No Wrath When It Comes to Grapes
Some foods are good to include in a healthy diet not because of what they contain, but rather because of what they don’t contain. Grapes fall into that category.
Grapes are sweet, delicious and versatile. They are low in calories, have no fat, no cholesterol and practically no sodium. But they also generally are low in vitamins and minerals, and don’t contain very much fiber.
While it might seem that red and purple grapes should be high in beta carotene, their color actually comes from pigments and not from any of the carotenoids. So, while they don’t contribute much to your overall nutrient needs, they do make an excellent snack or dessert that doesn’t sabotage an otherwise healthy diet.
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There are two basic varieties of table grapes, European and American, but the geographic lines have become blurred and both types are now grown in the United States. The European varieties are usually the more popular. California produces about 97% of all the European grape varieties in the United States, with the other 3% coming from Arizona.
The individual table-grape varieties, including seedless and seeded types, are harvested at different times of the year. Some of the most familiar names include the black beauty (late May to early July), calmeria (January and February), cardinal (May through mid-August), champagne (September and October), emperor (August through March), flame seedless (June through December) and Thompson seedless (June through November). The availability of some seasonal varieties is extended by imports from Mexico and Chile.
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When you shop for grapes, you should look for bunches that are plump, have a fully developed color and are still on their stems. Grapes develop more sugar as they ripen, but once they are picked they never get any sweeter. To make sure that the grapes you buy are fully ripe, look for a slightly pale yellow hue in green grapes, but dark grapes should have a very deep crimson or black color and no green on them at all.
Grapes are very thin-skinned and easily damaged. For this reason, table varieties are harvested by hand and should be displayed in such a way that they are not more than two bunches deep. They need to be kept refrigerated.
Once you get them home, they should be stored unwashed in a plastic bag in the refrigerator where they should stay fresh for about a week.
When you are ready to eat them, wash them under cold water and remove any individual grapes that appear to be damaged. Then blot them carefully on a paper towel. Grapes taste better when they’ve been out of the refrigerator for a while.
One of the best ways to serve grapes in the summer is to take them off their stems and put them on a plate in the freezer until they are hard. When they are solid, put them in a plastic bag and they will be good for about three months. When you want a cooling treat, just take a bowlful out and enjoy.
Cooking with grapes is easy and depends only on your imagination. They go beautifully with chicken or fish. They work well with pasta and grain salads (like couscous), as well as in almost any kind of green salad, and they add a nice surprise to coleslaw.
Grape juice, because of its high sugar content, is higher in calories than other fruit juices. An 8-ounce glass can have 128 to 155 calories, depending on whether it is bottled or made from concentrate. Grape juice is relatively inexpensive, and so sweet that it is often used to sweeten and dilute other juices.
When you buy any fruit juice, be sure the label says it is 100% fruit juice because fruit drinks, beverages, punches and blends usually contain very little actual juice.
Dr. Sheldon Margen is professor of public health at UC Berkeley; Dale A. Ogar is managing editor of the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter. They are the authors of several books, including “The Wellness Encyclopedia of Food and Nutrition.”
