As summer approaches, plums make their brief but anticipated debut at farmers markets and grocery stores. But how do you pick the perfect ripe, sweet plums to enjoy fresh or bake into crisps and pies? Follow these simple tips for identifying plums at their peak flavor.
1. Look for Deep, Vibrant Color
The skin color is the first indicator of ripeness. Plums come in a range of hues from deep burgundy to golden yellow. Look for plums with rich, intense color all over. Avoid any green patches, which mean the plum was picked prematurely. Red and purple varieties should be especially vibrant. Pale color suggests an underripe fruit.
2. Feel for Firmness
Gently squeeze the plum. It should yield slightly to pressure but still feel plump and firm overall, not mushy. Some give at the blossom end (opposite the stem) is ideal. If the plum is rock hard, it needs more time to ripen Too soft means overripe. The perfect plum has just a little “give”
3. Check for Smooth, Unblemished Skin
A ripe plum’s skin should be smooth and free of wrinkles, punctures, bruises or other defects. Wrinkled skin can indicate an older plum past its prime. Skip any fruit with cuts or indentations, which provide entry points for decay.
4. Sniff the Aroma
A ripe juicy plum should smell fresh and sweet with rich fruity notes. If it has no scent at all, it likely won’t taste like much. The nose knows! Let the fragrance guide you to the best plums.
5.Judge the Weight
Heft a plum in your hand. It should feel heavy for its size, as ripeness brings higher water content. Lightweight plums have often lost moisture and freshness. The weight test is a simple way to gauge juiciness.
6. Watch the Stems
Avoid plums with shriveled, dry stems. The stems should look fresh, indicating the plums were recently picked at peak ripeness. Older plums have drier, darker stems. For the best flavor, select plums with green, flexible stems.
7. Consider the Variety
Some plum varieties are firmer, like Santa Rosa or Elephant Heart. Others are soft when ripe, like Laroda or Black Amber. Know the characteristics of the specific type of plum to accurately judge ripeness. Ask your grocer for details.
8. Buy Unripe Fruit to Ripen Later
Firm plums will continue to soften and sweeten at home if stored at room temperature in a paper bag. Check daily and refrigerate when ripe. Enjoy right away for best quality.
9. Avoid Pre-Packaged Options
Precut, prepackaged plums lack the stem and shape cues needed to gauge ripeness. Opt for whole plums you can inspect and handpick.
10. Shop Local and In-Season
The tastiest plums are fresh-picked at the peak of ripeness. Buy local in season and from farmers markets for ultimate flavor. Or grow your own!
With this advice in your back pocket, you’ll breeze through the plum display and easily pick the juiciest, sweetest fruits every time. Let your senses guide you—look, feel, smell—and you’ll come home with plums that make your tastebuds sing. Then bake up a storm and enjoy summer’s perfect stone fruit.
How to Select Plums:
- Plums should be plump and well-colored.
- Hold a plum in your hand to see if it’s ready. It should feel heavy and yield to gentle pressure.
- Do not buy plums whose skin is dry, has mushy spots, or is broken.
How to Store Plums:
- Store unripened plums at room temperature to ripen. Put them in a paper bag to speed up the process, but check on them often because they go bad very quickly.
- When plums are ready, put them in the fridge for up to three days.
Cooking Tips : How to Pick Plums
FAQ
How can you tell if plums are sweet?
How to pick a good plum at the store?
How do you know when sugar plums are ripe?
Which plums are sweeter, red or black?
How do you pick the best plums?
To pick the best plums Look for plump fruit, paying attention to the stem end – the fuller it fills up and around, the longer it stayed on the tree. Make sure there are no wrinkles in the skin. Ripe ones yield to gentle pressure. While they can get softer after you take them home, they do not get sweeter or more flavorful.
Do plums get sweeter after picking?
Plums don’t get sweeter after they are picked, but since they ship better than other stone fruits, they have a higher chance of having ripened longer on the tree. When are plums in season? Black plums have red flesh (whereas other types have yellow flesh).
Do Japanese plums Sweeten after being picked?
Turn the halves to separate and remove the pit. Plums do not sweeten after being picked, but they will soften. The Japanese plum was introduced to the United States in 1870 and became very popular. There are over 2,000 varieties of plums, and about 140 of them are available in the United States.
Can you pick plums before they ripe?
You can pick plums before they are ripe, but they will not get any sweeter. Plums develop all of their sweetness while still on the branch of their tree. Pick only a couple of plums to check their sweetness level before committing to picking more. Remember that ripe plums will often go bad after just 3 days of sitting on the counter.
When do plums ripen?
Plums ripen from summer to early autumn, with different varieties ripening at different times. Pick a plum that’s heavy for it’s size and isn’t too soft. A soft plum is probably overripe. Plums were one of the first fruits we humans domesticated, which means we’ve have thousands of years to breed new varieties of plums.
When are European plums ready for harvest?
European plums are ready for harvest just as the fruit begins to soften and the skin color changes to a background hue of yellow. Early maturing varieties of plum will need to be harvested over a period of weeks, as the fruit is not ripe on the tree at the same time.