What you see: A scarred ring around the bottom of your tomato What it is: The scarring is a condition called “catfacing,” which is common in some heirloom
The mango that looks fine on the outside, but went wrong on the inside
What you see: A brown, possibly purplish color when you slice into your mango. What it is: Deteriorating mango flesh. Eat or toss: Toss! This mango will not
The case of the uninvited wisp in the honey liqueur
What you see: A wispy thing at the bottom of your honey liqueur What it is: Clumping molecules! Known as “flocculation,” this can happen when organic materials
Spin me into salad! These scars are fine to eat
What you see: Dried out rings running circles around your tomato What it is: Scarring after a growth spurt Eat or toss: Eat! The dry, brown areas may not have a
Don’t be bitter about these dark, sunken spots on your apple. The rest is still sweet
What you see: Little, dark sunken spots on the outside of your apple; and/or brown spots just underneath the skin. What it is: Bitter pit, a defect caused by
The light brown area on this grapefruit is harmless
What you see: Light brown scars on the peel, in a pattern something like broken lace. What it is: Wind scar. Eat or toss? Eat! This is only a superficial
This eggplant is too far gone, but smaller brown and orange skin patches can be OK
What you see: Brown/orangish colors in your eggplant’s skin. What it is: Likely chilling injury. Eat or toss: The eggplant pictured above was too far gone to
Whitish stuff on chocolate is edible, but…
What you see: A light, whitish/grayish/beige-ish powdery coating on chocolate. What it is: “Bloom,” the result of fat or sugar exiting the “chocolate matrix”
Shady areas inside your eggplant?
What you see: Brownish coloring inside your eggplant. What it is: Oxidation. Eat or toss: Eat! This eggplant likely had a traumatic experience (most likely
Brown pattern on pear is perfectly edible (and kind of looks like a map of a faraway land, no?)
What you see: An odd brown pattern on the outside of a pear. What it is: Russeting, a harmless response to water, frost and other environmental conditions. Eat
Can you eat tomatoes with deep but dry holes?
What you see: A dry line running down the outside of a tomato, with a hole or two in its midst. What it is: A sign that, way back when, a part of the tomato
Are the brown spots on cauliflower OK to eat?
What you see: Brown spots on cauliflower. What it is: Bruising, most likely from bumping into other cauliflower heads, or cold temperatures. Eat or toss: Eat!
Dark area on raw salmon
What you see: A dark brownish spot on your salmon, most likely toward the tail. What is is: Bruising. Eat or toss: Eat! If you’re very concerned about
This eggplant looks “scarry,” but it can still make a good meal
What you see: A big scar on your eggplant What it is: A healed injury Eat or toss? Eat! Cut off the scar if you’re worried about texture, but this is only the
This brown broccoli is about to flower!
What you see: Florets that are somewhat loose, and possibly turning brownish colors. What it is: Broccoli buds about to bloom! Eat or toss: Eat! So, can you
Chew on this: The tale of the roughed up sweet potato
What you see: Holes and chewed areas on the outside of your sweet potato What it is: Love bites, likely from white grubs Eat or toss: Peel off the damage and
