If you have never had the pleasure of enjoying a fresh California fig, you’re truly missing out. Figs are as sweet as sugar and can be eaten fresh or used in a number of recipes and desserts.

In my opinion, the best figs you can buy are the green Calimyrna figs, though the black mission figs can be great as well. Calimyrna figs are usually the best tasting and worth waiting for until the first part of July, when they come into season. Trust me, these figs are so good, most of our customers buy them by the case versus by the individual piece.

How to Select the Best Figs

You have to buy and eat figs ripe. Figs are one of the fruits that do not ripen after they’re picked off the tree. Ripe figs should be soft to the touch and have skin that can be peeled easily. Figs with cracks in them can be some of the sweetest. Sticky syrup leaking out of the bottom of a fig is also a sign of it being super sweet and ready to eat. Always keep any figs you’re not going to eat the same day in the refrigerator to prevent them from molding up too quickly or spoiling.

One of my favorite ways to eat figs is to wrap them in bacon, fill them with some goat cheese and throw them on the grill. When the bacon is nice and crisp, take them off and enjoy them with some nice fresh-baked bread. Another way I like to use figs is on pizza. Spice up the same old pizza by laying down some nice fontina cheese and topping it with sliced figs and your favorite prosciutto.

When they’re in season, we sell thousands of figs here at Nino Salvaggio’s. Take advantage of them while they last. The season is short, and once they’re gone, you’ll be anxiously waiting for them until next season.