Melon is a favorite honey delicacy that can be enjoyed fresh for several months of the year. The gourd culture has a drawback – poor keeping quality. But if you know the secrets of how melon is stored at home, you can use honey culture until the New Year.
Can melon be stored
Many housewives on New Year’s holidays want to please the household with beautiful and original dishes. Fresh, sweet melon will decorate the table, filling the winter air with honey aroma. But in order to preserve freshness for a long time, you need to know all the details of storage.
Shelf life of melons in the cellar or basement:
- fruits of late varieties can be stored for up to six months;
- summer – 1 month;
- mid-season – 4 months.
What varieties of melons are suitable for storage
Melon is a vegetable from the gourd family. It contains vitamins and microelements, is easily absorbed by the body, helps in the digestion of food, and is considered a valuable dietary product. The fiber contained in it relieves the body of bad cholesterol and improves digestion.
Not all varieties are suitable for long-term storage. Good keeping quality is observed only in those that have dense pulp and a pectin content of at least 4%.
Summer melon varieties are not suitable for long-term storage. Therefore, they are consumed or processed immediately. To keep it fresh for several months, choose slightly unripe fruits of late varieties.
Winter varieties for long-term storage:
- Slavia;
- Gulyabi;
- Wintering;
- orange;
- Turkmen;
- Torpedo.
How long to store cut melon
Since some varieties are large in size, it is difficult to immediately consume a whole vegetable. It cannot be left at room temperature, as the cut slices will quickly weather and begin to rot. There are several ways to store melon: freezing, drying, preservation.
How long does cut melon last in the fridge?
Cut melon can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Since during long storage it loses its beneficial properties, loses its taste and aroma, releases ethylene, which is harmful to health. Even when stored in the refrigerator, the vegetable begins to dry out and deteriorate.
How to properly store a cut melon
Many housewives make a gross mistake by storing a cut melon in the refrigerator, after wrapping it in polyethylene or putting it in an airtight container. Gourd culture in a closed space actively releases ethylene, which leads to rapid drying and accumulation of substances harmful to the body. To keep the cut slices for a longer period, they are covered with a cotton cloth or paper napkin.
If it is not possible to consume the fruits fresh, they can be dried or frozen. Frozen melon does not lose its useful qualities, and when defrosted, it fills the apartment with an unforgettable aroma.
Freezing is a simple and effective way to preserve freshness and flavor. Dense pulp is cut into involuntary pieces, laid out on a baking sheet and put into the freezer. After they freeze, they are packaged in bags or sealed containers. The frozen product can be stored for about 1 year.
Chopped slices can be dried. For this:
- The prepared fruit is cut into slices 2 cm thick.
- They are laid out on a baking sheet so that they do not touch each other, and sent to an oven preheated to 200 ° C.
- After 15 minutes, the temperature is lowered to 80 ° C and the door is opened for better air circulation.
- After 6 hours, the melon slices are dried in a well-ventilated area for the final loss of moisture.
- Store the prepared product in a glass jar with a tightly closed lid or in bags made of natural fabric in a dark, dry room.
How to save a melon for the winter
Melon is a melon culture that does not have a high keeping quality. But in order to keep it for a long time, it is necessary to choose the right fruit and create favorable conditions for it.
How to select fruits suitable for long-term storage
When buying a melon for long-term storage, you need to consider the following nuances:
- A light, but dim mesh on the peel should occupy no more than half of the surface. This indicates an average degree of maturity and good quality.
- The stage of ripeness can be determined by a pronounced aroma.
- A melon intended for storage should have a resilient spout. Overripe fruits have a soft nose and the melon will not last long.
- The peel should be without mechanical damage. If there are dents, black spots or a missing stem on the fruits, they will quickly begin to deteriorate and rot.
If melons and gourds are grown on a personal plot, then it must be prepared in advance for long-term storage.
Medium-late varieties are planted in early June, so that the crop ripens in early September. Irrigation and top dressing are not carried out 2-3 days before harvesting, as potash fertilizers reduce the shelf life. 7 days before harvesting, it is necessary to break the stalk to stop the outflow of nutrients.
The crop is harvested in dry, sunny weather, early in the morning, so that the fruits do not have time to warm up in direct sunlight. I remove the melon culture from the vine along with the stalk. The harvested crop is laid out under a canopy for 10-14 days. Drying is necessary to evaporate excess moisture. In dried fruits, the pulp becomes dense, and the skin is rough.
A well-harvested crop, subject to storage rules, can last until the New Year holidays.
Under what conditions can it be stored
Long-term storage can be achieved only if favorable conditions are created:
- temperature and humidity conditions – melon storage temperature should be within + 2-4 °C, air humidity 60-85%;
- air circulation – fruits are stored in a container with holes, in a dark, well-ventilated, dry room.
Before laying in storage, the fruits should not be washed, as excess moisture will lead to rapid decay.
Melon quickly absorbs odors. Therefore, it should not be stored near fruits and vegetables. Apples, beets and potatoes emit a volatile substance that leads to rapid ripening, so this neighborhood is undesirable.
How to store a melon in an apartment
Melon is a melon culture that is not subject to long-term storage at home. If it is not possible to keep it in the cellar or basement, it is better to recycle it. From a sweet vegetable, tasty, fragrant jam, compote, candied fruit and healthy melon honey are obtained,
You can keep a melon in an apartment for no more than 7 days. The main condition for good keeping quality is the absence of sunlight, since ultraviolet accelerates the ripening process. Therefore, the best place for storage would be a pantry, a closet and a place under the bed. For better preservation, each fruit is loosely wrapped in paper or cotton fabric.
Also, melon can be stored in the refrigerator, on the bottom shelf. But if you do not use it after 15 days, then at high humidity and low temperature, the fruits will begin to rot, the flesh will lose elasticity, and the taste will not change for the better.
How to save a melon until the New Year
Storing melons for the winter is possible only in the cellar or basement. There are several ways to keep fresh:
- in the grid – each fruit is placed in vegetable nets and hung above the floor so that they do not touch each other. Once every 30 days, an inspection is carried out, rejecting rotten and softened specimens.
- In the boxes – the boxes are filled with sand or sawdust. The melon is set vertically, with the stalk up, separating each fruit with bulk material. To preserve juiciness and freshness, the melon is immersed in the filler for ¾ of the length.
- On the shelves – if a lot of fruits are harvested for storage, then this method is ideal. The shelves are covered with a soft cloth, sawdust or hay. The fruits prepared for storage are laid in one layer, leaving an interval of at least 30 cm. For better preservation, each specimen is given a separate soft nest, which will avoid the appearance of bedsores, which lead to rapid decay. Once a month, the melon is inspected and turned over.
Conclusion
The melon is stored in the refrigerator, cellar and cellar. But to keep it for a long time, you need to know certain skills. By following simple rules, fragrant fruit can be served at the table throughout the winter, while it will not lose its taste and aroma.