When we choose oranges, pick up each fruit and pay attention to its navel. While the navel of some oranges is large and round, with a very clear indentation in the middle, most others only have a small dot.

When it comes to quality, there is a big difference between large navel oranges and small navel oranges. When you cut large navel oranges, you will see that the navel is covered with a white membrane, with few segments inside, mostly peel, and an unattractive taste. Generally, the orange segments are not sweet and have less juice than usual.

Small navel oranges, on the contrary, do not have a clear navel, the peel is thin, the segments are more juicy and sweet. Sweetness and water content can be said to be the differences between large navel oranges and small navel oranges. When buying oranges, pay attention to the navel to choose the best fruits.

How to choose delicious oranges

Apart from the navel, when buying oranges, you can rely on the following factors to choose the most satisfactory fruits.

1. Color

The eye-catching orange color is the first thing that catches our eyes when we come to the orange counter, but if you look closely, you will see that oranges have many different shades. The same orange variety, the darker the color, the more sunlight it receives and thus accumulates more sugar inside, making it sweet and juicy. You should choose these fruits.

2. Shape

When buying orange, we often see slightly oval oranges, round oranges, plump oranges, and slightly wrinkled and rough oranges. If you want to eat delicious oranges, choose round oranges because they will be juicy and sweet.

3. Feel by hand

It’s advisable to hold the orange with your hands to feel its weight because a large fruit is not necessarily heavy. It may have a lot of peel and dry segments.

If you feel it is heavy, it is fresh and juicy. Meanwhile, if it feels light, it means that the orange has been picked a long time ago and stored for a long time, and is not delicious.

Additionally, holding the fruit helps you to feel the softness or hardness of the orange. Fresh and ripe oranges have elasticity when you pinch them; if it is difficult to pinch, the fruit has a thick skin and is not delicious.