How to Cut a Pineapple without Waste

Pineapple is a tropical fruit. I grew up eating lots of these fruits since I was young. My dad used to be the one to cut pineapples at home when I was younger. My mum knows how to cut too, and the technique I am sharing here is what my parents taught me.

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Choosing pineapples - How to know if a pineapple is ripe

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

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

You cannot choose a 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 know 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 a pineapple is ripe, you will be able to smell its sweet and tangy fragrance at the base. So if you want to know if a pineapple is ripe enough to be cut and eaten, go with the smell test.

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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.

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How to Peel  and Cut a Pineapple

When peeling and cutting pineapples, it is important that your knife is sharp. A 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).

Peeling the pineapple

Peeling a pineapple is the process of removing its crown and its skin. 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.

1. To begin with, cut the top of the fruit.
2. And then the bottom of the fruit. Use a large sharp knife.
3. After that, slice off the skin all around the fruit. And when slicing the skin off, remember to cut out just a thin layer of the skin.
4. You can always slice off a bit more where you still see the green skin of the fruit.
5. 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. To remove the eyes, you need to use sharp knife to carve small wedges where the eyes are.
6. You can do this in spiral rows 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.  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.

To remove the core, you would need to cut the pineapple into either wedged slices or ring slices.

How to cut the pineapple into wedges

1. Cutting a pineapple into wedged slices is very easy. Once you are done with peeling the skin and removal of the eyes, you can simply cut the fruit in half lengthwise.
2. And then you cut each halves into 2.
3. Once you have sliced the pineapple into quarters, 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.
4. 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 your quest to remove the core.

How to cut pineapple rings

1. Slicing a pineapple fruit into rings is also easy. All you need to do is place the peeled pineapple in a horizontal position.
2. And then, use a sharp knife to cut it out into thin round slices.
3. Once the slices are all cut, you can serve the fruit that way.
4. But if you wish to remove the core, then you would need to use a round cookie cutter. In choosing the size of the cookie-cutter, you can be guided by the line that separates the core and the fruit. 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.
5. 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.
6. Remove the cutout core and you have your pineapple rings ready!

How to cut pineapple into cubes

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.

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And that's pretty much my sharing on how to cut a pineapple with minimal waste.

Here are my other posts you might want to check out:

• Tiered DIY Cupcake Holder
• Pineapple Nata Jelly - An Easy Konnyaku Dessert
• Pineapple Lychee Jelly - An Easy Fruit Jelly Recipe
• Orange Peel Candy - How to Make Candied Peels

Enjoy!