How To Cut A Pineapple
The majority of people stroll right pass the supermarket pineapple display without a second glance, the number one reason is: they have never learned how to cut a pineapple. Let’s face it, the pineapple with that spiky top and prickly-looking bottom is sort of a formidable looking creature. But, with just a little information on how to cut a pineapple, anyone can become an expert in no time.
To begin, however, you have to first choose a ripe pineapple. If the pineapple is not ripe, it is going to make learning how to cut a pineapple a lot harder. And the pineapple is one of those fruits that does not ripen further after being removed from the tree. So what you buy is literally what you get. A ripe pineapple should be firm and have skin that is gold to brownish in color. Green skin should be avoided. Next, smell the pineapple. A ripe pineapple will have a sweet, fresh pineapple smell. If it smells acidic, like rot, or has any spots or squishiness, leave it alone.
A long serrated knife is a must in learning how to cut a pineapple. Many people use a long, serrated bread knife. A little flexibility in the knife is good and will help you leave a little more meat on the pineapple. A paring knife or vegetable peeler can also be handy but is not critical to getting the job done.
The first thing you do is lay the pineapple on its side and cut off the spiky top with approximately an inch of fruit attached. Then cut off the bottom. You can throw these away, or keep the top for display or to use it to grow a pineapple plant. Next, stand the pineapple up on its base.
Notice the tiny, dark brown spots, known as eyes, around the edge of the pineapple. These eyes run in a column down the entire pineapple. Place your knife behind one of the eyes. What you are going to do is slice down the entire pineapple, removing the skin and this column of eyes. Some people wait and remove the eyes later but it is much more efficient to at least get as many as you can when skinning the pineapple. The first cut will be wider than all the others.
Now, go around the pineapple, slicing top to bottom removing the skin and eyes as in the first cut. Be careful to leave as much fruit as possible with each cut. When you have skinned the pineapple all the way around, take a look to see if there are any eyes remaining. If there are, dig them out with a paring knife or the point of a peeling knife.
If you want to make pineapple slices, you have two choices as to how to do it. You can buy a pineapple corer or use a paring knife. Place the corer on top of the pineapple and push down. That’s all it takes and the core has been removed. Then lay the pineapple on its side and slice, making the slices as thick or as thin as you like. If you don’t have a pineapple corer, lay the pineapple on it side and cut your slices first. Then use your paring knife to cut out the center of each slice, which is the core. The core is sweet and edible, but also very fibrous and tough.
If you aren’t going to be eating the pineapple right away, place in an airtight bag or plastic container and refrigerate.