How to peel a fresh pineapple

Get to grips with this knobbly, spiky fruit by following our step-by-step guide to preparing pineapple rings, wedges and chunks.

You will need: 

  • 1 fresh pineapple
  • A sharp cook’s knife
  1. Slice off the crown of leaves at the top of the pineapple, then cut off the bottom to leave a flat base.
  2. Stand the pineapple on a flat end, then use a sharp cook’s knife to cut away the skin by slicing down the side.
  3. Lay the peeled fruit on its side and cut out the remaining eyes in a series of shallow diagonal strips.

How to chop a pineapple

FOR RINGS
Use a pineapple corer to remove the tough woody core, then slice across into rings.

FOR WEDGES…
Stand the prepared fruit on a flat end and cut in half, lengthways, then lay the flat side on the chopping board and cut onto 3-4 long wedges. Remove the core from each wedge, then halve if required.

FOR CHUNKS…
Cut across each wedge to make smaller chunks – the thinner the wedges, the smaller the chunks will be. For tiny dice, cut each larger chunk into smaller pieces.