whether there are scars on the melon skin. The older the scars, the riper the Hami melon, and the sweeter it is.

Overall, Hami melon is a specialty of Xinjiang and the Dunhuang area of Gansu, where the melons produced have a sweet taste and large fruit. If the one you buy is unripe, you can first leave it with ripe fruit for 2-3 days, and then it can be eaten.