What you see: Open cracks and/or a loose swirl pattern inside your watermelon.What it is: “Hollow heart,” a physiological condition in which the watermelon
How can you tell if an avocado is rotten?
Avocados can "go bad" in many different ways. You’ll know an avocado is rotten if you cut into it and discover widespread discoloration in shades of brown, gray
Creepy black holes inside potatoes
What you see: Black-lined caverns inside your potatoes. What it is: An injury of some kind. Possibly from pressure or from being stored too cold.Eat or
Black lines under shrimp shell
What you see: Dark lines on your shrimp’s flesh. What it is: Likely, naturally occurring discoloration. Eat or toss: Eat! As long as the shrimp smells
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 could be fine, but may not taste
There’s a worm in my turnip!
What you see: A worm thing burrowing in your turnip What it is: A maggot! Specifically, a root maggot. Eat or toss: Cut around the maggot and its trails. The
Black strings in your mango?
What you see: Black veins running through mango flesh. What it is: Darkened vascular canals! Eat or toss? Cut around them if you’d like, but the mango is still
What’s up with circular scars on the bottoms of some tomatoes?
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
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
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
Why is this sweet potato “veiny”?
What you see: Thick, raised lines, looking something like veins, on the surface of your sweet potato. What it is: Fibrous roots growing on the sweet potato. Eat
Tiny scratches all over your pepper?
What you see: Little lines or scars on your bell pepper. What it is: The result of a sudden, unexpected growth spurt. Eat or toss? Eat! These are just harmless
What are these stringy, slimy things in my vinegar?
What: Slimy strings and globs at the bottom of a jar of vinegar. What it is: They may look gross, but these little blobs of goop are what’s known as “mother of
