宁吃仙桃一口，不吃烂杏一筐

宁吃仙桃一口，不吃烂杏一筐

Literally means:

one would rather take a bite of fresh peach than take a basket of rotten apricots

Actually means:

one prefers to take stuff of good quality

桃 and 杏 are both fruits. 鲜桃, fresh peach; 烂杏, rotten apricot. 筐, basket, a container made of bamboo stripes or willow wickers. A basketful is much bigger than a mouthful.

This phrase means one would rather take one bite of fresh peach than eat a basketful of rotten apricots.

It figuratively means one would prefer things of high quality to anything of low quality. It also means quality is more important than quantity in making a choice and one should not just pursue big quantity regardless of quality.

桃、杏都是。鲜桃，新鲜的桃子。烂杏，坏的杏子。筐，用竹片、柳条等做成的容器。

一筐的数量比一口多出几十倍宁可只吃一口新鲜的桃子，也不吃一筐烂掉了的杏子。

比喻东西一定要好的，不要差的。也指挑选东西要讲究少而精的原则，不可不顾质量而一味求多。