How to have the perfect peach

Peach season never lasts long enough. From the first southern peaches in early June to my grandpa’s local peaches in August, time flies in the summer. If you come inside our house during those months, you’ll see peaches either on the counter ripening, cooked up in a peach crisp or being eaten over the kitchen sink (a great peach should be juicy!).

One question asked in the market is “how should I ripen these for the perfect peach? Whether for eating or baking, it’s not difficult to ripen peaches and always worth the wait.

Want to have the perfect peach? We recommend giving your peaches a day or so on the counter to soften. You can also place them in a brown paper bag and leave on the counter to speed up the ripening process (adding a banana speeds the process up even more). The ethylene gas emitted from the fruit is contained in the brown paper bag and does a magical thing while you wait. Try not to squeeze them. Peaches don't appreciate that. It’s best not to stack them even though they do look beautiful in a bowl on the kitchen counter.

Want to slow down the ripening process? Place them in the fridge. They will continue to ripen but not nearly as fast.

One other question heard last week was “why don’t the grocery store peaches ripen?” Honestly, they pick them way too soon. Those poor peaches never stood a chance. Some might eventually ripen, but it’s rare.