A tropical treat

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Posted at 5:45PM, 28 July 2010 by Carol Wilson - Food writer

My local supermarket is selling fresh pineapples for the amazingly cheap price of £1. Definitely a bargain to be snapped up!

The glorious fragrance of a ripe pineapple will fill a room

I love fresh pineapple; it tastes so much better than the tinned chunks of my childhood. The glorious fragrance of a ripe pineapple will fill a room and the juicy golden flesh has a wonderfully refreshing sweet/tart flavour.

If the plume (leaves) looks fresh and vibrant and you can pull out a leaf easily then the pineapple is ripe enough to eat. You should also be able to smell the fragrance. The easiest way to prepare the fruit is to twist off the plume and slice the pineapple across.

Preparing the fruit can be tricky. I've found that the best way of removing the tough outer skin is to slice off the top and base of the fruit and stand it upright on a board. Using a sharp knife cut off the peel in strips, from top to bottom. When all the peel is removed use a sharp knife to remove the spines left in the flesh. Alternatively, cut the fruit in half lengthways and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. I use the shells as unusual containers for sweet dishes such as ice cream, or savoury dishes such as curry. The shells can also be frozen for future use.

A core (the original flower stalk) runs through the centre of the pineapple; sometimes this is tender and can be eaten but it can be quite tough and so needs to be removed. Cut the pineapple in half and cut the core from the centre of the fruit with a small sharp knife; work from one end of the fruit and cut around the core, then turn the pineapple over, work from the other end and push out the core. To make life easier, a special pineapple cutter is available from cookware shops, which peels, cores and slices the fruit, (leaving the shell intact) in one simple operation.

Raw pineapple contains an enzyme which has the effect of tenderising meat and poultry, so if you use the juice in a marinade, be careful not to exceed the marinating time or the protein in the meat will be over tenderised and will have an unpleasant 'grainy' texture. A word of warning - this same enzyme also prevents gelatine setting, so never use raw pineapple or fresh juice in jellies or dishes that contain gelatine. Canned pineapple and pasteurised juice can be used instead as the enzyme is destroyed by heat processing.

Do you have a favourite way of using fresh pineapple?

Comments

smitty

31 July 2010, 6:35PM
smitty

thick slices of pineapple sprinkled with brown sugar then wrapped in foil and put on the barbecue are delicious. The sugar mingles with the pineapple juices to form a scrumptious sauce.

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elusive_fox

7 August 2010, 8:24AM
elusive_fox

The leaf-pulling to ripeness check is a myth. Although some people do get lucky when using this technique, I've found that the best pineapples are golden in colour and have a slight smell at the base. It's important to remember that pineapples ripen from the base, so it's best to pick one that's totally golden if you want to use it right away, or one that has a little green left to go if you want to keep it for a couple of days. Beware though, it seems to be the habit of many supermarkets to leave overripe pineapples out in the hope that some unwitting leaf pulled will buy it. Such pineapples normally appear brown, dry looking and smell like alcohol from the base.

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robert

10 August 2010, 9:05AM
robert

Ha! Now I know why my brilliant idea for making a jelly with fresh pineapple juice didn't work!

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dana

13 August 2010, 10:52AM
dana

Wow! This makes me hungry!! yummy!! Thanks for this wonderful recipe. I don't to get <a title="20 percent of homeowners underwater on home loans" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2010/08/10/underwater-mortgage-loans/">payday loan</a> just to make a delicious BBQ. Simple pineapple can make it! Thanks!

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Jo H

5 September 2010, 7:55PM
Jo H

Pineapple always reminds me of Thailand. There you can buy them fresh, peeled and ready to eat from every fruit stall. Even at the hotels they are served in great abundance for breakfast as part of a buffet. If it's fresh I like it on it's own!

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