Scooping a Melon
Wash the melon, knife, and melon baller. Scrub the whole melon with a clean brush under cool, running water. If you skip this step, bacteria on the rind can easily contaminate the melon flesh during slicing. Wash the knife and melon baller in hot, soapy water. Don't wash the melon until you're ready to cut it, as a wet rind may encourage mold. Avoid soap and detergent, which may penetrate to the flesh. Produce washes are harmless, but unnecessary.
Cut the melon in half and remove the seeds. Leaving it in two halves provides a bowl to catch the juice. That said, it's not a big deal if you've already cut it into quarters or slices. If your melon has a center full of seed pulp, scoop this out with a large spoon and discard it.
Sink the baller fully into the flesh. Hold the scoop flat against the melon, or at a slight angle. Press down into the melon until the entire scoop has sunk into the flesh. If a portion of the scoop is above the melon level, you'll end up with irregular chunks instead of spheres.
Rotate the baller 180 degrees. Turn the melon baller 180º, until the scoop is facing you. There should be a perfect ball of melon sitting in the scoop. If your melon balls still aren't satisfactory, rotate two full rotations before you remove the scoop. If you're using a baller with a plastic scoop or handle, don't apply too much force. These may break if used on dense fruits.
Vary ball sizes with other tools. Many melon ballers come with a different size scoop on each end of the handle. Try round, metal measuring spoons instead if you want to make balls of additional sizes. Plastic measuring spoons may work on soft fruit such as watermelon.
Other Uses
Core fruit. Cut the apple, pear, or other fruit in half, through the stem. Press a large melon baller into the center of each half, turning to remove the tough core. Cut a cucumber in half lengthwise, then scrape out the seeds by running the melon baller scoop down its length.
Remove fruit blemishes. Cut a peach in half and pull out the pit. If the flesh around the pit is dry or moldy, scrape it out with a shallow scoop of the melon baller. Remove similar small defects on other round fruit surfaces, where a knife is awkward to use. You can remove potato eyes this way as well.
Use it to sculpt other foods. From cookie dough to meatball mixture to Matzoh dumplings, any thick substance can be shaped into a ball using this tool. Make sure to use an appropriately sized melon baller. If the recipe calls for large dollops, smaller dots may burn during cooking. Plastic melon ballers may only work on soft foods, such as sorbet. Try dipping it in hot water, then scooping miniature ice cream sundaes.
Hull small fruit with a serrated scoop. Some melon ballers have a serrated edge for a more controlled grip. Use these to remove strawberry greens, or to prepare cherry tomatoes for stuffing.
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