I’ve been cutting off the top, removing the outside 10mm…badly (any tips on how to cut the husk off, even with a sharp knife it is tricky given its shape and toughness)… and then eating everything that wasn’t in the 30mm diameter core. Am I cutting off too much of the husk or too little (generally there are still some traces of its husk at this depth). I feel I am wasting too much of it. Is the core generally eaten, I’ve not tried it yet.
1)Hold the whole pineapple in your hand. Break off the green palmy thing.
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Slice it in sixths, lengthwise.
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Slice about 1 cm off the core of each piece.
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Eat all the core right then. It’s the best part.
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Cut eace 1/6th section into 2cm slices, widthwise.
Now the pieces are the right size to cut straight across without wasting too much to get the skin off. I leave the skin on cause it’s easy to eat around.
What I do is cut off the top and bottom, about an inch from each end. Then I quarter the whole thing from end to end. From each quarter you can just slice down the point to remove the core (it really is too tough to eat). Then use a long thin knife to slice between the rind and the flesh along one side, turn the piece around and do the same on the other side. Slicing only half-way through works best because then you don’t leave too much fruit with the peel at the curved part of the piece you are workng on. You now have a large quarter-pineapple that can be cut into bite-sized pieces.
Don’t eat the core. That’s why canned pineapple slices have that hole in the middle.
It does seem like you throw away a lot of the pineapple before you’re done, but you’re going about it the right way. The good news is that nothing tastes quite like fresh pineapple.
Sometimes it’s better to leave the husk on, cut it in long vertical slices, cut the core part off the slice and eat it that way – let your teeth and your taste buds tell you when you’re too close to the rind.
Place the can on the table…grasp the can opener in your right hand…oh…you mean whole pineapple.
Dunno…never ate one.
While we’re on the subject, does anyone have advice on how to choose a good pineapple? I rarely seem to be able to get a really sweet one, even when the label swears that the pineapple is ripe and ready to eat.
There are two ways.
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Smell it. If it smells good and ripe you’ll know it.
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The browner it is the riper it is. All the yellow, orange, and green turns brown eventually. So the more yellow, orange, and green it is, the longer you can let it sit at home. I usually eat it when it’s just about to go bad, mostly brown.
What wishbone said. Additionally, I’ve been buying the golden pineapples lately. They are unfailingly sweet and succulent. Look around to find a place where they aren’t too expensive (in NYC they go for $2.50 all the way up to $7.00)
All depends on the variety. [With some, the core is the best part.] How we do it here: cut a slice off the bottom, cut thin strips from top to bottom [holding the fronds], then cut a v-groove spirally down the fruit to get rid of the eyes [them eyes seem to line up that way]. Then cut the frond off.
To pick one ? Ah, sniff the base - if ripe, you’ll recognize an extra-sweet & aromatic scent. The fronds will pull out quite easily, too, although you should rely on “sniffin’ the butt” first.