If you live in the U. S. , the growing and harvesting season for honeydew melons is June to October. Always harvest honeydew melons 3 months after planting them.
Most honeydew melons should have a slightly oval shape.
Avoid melons that have green spots or veins running across the outer skin. Don’t pick honeydew melons before they turn yellow or they will never ripen. Choose melons with small brown freckles on the outer skin for extra sweetness.
Look for a “give” that’s not too soft and not too hard. Check that the stem end has a subtle dip right where the stem used to be. In addition, make sure any remaining pieces of the stem are dry, hardened, and free from mold.
The outer skin should have a waxy feel.
Weight the melons with a produce scale if you want the highest degree of accuracy.
If you smell a strange odor that smells off, discard the melon.
Knock on all of the ripe looking melons and separate the ones that sound hollow.
Use the seed test to choose between melons that were fairly equal on other tests.
Skip the refrigerator if you have a cool location in your home that’s 45 to 50 °F (7 to 10 °C) where you can store your melon.
Wrap your honeydew melon in some prosciutto if you like some meat with your fruit. Mix your melon with finely chopped red onion, some fresh cilantro, and a squeeze of lime juice to make a nice salsa that goes great with seafood.
Leave the seeds in all your uncut pieces to prevent them from over-ripening.
