Tips to Buy Fresh Apples from Himachal Pradesh

What makes apples a favourite fruit for so many people has to do with their being super versatile to use - yes with apples you can seldom go wrong, they can be used to whip up a lot of tasty recipes from pies, to turning them into jams, jellies, and even ciders. 

They are also low on sodium, fat-free, and 100% free from cholesterol making them a good option for anyone that is looking after their calorie intake. 

Besides being palatable, this classic fruit is also loaded with tons of nutrients that helps in reducing inflammation in the body, lowering blood sugar, has anti-cancer properties, and more making it an ideal fruit for living a healthy life. Much like the saying goes, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away.'"

Why are Himachali Apples Famous

When you think about Himachal Pradesh your mind draws up vivid pictures of fragrant apple orchards that never seem to end and why not, after all, Himachal Pradesh is the second largest producer of apples in India. 

Himachali apples are known for their natural colour with a subtle sweetness that envelopes your taste buds as you take a bite into their juicy flesh. Besides these, fresh apples from Himachal are also known to have thicker skin, especially the ones that are grown in Kinnaur. 

Having a thicker skin than regular apples from other regions means that they have a longer shelf life making them ideal to be stored for months without altering their natural taste and succulence. 

After reading about what makes Himachali apples so appealing it is only natural to want to get your hands on a box or two of apples from here for yourself. But how do you make sure that you are getting the best apples from Himachal Pradesh if you don't know how to pick them? 

Here are a few tips on how to buy fresh apples from Himachal Pradesh that can save you a ton of your precious time.

• DOs: Check if the apple is firm or not. For this all you need to do is pick an apple and gently press a small part, it should feel firm and not soft. 

• Don't buy apples that are soft and mushy because that indicates that they are overripe and so not fit for eating purposes. You can however use them to make smoothies and applesauce.

• DOs: Go for apples that have zero bruising on their skin, specks and scuff marks are a natural phenomenon so that won't affect their quality.

• Don't buy apples that have a strong sour smell because that can indicate that they are rotting.
  
  
• DOs: Another tip is to go for apples that have their own natural wax coating and not the artificial one that some vendors spray them with. To check you can rub the apple a little if you see the surface shine then that means there is no artificial wax coating on it. 

When you are visiting Himachal Pradesh the best thing to take home with you apart from the memories you make here are its apples, with these tips you can be sure to get your hands on the best apples from Himachal the next time you visit the region.