1. What is the difference between a date and a rotab?

The date fruit goes through four stages of ripening and changes in its color, texture, taste, size and chemical composition occur in these stages. At first, dates are a green fruit, hard and full of water and tannin, and it has a bitter and sour taste. Over time, the moisture content of this fruit decreases and its sugar content increases until it finally becomes a fully ripe date. Rotab is the stage before fully ripening dates, which has more moisture and less sugar than fully ripe dates. In the tamar (ripe date) stage, the humidity reaches its minimum and the color of the date turns completely brown to black. At this stage, the date's regenerating sugars (fructose and glucose) are high and sucrose is low, and it has a uniform and sometimes wrinkled texture.

2. Do dates that are completely stuck together and rich in date juice have more sugar than other dates?

This adhesion occurs in softer varieties that have higher humidity. The skin of dates may tear due to pressure or other factors and the water contained in it, which contains sugars, salts and proteins, may be removed. So, such a matter is not a sign of higher sugar content in dates.
Due to the fact that dates contain a lot of carbohydrates (sugary substances), it is considered a suitable environment for the growth of microorganisms, especially yeasts, so we recommend keeping soft and fresh dates in the refrigerator.

3. Are the sugar and calorie content of different dates different from each other?

Yes, different dates have different sugar content by only a few percent. It is better to know that date sugar is in the form of regenerating sugars (fructose and glucose) and sucrose. Soft dates have less sucrose, regenerating sugars and more water than dry and semi-dry types, but their sugar content is not much different, so soft dates have less energy than dry types, but in general, every 100 grams of dates (depending on soft or being dry) has about 150 to 300 kcal of energy.

4. Is there a difference between dry and fresh dates?

Yes, the moisture or juice of fresh dates is high and sometimes reaches more than half of the weight of dates. This amount of water prevents the long-term storage of this fruit and creates limitations in its transportation and packaging. By drying dates using traditional and industrial methods, they reduce the amount of water in dates to increase their storage capacity. Drying of dates causes a relative increase in its sugar concentration, so consuming a certain amount of dried dates provides almost twice as much energy to the body as compared to fresh dates.

5. Why do some dates turn sour?

Dates are rich in carbohydrates (sugary substances) and if the conditions for the growth of microorganisms are provided, soft dates, which have more moisture than their dry counterparts, will ferment quickly and have a sour taste and smell. Relatively warm and humid air and the presence of oxygen are necessary for the growth of microorganisms and the fermentation process, and if dates are kept at a low temperature such as in the refrigerator and in closed containers, their ability to be stored will increase.