How to Slice a Fresh Pineapple

Purchase a pineapple that has firm, green leaves.

The sweet smell and fresh flavor of a pineapple is nothing that can come from a canned or frozen fruit. Purchase a whole pineapple and savor the ripe and juicy fruit. Serve in slices for a chilled snack, or grill the slices to carmelize the sweet juices for a side dish. However you slice it, serve the fresh pineapple as soon as possible, as the fruit is more likely to spoil once the rind is removed.

Things You'll Need

• Sharp butcher knife
• 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter

Instructions

1. Place a fresh pineapple on its side. Slice off the stem end and the end with the leaves with a sharp butcher knife.

2. Position the pineapple on one of the flat ends. Cut down through the pineapple just inside the skin to remove the outer rind; repeat this all the way around the fruit so you have only the yellow fruit remaining.

3. Use the tip end of the butcher knife to score into the pineapple to remove the round, hard pieces of rind, called eyes, out of the pineapple.

4. Turn the pineapple over on its side. Position the butcher knife approximately 1 inch from one end of the fruit. Cut all the way through the fruit and the inner core; place the round slice of fruit to the side. Continue slicing the fruit in 1-inch thick slices.

5. Position a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter in the center of each slice of pineapple so that it surrounds the hard, inner core. Cut through the pineapple and remove the core. Repeat this with the remaining slices.

6. Leave the pineapple slices in rings, or cut the rings in 1-inch-wide chunks.

7. Store the fresh pineapple in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 day.

References

• Good Housekeeping: How to Cut a Pineapple
• Dole: Fresh Fruit -- How Do I Slice a Whole Pineapple?