How to Cut a Pineapple

Wondering how to cut a pineapple? Never let this fruit intimidate you again – here is your step by step guide for how to easily and quickly trim, peel, core and slice a whole pineapple!

Learn how to cut a pineapple into chunks, spears, rings, small dice or slices – plus how to freeze it, so you can buy fresh fruit on sale and save it for later!

Basic knife skills not only make you more efficient in the kitchen, but it’s also safer – and can save money!

Pre-cut fruit is usually more expensive, so it’s more economical to buy and slice your own. And when there’s a great sale on pineapple, you can take advantage of it by buying in bulk and slicing/freezing it for smoothies, salsas and stir-fries.

It can be intimidating to cut a fruit like pineapple, but with the right technique and knowledge, it’s really simple!

Jump to:

• What you need
• How to cut a pineapple
• Different pineapple shapes you can slice
• Tips and tricks
• How to store freshly cut pineapple
• How to pick a pineapple at the store
• Recipe ideas
• Printable recipe
• More kitchen basics
• Comments

What you need

All you need are your whole pineapple, plus a knife (and a chipping board).

I recommend doing the basic splitting of the fruit with a large chef’s knife, because it’s easier to handle such a large fruit with. If you have it, a small paring knife works great to remove the eyes.

How to cut a pineapple

1. Wash and trim the fruit:

Start by washing your pineapple! This is a fruit many of us keep forgetting to wash, but I always do. If people can wash their chicken and ground beef, I can wash my pineapple.

Just use a vegetable brush and running tap water and scrub it all over under a light stream of running water. That way, you’re not dragging anything lingering on the skin into the pineapple flesh as you’re slicing it.

Then, sparingly trim off the top and the bottom. Make sure you don’t cut off much, or you’ll lose precious pineapple.

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2. Next, peel your pineapple:

Stand your fruit on the now-trimmed bottom so it sits safely flat. Using your knife, slice off the skin in long strips, top to bottom.

You’ll want to trim only the skin, without slicing away too much pineapple flesh. You’ll also want to mimic the rounded, curved shape of the pineapple as you slice.

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Once you have peeled the fruit all around, you’ll want to check the bottom of the pineapple for any leftover skin. Carefully slice it away, too.

3. Remove the eyes:

Finally, you’ll want to remove any eyes from the pineapple (the hard, brown spots with little pointy strands in the middle). This is a little tedious, but very worth it.

I like using a small, pointy paring knife and slice out the eyes in a small, flat cone shape.

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You should be left with your peeled, de-eyed pineapple, ready to be sliced into your desired shape.

At this point, I discard all of the peel and cut away eyes, and I wipe down my knife and chopping board with some clean paper towels. This way, I don’t end up with any stray skin or eyes on my pineapple fruit.

Different pineapple shapes you can slice

There are many different shapes you can cut your pineapple into. We’re going to look at these here:

How to cut spears, chunks, small dice or wedges

1. Cut into quarters:

Take your trimmed, peeled and cleaned pineapple and stand it upright, making sure it sits flat and safe. Cut it into quarters, right through the core.

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2. Remove the core:

Take each pineapple quarter and stand it upright, then slice down to cut away the core. Again, try to slice as close to the core as possible, so you don’t lose any fruit.

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Note: The pineapple core is very firm and stringy, so it’s not usually eaten. It can be frozen to be used in smoothies though – make sure to only use it in a high power blender und cut it up into chunks before adding it to your smoothie ingredients.

Cut spears:

To cut the pineapple quarters into spears, slice each quarter in half across, and then slice it in half again lengthwise.

Cut chunks:

For chunks, cut each pineapple quarter into thirds lengthwise, then slice across to create chunks.

Note: For large chunks, only cut the quarter in half lengthwise.

(By the way, the fingers on my left hand should be more curved inward in these pictures, to protect my fingers from cuts. I was so focussed on getting good photos, I forgot!)

Cut wedges/slices:

For wedges/slices, you don’t need to cut the quarters at all. Just slice across as thick or as thin as you want to.

Cut small dice:

For small dice, cut your pineapple into thin slices/wedges first. Then, cut each slice in half lengthwise, then slice across to create small diced pineapple chunks.

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How to cut slices

1. Place the pineapple on its side and slice it, as thick or as thin as you like.

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2. Now, use a small round cookie cutter or a paring knife to slice away the core from each round.

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Tips and tricks

• Use sharp, pointy knives to cut your pineapple. It’s much easier and safer vs using a dull knife.
• Keep the fingers of the hand that isn’t holding the knife curved slightly inward (I did NOT do this well in the photos; I was too focused on showing the cutting…) to protect your fingers from cuts.
• Pineapple fruits are often large and bulky, and the skin is thick. Make sure to take your time and slice slowly if you’re new to cutting your own pineapple.
• Never mix fresh pineapple with dairy products, they react together and develop a bitter/metallic taste that is very unpleasant. Only canned or fully cooked pineapple can be used in combination with dairy. This is especially important for smoothies, where this process is accelerated by blending the ingredients.

How to store freshly cut pineapple

In the fridge

Keep freshly cut pineapple in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-4 days. To keep it from browning, toss it in orange juice or lemon juice before refrigerating.

In the freezer

Pineapple can easily be frozen once it’s cut. Just place the sliced pineapple in zip-top freezer bags. They stack better if you put the fruit in an even layer. Press out as much air as possible, then zip them close.

Label with the name and use-by date (freeze for up to 6 months), then place in your freezer.

If you want to freeze large bags of pineapple chunks and want to be able to remove pineapple only as needed (vs always using up an entire bag), you need to flash-freeze your freshly cut fruit. Place it in single layers on lined baking sheets (no pieces should be touching) and freeze until solid, about 1-2 hours. Transfer to a labelled bag and freeze for up to 6 months.

Uncut pineapple

Uncut pineapple usually lasts 2-3 days on the counter or up to 4 days in the fridge. I generally prefer to use fresh pineapple no more than 2 days after buying it. It’s such a shame when it goes bad!

How to pick a pineapple at the store

• Ripe pineapples are firm, but have a slight give when gently pressed.
• Look for green, fresh-looking leaves
• Smell the base of the pineapple, if it smells sweet and delicious, it’s a good indication that the fruit is ripe
• I like to gently pull the leaves to see if they easily release, which can be a sign of ripeness. I think this is not proven, but I believe in the method ?

Recipe ideas

• Use it in fresh fruit salsas to serve with grilled chicken or fish, such as in my favorite pineapple salsa!
• Grill it! One of my favorite ways to eat fresh pineapple is to grill the rings, then serve them with a mixture of chopped mint and brown sugar. A scoop of vanilla ice cream doesn’t hurt, either ?
• Grilled pineapple is also delicious with savory pork or chicken dishes. I love it on a bbq pulled pork sandwich or on pineapple BBQ chicken kabobs.
• Use it in fruit salad, just avoid dairy-based dressings. Fresh pineapple reacts with dairy and turns bitter/develops a metallic taste.
• Turn it into a pineapple smoothie (or a piña colada smoothie) (again, hold the dairy!).
• Add it to stir-fries, like my shrimp fried rice!

Printable recipe

More kitchen basics