A fruit that ripens from the inside
Why Do Pears Go from Hard to Mushy So Fast?
A pear seems to have about one good day. That is because it ripens inside first, where you cannot see it.
-
Step 1 of 5
Ripening is the fruit digesting itself.
A ripening fruit releases enzymes that break its own firm structure into sugar and soft pulp. Nothing is added — the fruit takes itself apart.
-
Step 2 of 5
In a pear it starts at the core.
Most fruit ripens fairly evenly. A pear starts in the middle and works outward, so the outside is still firm long after the centre has turned.
-
Step 3 of 5
So the squeeze test is late.
By the time the outside gives under a thumb, the inside has gone past it. Growers pick pears hard on purpose and ripen them off the tree.
-
Step 4 of 5
Check the neck instead.
The narrow end near the stalk is thinner, so it reflects the inside soonest. A pear that gives slightly there is ready everywhere else.
-
Step 5 of 5
They ripen each other.
Ripening fruit gives off a gas that triggers ripening in anything nearby. A pear in a paper bag with a banana ripens noticeably faster than one on its own.
A pear left on the tree ripens badly and goes gritty. Almost uniquely among fruit, it is better picked unripe and finished indoors.
The short version
A pear ripens from its core outward, so the outside only feels soft once the middle has already gone.
Try it yourself
Press the neck of a pear and then its belly. Only one of them tells you anything useful.