What you see: Brown areas on your mushrooms that won’t wash off. What it is: Discoloration from bruising or aging. Eat or toss: A little discoloration isn't a
This is what happens when you press your avocados too hard
What you see: Black circles just below the avocado’s peel. You may also see small holes in the bruises. What it is: Finger bruising. Eat or toss: Eat! But you
Dark spots all over mango
What you see: Black dots all over your mango.What it is: Lenticel darkening!Eat or toss: Eat! This only affects the external appearance of the mango. Are
Dark, purple residue under avocado skin
What you see: A dark, purplish “dust” on the surface of your avocado, just under the skin. What it is: Pigment from the skin. Eat or toss: Eat! The purple
Shallow blackened holes on potato’s exterior
What you see: Blackish spots or holes on your potatoes like those pictured above; they may go below the peel. What it is: Likely pores that were damaged and
Is that grass in your spinach?
What you see: What looks like a blade of grass in your spinach clamshell. What it is: A “seed leaf” of spinach. Eat or toss: Eat! This is just more
Is that mold in this split-pit peach?
What you see: Your peach’s pit has split open, the area around the pit is bumpy and strange. You might be worried about mold. What it is: The pit split while
Weak greens and peach fuzz: Six fun & fresh fruit and veg facts
From the particulars of peach harvesting to why some leafy greens are sturdier than others, I learned so, so much at the virtual Postharvest Technology of
Why does some broccoli look blue?
What you see: Broccoli with a blueish tingeWhat it is: Plant pigments and/or a waxy coating on the broccoli Eat or toss: Eat! This is normal for broccoli Why
Dispatch from the virtual Postharvest Technology Short Course at UC Davis
When I’m putting together pieces for EatOrToss, I often turn to researchers in a field known as postharvest science. These are the horticulturists, plant
Purple splotches on your cauliflower?
What you see: White cauliflower with some random purple patches in the branches and stemWhat it is: Bonus colors from anthocyanins, common plant pigments Eat or
Brown dots or streaks in your avocado?
What you see: Brown and black streaks or dots in avocado flesh What it is: Vascular browning! Mmmm! Eat or toss? The avocado is edible, but may not taste as
Odd spots inside sweet potato?
What you see: Discolored, dry-looking patches in sweet potato flesh, more toward the outside than the inside. The exterior of the sweet potato probably looks
A hole with a “window” in your spinach?
What you see: A spinach leaf with a hole that’s not quite a hole; there's a layer of clear tissue remaining. What it is: Window-paning! Evidence of a picky
Black pattern inside a raw potato?
What you see: A black pattern inside your potato What it is: A number of issues cause black areas to form in potatoes; the potato pictured above most likely
A plum that’s brownish inside?
What you see: Brownish discoloration inside a plum What it is: Likely flesh browning from too-cold storage Eat or toss: The plum doesn’t taste good, right? It’s
