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”
The white fuzz inside your clementine is supposed to be there
What you see: A delicate white fluff in the center of your clementine (or tangerine, or other type of mandarin). What it is: Basically just an airier version of
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
Tomato insides a bit green?
What you see: A green coloration inside your tomatoes, especially in the gel around the seeds What it is: A particular feature of the breed; or, a physical
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
Black bits on salmon may just be harmless scales
What you see: Unappealing black bits on the surface of your salmon fillet. What it is: Some wayward scales from when the fish was prepped. Eat or toss: Just
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
Tomato sprouts INSIDE the tomato?
What you see: White and green squiggles in tomato flesh. What it is: Sprouting tomato seeds! Eat or toss: As long as the tomato is intact and not showing signs
Does it matter if a pepper is part green and part red?
What you see: Areas on a red, orange or yellow pepper that are still green What it is: Just portions that are underripe, but totally edible Eat or toss?
An onion of a different color?
What you see: Red onions that turn a bluish, greenish color during cooking. What it is: A harmless reaction of a plant pigment to an alkaline (basic)
Can you eat moldy bread?
What you see: Mold on bread. What it is: Mold. Eat or toss: Toss. Since bread is soft, the mold could have spread into other parts of it. Even if you can’t see
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