Help! What Kind of Grapes are These and What Should I Do with Them?

My friend Marcus snuck a big (and I mean BIG, ten pounds at least) bag of grapes into my office when I was away at a meeting this morning. His note says that he grew these in his back yard in San Raphael (CA) and that he was sure I knew what kind they were and what to do with this many grapes.

Despite Marcus' vote of confidence, I really don't know what kind they are or what to do with them. Can you help?

The grapes are green and smaller than the usual grocery store table grapes. They're sweeter, too, with a chewier skin. The pulp is somewhat slimy but in a good, juicy way and they're seedless. They have a nice floral perfume but lack the muskiness of a Muscat grape.

They make really good eating grapes. I've certainly eaten a few bunches myself and handed out several more around the office. Still, as I said, that was one big bag. The only thing I can think of to do with them is to make a nice clear jelly, perhaps with a touch of basil or mint. Any ideas about their name and suggestions for use would be greatly appreciated.

(Image: Dana Velden)

Comments (26)

Wow--that's a lot of grapes. Yum.

You could make a fruit tart. I'm thinking slice the grapes in half and garnish with pignoli or something like that. Would be beautiful.

I also like to slice grapes in half and add them to salads along with a few other mix-ins (grape tomatoes, walnuts etc.). Dressed with a nice vinaigrette and accompanied by a hard-boiled egg an a good piece of bread, it's a nice meal.

Enjoy.

There are lots of kinds of grapes, so possibilities are large. To me those look like champagne grapes.

I've had champagne grapes that were that size before, but I think mine were red. I don't know if they come in other colors or not.

juice em

Make a grape pizza! Arrange sliced grapes on the pizza (toss a little olive oil down 1st), add some fontina or gorgonzola cheese & some caramelized onion & sprinkle on pine nuts. Yum. Yum. Yum. Be sure to have a spicier pizza to counter the sweetness of this one.

freeze them and use them instead of ice cubes!

They do look something like champagne grapes, but it's hard to judge the size from the photos.

Ooh, I like the suggestion about the grape pizza!

- Amelia of Gradually Greener

Hey Dana - for some ideas, check out one of my old posts: http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/recipe-roundup/recipe-ideas-for-grapes-063799

I'm not sure what type these are but they're too big to be champagne grapes. I don't think they are Thompsons, either. I came across this list of white grape varieties, maybe yours is in here: http://www.cheshirefood.co.uk/white_grape_varieties.htm

Chicken salad?

The grape pizza sounds delicious.

Green frozen grapes are one of my favorite things to eat in summer, esp. at work when i want something crunchy and something sweet (like all afternoon).

I like frozen grapes and I've been intrigued by the idea of pickled grapes http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/04/pickled-grapes-with-cinnamon-and-black-pepper/

grape focaccia!

make a fancy grape jam with some kind of sweet wine and give jars away as holiday gifts.

Wonder if this recipe would work?

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/concord-grape-pie?autonomy_kw=grape%20pie

Here in Switzlerland, there are so many different types of grapes available, it blows the mind, and makes you realize how poor the selection is in supermarkets...

What a wonderful present! (not to mention quiz)

roast them w/ thyme! I read this in sunset magazine I think.

oh Juice! Those pickled grapes are AMAZING!!!! but unless you are going to be using them at a party I would only make half the recipe. One recipe makes 2 pint sized canning jars worth and they are too strong after a few days. Unless you can eat a quart of pickled grapes in under a week half a recipe is plenty!

(I used myne in a salad with goat cheese, pecans, baby greens, onions, and a nice vinaigrette!)

make a focaccia with rosemary mixed in, topped with grapes, salt, more rosemary, and raisins.

Make grape ice cream! Or if that's not for you, put them into frozen yogurt, or freeze them and put them on yogurt, or make popsicles.

Fantastic suggestions everyone! Stay tuned for the results of my experiments.

Buy cheese and throw a party !

They are probably some variety of green table grape. Most grapes at the grocery store are sprayed and overwatered to make them very large and juicy. I'm sure if your friend grew these, he didn't do the spraying.

I always like my grapes smaller with a slightly tough skin, so that they pop when i bite down.

are they Riesling grapes?

White Concords? Probably not in California, but they do look similar and you said they're sweet. If so, that would be juice or jam. Have fun getting all those seeds out.

pssst... It's San Rafael (I know, it's totally butchered from the origin, but welcome to CA!)

Freeze them and eat them cold. It's my favorite guilt-free summer treat!

from the description you wrote, it sounds like Korean Chung-podo. They are very roundy and slimy, juicy. You can actually just bite the skin a little bit to break it, then suck in the grape with the juice, that way you won't eat the skin and eat only the pleasant part of the grapes. and the skin is thicker than regular grapes you see in american grocery stores. Perhaps that's why the skins are chewier.