The key is to buy fruits and vegetables in season. Choose fruits and vegetables from Czech or Slovak growers to ensure you get quality produce that doesn’t suffer from long transport and excessively long ripening in storage.
Fruits purchased out of season are usually imported from distant countries and lose not only flavor but primarily their nutritional values during the journey. When selecting fruits and vegetables in the store, use your senses. The smell, surface texture, and visual appearance of the fruit are the first signs by which you can tell if you are buying fresh and quality fruit.
Don’t buy the first piece of fruit or vegetable you come across, but choose carefully. Look for spots on fruits and vegetables. Do not buy fruits and vegetables with prominent spots or beginning mold, even if they are on sale. Check the color to see if it has the right shade. For example, don’t buy green strawberries, yellow cucumbers, etc.
Also check if the fruit has bruises and is not crushed, in short, if it has been handled gently. Smell the fruit. Some fruits have a fresh scent only when they are fresh. The smell can also indicate whether the fruit has been on the shelf for too long and is starting to spoil.
Touch the fruit to feel its texture. For example, apples and pears should be firm, but peaches, plums, and other “soft fruits” should be softer. Be careful not to damage the fruit during this testing. Prefer to choose fruits and vegetables from open boxes rather than closed boxes and plastic wraps. Weigh the fruit. If it is heavy compared to its size, then you have chosen a fresh fruit!
