A luscious, juicy peach is one of summer's ultimate pleasures, but which is better: white or yellow? Opinions are divided in our household. Some prefer yellow peaches, citing their "classic peachy flavor," while others praise the sweetness of white peaches. Do you have a preference?
From the outside, yellow and white peaches are distinguished by their skin color – deep yellow with a red or pink blush for the former versus pale and pink for the latter. Inside, the golden flesh of the yellow peach is more acidic, with a tartness that mellows as the peach ripens and softens. White-fleshed peaches are lower in acid and taste sweet whether firm or soft.
White peaches also more delicate and easily bruised, which kept them from being sold in most stores until the 1980s, when hardier varieties were developed. According to Russ Parsons in How to Pick a Peach, older varieties of white peaches (and nectarines) had a bit of tang to balance the sugar, but the ones sold today are more uniformly sweet. You can still find some of the older varieties at farmers' markets.
As for cooking, the two types are interchangeable according to preference. We generally think the delicate, floral sweetness of white peaches is excellent for eating out of hand or grilling, but like the more intense flavor of yellow peaches for baking.
Some recipes from The Kitchn:
• Grilled Peaches with Bourbon Vanilla Whipped Cream
• Individual Peach Ginger Hand Pies You Can Pack for Lunch
• Peach and Thyme Polenta Tart
• Roasted Peaches with Dessert Wine
• Super-Quick Summer Dessert: Peach and Biscuit Crostata
Related: How Can I Quickly Preserve All These White Peaches?
(Images: Flickr members kthread licensed under Creative Commons and katiesw1 licensed under Creative Commons)
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I actually just made a white peach crisp and it turned out really well. Normall I do buy yellow because of the "classic peachiness," but the ones at the store that day just didn't look as good as the white.
yellow, all the way, for everything. I think the white ones taste bland, kinda like a fuzzy ball of water.
I like whatever fresh, local peaches come my way. We had a red haven peach tree in my yard until it unexpectedly died in a storm. It gave the most wonderful, delicious yellow peaches I have ever had. I miss them.
I love them all equally and with every ounce of my being.
If I can smell the peach bin from several paces away, I buy them.
In general, whichever smell the "peachiest" are the ones I buy.
I am a former Torontonian living in SF and had never seen a "white" peach until moving here. IMO, the white peaches are awful just like white corn and refuse to buy them. The only peach is a ripe (not hard) yellow peach! I still think the best peaches are grown between the niagara eascarpment and Lake Ontairo. California peaches do not compare to the niagara peaches. Plus, peaches are sold in a basket in Ontario - usually $4.99/basket. I remember the baskets cost the same amount 20 yrs ago!
I have been know to cart a basket of peaches from my mum's place in southwest Ontario to share with my inlaws in Quebec. The Quebec stores sell the peaches but they are picked early in order to survive the road trip and are not as fresh as the ones in ontario.
Growing up, I only ever had white peaches. In the summer, we would get them by the boxful from the Korean supermarket. These were GIANT peaches - soft, juicy, fragrant, sweet, and bursting with peachy goodness. I would inevitably have peach juice smeared all over my face and dribbling down my chin.
Maybe I've just never had a really good yellow peach, but white peaches are definitely my favorite.
I prefer yellow peaches, because they remind me of childhood summers - and the colors are so beautiful! And I think peaches poached with basil are the perfect summer dessert!
http://therunawayspoon.com/blog/2010/06/peaches-poached-with-basil/
White are defitetly the best. And yellow are the best also.
For peach pie, and other classic desserts, even just to eat out of hand, I prefer the sweet "peachiness" of yellow peaches. However, the floral aroma and soft flavour of a white peach can be very nice with a little vanilla scented whipped cream, or with a cold, crisp sparkling wine.
Mmm...usually the yellow, but I'll take what I can get if they smell good. Most of our local peaches are yellow, so I guess I tend to think of white peaches as not being as flavorful.
This all sounds quite suspect and a tad bit racist....but yeah...i like the yellow peaches best.
Yellow peaches? Gooood. White peaches? Gooood. Peaches? Mmmgoooooooood.
I agree with Wildedashchan - I just love all peaches! But good white peach has a special place in my heart :) Friday at 5:01 I'm making this: http://www.iheartpeaches.com/2009/07/california-peach-sangria/
White peaches are just so... bland! I'm trying to figure out what to do with my huge bag of them, since my husband won't eat them (claiming they taste like fruit that someone forgot to put the flavor in) and I can't finish a whole one.
I'm thinking a really cinnamon-heavy cobbler?
If I had a ripe white peach right from the tree it might be amazing; I'm open to that. But until that day, this is an easy one: yellow.
I find white peaches to be way too sweet and not peachy enough. Yellow for me, all the way.
in china,white peaches are more what is pictured when thinking of peaches than the yellow ones. If you look at an drawings from historical folk story drawings, you will see what we now call white peaches in the art. I like white peaches more but they are usually more expensive so I only get to have them when they go on sale.
elise: white peaches aren't always bland but you might not be buying a good variety. Unfortunately, pretty much all peaches sold in supermarkets is crap and even farmer's markets are not so good, especially for white peaches.
ca: you really are a Torontonian...lol, i.e. someone who thinks that if it they don't have it in Toronto, then its not very important or good (I laughed when I read your post, I could think of so many people from Toronto who would say the same thing)
I love buying my white peaches from Costco! They are soooo delicious and sweet. When I introduced my coworker to the white peach, she exclaimed, "it's like eating candy!"