Why is everyone talking about watermelon buttholes?
Popular Science...
Nothing ruins a summer picnic like a dry, mealy, tasteless watermelon. Maybe you learned to knock on a melon or look for certain webbing patterns when trying to find the ripest fruit, but what about investigating the watermelon’s…umm…butthole. Technically, a watermelon butthole is called the blossom end, but the internet has decided to rename its underside spot and who are we to argue?
What exactly is the watermelon butthole method?
The good people of the internet contend that the best way to select a watermelon is to examine its blossom end (the brown circle opposite the stem side). To select the juiciest, tastiest watermelon, look for a fruit with the tiniest “butthole.”
Simple enough, right? But do experts agree this method works?
“No. Every watermelon has a blossom end and they all pretty much look the same,” says Jesse James Wiggins, a fifth-generation watermelon producer and shipper, and past president of the National Watermelon Promotion Board (NWPB). “There’s no secret sweetness indicator hiding back there. So it’s not a reliable way to judge flavor; you can’t pick a good watermelon just by looking at the blossom end.”
Now you can stop staring at watermelon buttholes in the produce section of your local grocer. Seriously, please stop doing that.
How to pick the tastiest watermelon
If measuring a brown spot can’t help you, is there a better way to find a tasty watermelon before you buy it? Wiggins tells Popular Science that you can look for a few key markers to help select the best watermelon.
“There are plenty of theories, but the best rule is simple: look, lift, turn,” Wiggins says. “Pick one with a clean exterior (no holes or soft spots), make sure it feels heavy for its size, and check for a creamy yellow spot where it sat and ripened in the field.”
Wiggins also points out that the quality of the watermelon starts on the farm.
“For most consumers, it’s tough to truly judge flavor just from the outside,” he tells us. “The real sweetness and ripeness are determined earlier—by the farmer and the harvester picking the melon at the right time for peak sugar and flavor before it ever makes it to the store.”
Enjoy your picnic.
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