Why You Should Bounce Cranberries Before Eating Them

When the temperatures start to cool down at the end of the heated summer, there is one fruit that makes the transition into autumn a lot easier — cranberries. The tangy fruit can transform so many dishes, both sweet and savory. From a classic cranberry sauce to Delish's Cranberry Balsamic Chicken, the options are endless when it comes to this divine little fruit.

Once you get your hands on a beautiful bounty of cranberries, it may be tough not to devour the whole bunch right out of a bowl if you're a fan of sharp, bitter flavors. The tartness of cranberries is definitely one of the fruit's biggest perks. The View From Great Island recommends chopping the fruit into a relish or mixing them up in a smoothie if you're not interested in spending time by the stove. If your willpower is strong enough, you won't be sorry. When cooked and sweetened up a bit, cranberries still manage to hang onto their tartness and strong essence, making them a beloved ingredient of bakers.

The delicious fruit is only at its peak flavor for a few months, so snagging the best cranberries at the market is imperative. How to know if you're grabbing the best cranberries? Try treating them like a bouncy ball, Eating Well divulges.

Back in 1880, John "Peg-Leg" Webb discovered what bouncing cranberries revealed when he cascaded them down his stairs, according to Eating Well. The outlet states that Webb spotted the not-so-desirable cranberries at the top of the stairs, while the surviving cranberries were in great shape and made it to the bottom. Apparently, the more the berries can bounce, the firmer and more appetizing they will taste. The bounce test is clearly fool-proof because folks are still taking advantage of the trick today when picking out top-notch cranberries. 

Rather than tossing the fruit down the stairs, farmers today use a dedicated device that they call a bounce board separator (via Eating Well). The contraption separates the cranberries based on their endurance when it comes to being thrown at angled wooden boards. We can thank Webb for discovering the bouncing abilities of the berry, which bounce due to their four hollow chambers that also allow them to float, reveals The Press of Atlantic City. The neglected berries can still be used for juice, but the durable berries that make it to the finish line are the ones you'll want at your table.