Last Updated on June 11, 2022 by Gary Stephen
No one wants to eat a bad Zucchini! So, how can you tell if zucchini is bad? To help you out in your culinary exploits, here are a few ways to spot a bad one:
- It has lifeless, wrinkled and dull skin. A good Zucchini will have a glossiness to the skin, a bad one will be dull.
- A few rotten spots are visible.
- If you cut into it, the inside will be stringy and possibly filled-up with large seeds.
- The taste of bitterness.
How to Tell If a Zucchini Has Gone Bad
1. Fungi and Mold
Besides, the most significant signs might be the changes in appearance. The fresh zucchinis probably have shiny skins. Therefore, you should avoid ones that have rotten spots or moldy parts on the outside of the zucchini (not to even mention the inside).
However, if the infected parts are small, you can cut these out and use the rest. But if the rotten parts are widespread, you have no choice but to throw the whole fruits away.
Moreover, when some wrinkles or shrivels start to appear on their beautiful skins. These are the signs that the inside might be rotten, and the zucchini is getting older, and you should discard them.
2. Texture Tells if a Zucchini has gone bad
In the worst scenarios, the zucchini even turns pulpy and release the white milk-looking, stingy liquids. Please throw it away asap. Otherwise, if the mushy parts are small or shallow and you can still remove them and use the rest.
Notice: You can use slightly rubbery zucchini in cooked dishes like soups, stews, or baking goods.
3. Smell
Beside textures, smell is a way to tell if a zucchini is bad. The fresh zucchini has a fresh smell, not robust. When it goes bad, you can smell the strange vinegar-like or sour-fermented scent.
4. Taste Also Tells if a Zucchini has gone bad
Sometimes their appearances and textures don’t change much. Even though the zucchinis are getting wilted. But it is always best to detect your bad zucchini before cooking and trying. At that time, you should try to notice the taste.
As zucchini belongs to the cucumber family. It possess a light bitterness from the cucurbitacins. A small amount of cucurbitacin in young fruits cannot affect your health. But once the fruits are older, or unfortunately, affected by the intercropping technique, the dose is higher than usual. You should consider tossing it away before causing any health problems.
So, we suggest you cut a bit of the zucchini off and lick. If there is a sharp bitterness in your tip tongue, your zucchini is bad.
Ways to Save If a Zucchini Has Gone Bad
As mentioned, sometimes a Zucchini can still be saved.
If it has dark spots on it, but the skin still looks glossy, just cut out the spots and use the rest of the Zucchini.
If only one side of the vegetable is wrinkly, once again just remove the bad parts and just use the rest.
Besides, always harvest your Zucchini right before they are fully mature. Otherwise, you run the risk of getting a tougher zucchini with little flavor. They are usually harvested at around 35 days. But rather keep an eye just to be sure, some can ripen faster and n when they reach 6 – 8 inches in size, they are usually ready to be eaten.
Also, if you do have a Zucchini that is a little over-ripe, consider cooking it. There are some amazing Zucchini recipes out there!
To prevent your Zucchini from going bad make sure to keep them refrigerated. They can last up to two weeks if stored correctly. If you want to keep it fresh for longer, you can also freeze it.
