How to Cut a Pineapple without Waste

Choosing pineapples - How to know if a pineapple is ripe

Before we even go to the step-by-step guide on how to cut a pineapple, let me share some tips on how to choose a ripe pineapple.

Pineapple skin varies vary in color. Some are orange, some a mix of green and orange or yellow and others are green.

You cannot choose the right pineapple based on its skin color. Yellow or orange does not mean it's ripe and green does not necessarily mean it's unripe. The color of a ripe pineapple will vary based on its variant.

Also, ripe pineapple will not be so obviously soft to be distinguished from an unripe one. It will be softer but for someone who is new to choosing pineapples, it might be a bit hard to gauge when a pineapple is soft and when it is not because of the coarse and rather thick skin of the fruit. And the ones that are obviously soft might be over-ripe.

The technique I use to choose a ripe pineapple is by smelling it. When the fruit is ripe, you will be able to smell its sweet and tangy fragrance at the base of the pineapple. So if you want to know if a pineapple is ripe enough to be cut and eaten, the best way is to go with the smell test.

How to Ripen a Pineapple

If there is no smell, the fruit is not ripe and needs to be wrapped in paper and kept in a cool and dry place for a few days. Be sure to check it every day just so that the pineapple does not go bad for having been left wrapped for too long.

How to Peel a Pineapple

Peeling a pineapple is the process of removing its crown, outer skin and eyes. There are no hard and fast rules on how you should peel a pineapple or how you should carve a pineapple, but the technique I am going to share below will ensure there is minimal waste of the fruit when cutting and carving it. And you do not need any special tools

Note: When peeling and cutting pineapples, it is important that your knife is sharp. A large sharp knife will help you cut the fruit without having to exert much pressure. A blunt knife means you would have to press the knife in harder as you cut and would indirectly squash the fruit as you are cutting it (resulting in the juices dripping and making it harder for you to hold and cut it).

Step 1: If the pineapple comes with its crown (the long, tough thorny leaves on top of the pineapple), you can either break it by hand by bending it, so simply slice the top section of the pineapple off. Even if the crown is not there, you still need to chop off a small section of the pineapple top (image 1).

Repeat the same for the base or the bottom of the pineapple (image 2).

Step 2: Place the pineapple upright on a cutting board (with the bottom of the fruit resting on the board). Hold the fruit in one hand and use a sharp knife to slice off the skin all around following the natural curve of the fruit (image 3).

Note: When slicing the skin off, remember to cut out just a thin layer of the skin.

You can always slice off a bit more where you still see the green skin of the fruit, but do not cut too deep in an attempt to also remove the eyes. This will be managed in the next steps (image 4).

Note: After cutting off the skin, you will see the ‘eyes’ of the pineapple still very much on the fruit. You would need to remove these before consuming the fruit.

Step 3: To remove the eyes, you need to use small knife to carve small wedges where the eyes are (images 5 & 6). You can do this in diagonal lines as shown. You would typically be able to see the eyes in a spiral pattern around the fruit and you can easily follow the pattern in carving them out.

Once all the eyes are removed, the pineapple is ready to be cut into slices or rings as you wish.

There is still one more part of the fruit that is typically not consumed and that is the core in the center of the pineapple.  The core is edible but is often discarded because it can be harder and fibrous. In my experience, I find eating the core can cause the tongue to become a little itchy (for a short while) so I normally discard it.

The easiest way to remove the core is by first cutting the the pineapple into either wedged slices or ring slices. See sections below.

How to Cut Pineapple Wedges

Step 1: Cutting a pineapple into wedged slices is very easy. Once you are done with peeling the skin and removal of the eyes of the pineapple, you can simply cut the fruit in half lengthwise (image 1).

Once you have sliced the pineapple into half, you will be able to see the line that separates the fruit and its core. The line will not be too obvious, but you can surely notice it (image 2).

Note: The middle section of the fruit that looks slightly lighter in color is the core of the pineapple.

Step 2: Cut each half of the pineapple into two (quarters) (image 3).

For each of the quarters, cut off the pointed side of the fruit wedge (the core). Simply use a knife to slice the core off, using the line as a guide. You want to make sure you remove the core properly and at the same time, make sure you do not cut off too much of the fruit in trying to remove the core (image 4).

How to Cut Pineapple Rings

Step 1: Slicing a pineapple fruit into rings is also easy. All you need to do is place the peeled pineapple in a horizontal position on a cutting board (image 1).

The next step is to use a sharp knife to cut it out into thin slices (image 2).

Once the slices are all cut, you can serve the fruit that way (image 3).

Step 2: But if you wish to remove the core, then you would need to use a round cookie cutter (image 4). In choosing the size of the cookie-cutter, you can be guided by the line that separates the core and the fruit.

Note: Choose a cutter that is about the same size as the core, not bigger and not smaller. That way, you get rid of the core effectively and you do not waste any more of the fruit than necessary.

Simple press the cookie cutter right in the center of each slice of the fruit. You may need to apply some pressure to push the cookie cutter into the slice (image 5).

Note: The core can be hard, and it is advisable to use sturdy metal cookie cutter. You can also use a small sharp knife to cut out the cores.

Remove the cutout core and you have your pineapple rings ready (image 6).

How to Cut Pineapple Cubes or Pineapple Chunks

To cut a pineapple into cubes it is best to cut them into thin wedges.

Place the wedges horizontally and slice them into smaller pieces depending of the thickness you wish.