The first thing to look for is a rotten spot on its skin when choosing a plum. Since plums have a short shelf life, they are often picked before they are fully ripened. The skin will become very soft, develop dark spots, and ooze. The flesh will also begin to turn brown or have an unpleasant odor. These are all signs of spoiled fruit. To know how to tell if a plum is bad, read further.
A ripe plum can be kept fresh for three to five days in the fridge. It can keep for a week or more before going bad. When left out at room temperature, a ripe plum will deteriorate much more quickly. You can eat them right away if you don’t cut them or remove their pits. Rotten or rancid fruit is likely to lose its quality faster.
If the skin of the plum is soft and has dark spots, it is likely spoiled. A plum that is soft and has a wormy or moldy appearance is not ripe. Even if a plum is ripe, it is not a good idea to eat a plum that has been spotted with a small cut or blemish.
Plum Nutrition Fact
How to Tell if a Plum is Ripe?
Before discussing storage, you must first determine whether the plums you have are fully matured. When inspecting your plums for ripeness, there are two things to keep in mind. These are the following:
Color
The color of plums changes as they ripen. The color of blue plums ranges from green to greenish-blue to dark blue. Purple plums follow a similar journey to blue plums, and however, they turn purple instead of blue.
Another way to tell if a plum is rotten is its color. Fresh plums are dark purple. A rotten one will be discolored or misshapen. A wrinkly skin will also indicate that the fruit is past its prime. You should also avoid picking a plum with spots or mold. A rotten or a bruised fruit will not taste good and will not be safe to eat.
A plum should be dark purple and firm. A plum that is not fresh has wrinkly skin and wormy skin. If it has spots or mold, it is probably not ripe. The only way to tell if a plumb is terrible is to eat it. If the plum is soft, it will not be ripe enough for eating.
Firmness
Similar to avocado, unripe plums are firm to the touch. Over time they soften, especially near the tip (ISU). That’s also the time they get their smell. It’s time to toss the plums if they’re really soft or even oozing juice.
A ripe plum should be firm and oozing juice. If it is faded or has other signs of spoilage, you should discard it. It would help if you also discarded any slimy plum or has worms or larvae. A rotten or damaged fruit should be discarded. After this, you can either cut it in half or pit it or store it separately.
Look for any visual signs of deterioration.
Mold (particularly near the stem) and withered skin are two. The latter does not imply that the fruit is damaged but rather old and will not taste like a delicious new plum.
Always cut the plum in half and remove the pit before eating. In this manner, you can ensure that the insides are bug-free. When it comes to plums, eating the whole thing and spitting out the pit is never a good idea.
Another sign of a lousy plum is a dark purple color. The color of a fresh plum should be dark purple. If a ripe, wrinkly plum’s skin is wrinkly, it’s probably not fresh. The rind should be smooth and free of mold and spots. If the skin of the plum has mold or spots, it is not safe to eat.
Smell
A rotten or evil plum can be easily identified by its smell. It will be chemical in flavor and will have an odd aftertaste. It will also have molds or bacterial growth, signs of spoilage. A rotten plum will not taste as good as a fresh one, but it will be sweeter if it smells a bit rotten.
How to Store Plums?
Unripe plums should be kept at room temperature until they are ready to eat. Allow them to ripen on the countertop (but not in direct sunlight) or in the cupboard. Please give them a cursory check once or twice a day to see whether they’re ready to go.
A popular method is to keep them in a plastic bag in the produce drawer, but the most important thing is to keep them away from any odorous foods.
Unripe and ripe plums should be stored separately.
Allow your unripe plums to ripen on a countertop or in your cupboard. Make sure they aren’t exposed to direct sunlight. Examine them once or twice a day to see if they are ripe.
It’s critical to keep an eye on your plums since they ripen quickly.
Plums create ethylene, and paper bags trap it, allowing the fruits to ripen more quickly.
Place your ripe plums in the refrigerator. Place the plums in plastic bags in the crisper drawer to keep them fresh. Remember to keep them away from odorous foods.
Otherwise, the scents from your refrigerator will be absorbed by your plums.
Before you consume your plums, make sure they’re clean.
When it Comes to Plums, How Long do They Last Outside?
Plums will keep two to three days in a pantry or cupboard, depending on how ripe they are when purchased and how properly they are stored once you have them.
To keep your plums fresh, take some precautions to ensure they aren’t damaged by direct sunlight or bugs that may be lurking in your kitchen.
Because plums can only ripen outside of a refrigerator or freezer, you should know that unripe plums in the pantry can take one to three days to ripen.
How Long Can be Plums Kept in the Refrigerator?
Refrigerating plums slows the ripening process and can extend the life of your plums by up to five days, roughly twice as long as they would live if not refrigerated.
The refrigerator aids in the preservation of plums by slowing down the chemical processes that cause them to ripen, but this can only be done for so long.
It’s vital to remember that putting unripe plums in the fridge will slow down the ripening process and cause the plums not to develop properly, leaving them stiff and bitter.
Conclusion
Another sign of a lousy plum is if the fruit has a dark, chemical taste. If the flesh is brown, the fruit has been stored too cold. However, a rotten plum won’t hurt you and will be acceptable to eat. If the skin is brown, it’s time to discard it. And if the skin is soft, it’s a sign of a bad plum.
The color of the plum is another indicator of its ripeness. A fresh plum is a dark purple. It is unripe when soft skin and disco inside are juicier and sweeter. A sour plum is usually yellow or red and has mold on its surface, and it should be washed before eating. Otherwise, it will turn rancid.
