Data source: USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, FDC 174683 (Grapes, red or green (European type, such as Thompson seedless), raw).
Fun facts
- The dusty white coating on grapes is a natural wax the skin makes to hold in water. It is not a pesticide or chemical, and a rinse removes some of it.
- Grapes are one of the sweeter fruits: 15.5g of sugar per 100g, close to 4 teaspoons, with 69 kcal. Fiber is fairly low at just 0.9g.
- When grapes are dried, the water leaves and the sugar stays. So a small handful of raisins can equal a whole bunch of fresh grapes.
- Ninh Thuan is Vietnam's grape country, where year-round sun and wind allow several harvests a year. Grapes are eaten fresh, made into syrup and wine, or dried.
Choosing and storing
Pick bunches with green stems and plump fruit firmly attached, with no mushy or leaking grapes. Grapes do not sweeten after harvest, so tasting one before buying is the surest test. Store the whole bunch unwashed in an open bag in the fridge and use within about a week. Wash just before eating.
Cooking it well
Frozen grapes make a cold, candy-like snack with nothing added. Because they are so easy to keep eating, put a small bowl out and store the rest instead of eating straight from the bunch. Grape juice and raisins pack the sugar far more densely than fresh fruit. For why the same fruit sugar behaves differently in a whole grape and a glass of juice, read what is fructose.
