As you may know, we ship many different varieties of custard apple in the custard apple boxes. This is because every time a fruit is planted from seed, a new variety is "created".
Sometimes the variety differences can be very subtle, but we do notice very distinct differences between the "red" and "green" custard apple varieties.
The red custard apple outer skin is pink. Sometimes it will change color as it ripens, and sometimes it won't. Some red varieties may be dark red inside, some varieties stay white inside, and some are a mix of pink and white. Green custard apple is green when it is unripe and sometimes turns yellow as it ripens but may not change color at all. It is white inside.
Always go by softness when determining custard apple ripeness.
Red custard apples have a bit of a berry flavor, but green custard apples in our opinion are a bit sweeter, creamy, and have hints of lemon flavor closer to the skin.
The green custard apple variety looks extremely similar to a cherimoya when its unripe, but the inside is super creamy like a custard apple.
As you can see, the color changes can be subtle, which is why we always recommend going by softness to determine ripeness. We ship the fruit unripe to ensure it arrives safely. Depending on how you store the fruit, it may take a few days or even weeks to ripen fully.
Do not refrigerate or keep the fruit too cold before it is ripe or it will never fully ripen. This rule applies to most unripe fruit, but annonas are especially sensitive to cold.
Here is what green custard apple looks like on the inside when it is ripe.
