How To Eat A Scuppernong Grape, According To A Southern Transplant

Ah, the scuppernong grape. It's the stuff of Southern legend, I'm told. When I first stumbled across this muscadine while researching the South's best u-pick farms, I wondered what on earth. The name alone had me in near hysterics, and the only thing funnier is the conversation that ensues when you seek it in grocery stores outside the South.

"The scupper-what?" all the clerks say. For others who are also new to the South's most famous grape, here are all the ways I've discovered you can eat scuppernong grapes—and drink them, too.

How Do You Eat A Scuppernong Grape?

Fresh scuppernongs look unlike most any grape you'd find in the grocery store. To my shock, they are these bouncy, bulbous, only three-in-the-palm-of-my-hand grapes. These very large, round, thick-skinned grapes are a variety of muscadine that is greenish-white or bronze instead of purple.

Though the skin is known to be tough and a little sour, the flesh of the scuppernong is juicy and plump. There seems to be a shared childhood experience in running through a relative's vines, pulling them off, and eating as many as you could before being sick, so I must conclude that eating them plain is one of the best ways to eat this grape. But there are many ways to consume scuppernong grapes—even frozen.

Fresh

If you don't have them growing wild on your property, scuppernong grapes may appear at grocery stores or farmers' markets in the Southeast. Though you can eat the thick skin, some people prefer to only eat the sweet and juicy innards. They will squeeze out the flesh, then remove the seed before eating.

Frozen

Frozen fruit has a cool, almost creamy consistency, and seeing that the scuppernong season runs in the late summer, a frozen grape is, depending on the sweetness, just as nice as a bowl of ice cream, and a lot healthier, too. I'd personally blanch the grapes and remove the skins and pit them before freezing…but we can hash out the skin or no skin preference in the comments. Pitting, however, would be a non-negotiable, as the seeds are large and bitter.

Scuppernong Wine

The scuppernong produces a wine often described as musky and wild. You'll find it at many wineries in the Southeast, usually in a sweet as opposed to dry style, but you can also always try your hand at making it yourself.

Some Southern vineyards will sell muscadine must, which will set you up for at-home winemaking. The process is relatively simple but does require some patience.

If you want to have some real fun, though, make a cocktail, like this Mississippi Bourbon Punch. Tart cranberry juice meets fresh lime, syrupy sweet grenadine, and dry wine for a nice summery drink.

Scuppernong Juice

This is my preferred beverage, since I'm the one who goes to a bar and orders a Shirley Temple, and white grape juice beats purple any day, in my opinion. I like the clearer taste that doesn't weigh down my tongue, literally and figuratively, with a regal purple shade.

Scuppernong Jam, Jelly, & Preserves

I cannot say no to a good peanut butter and jelly, and definitely not if it's on a hot biscuit. I stick with jelly and fruit butter because I'm not overly fond of a chunky texture, but for the enthusiasts out there, jam and preserves are a tasty possibility.

Scuppernong Pies And Desserts

So apparently, scuppernongs are good for more than just a nightcap or a sandwich. Scuppernong pie, anyone? You can also try these sweet Muscadine Dumplings.