How to Peel a Pineapple without a Knife: A Guide to this Viral Hack

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How to easily pull apart and eat pineapple with your hands

Co-authored by Randall Chambers and Devin McSween

Last Updated: August 26, 2024 Fact Checked

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Sweet, fresh, and wearing a crown—what’s not to love about pineapple? This summertime fruit is super delicious, but getting to all that juicy meat can be a hassle if you don’t have a knife nearby. Luckily, we’ve got the perfect hack to peel apart a pineapple without a knife—it only requires a bit of muscle and a whole lot of appetite. Keep reading to learn more about this handy trick!

The Best Way to Open a Pineapple

Start with a ripe pineapple.
Twist off the pineapple's crown.
Bang the pineapple on a hard surface to loosen the meat.
Roll the pineapple back and forth to separate the meat from the core.
Grab a spike on the pineapple's skin and pull it out.
Eat the flesh that you just removed from the pineapple (but avoid the skin).

1

Choose a ripe pineapple.

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This cutting hack works best with ripe pineapples. Search for a ripe pineapple that’s more yellow than green with fresh, healthy-looking leaves. Then, press into it to ensure that it’s slightly soft. The riper a pineapple is, the yellower the outside will be and the squishier it’ll feel.^{[1]
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- Chef Ed Kuoha says that ripe pineapple has “a firmness but still softness to it…it won't be overly soft.”^{[2]
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- To make sure pineapple is perfectly ripe, personal chef Randall Chambers recommends pressing the “indentation on the bottom” of the pineapple. He says, “If it has some leeway, you're probably okay.”^{[3]
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- Providing a similar hack, private chef and food educator Ollie George Cigliano says that “the best way to determine if a pineapple is ripe or not is by pulling out the innermost center leaf. If that leaf removes easily, then the pineapple is ripe.”^{[4]
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- You can also smell the base of the pineapple to be sure it’s ripe—it should smell sweet and fruity, not funky or vinegary.

2

Twist off the pineapple’s crown.

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Although gorgeous, the crown gets in the way of “cutting.” Place one hand near the bottom of the pineapple and the other on the leafy top. Hold onto the crown or leafy top tightly and twist—it’s as simple as that!^{[5]
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- The riper your pineapple, the easier this step will be.
- If you can’t twist the crown off, use a paring knife to cut in between each pineapple ridge. Then, rip off the top.^{[6]
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- Don’t throw out the crown and instead use it to grow a pineapple plant! Let it dry out for a week and then set it in soil or a glass of water to grow roots.^{[7]
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3

Hit the bottom of the fruit on a hard surface.

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The first “cut” can’t be made without loosening the pineapple meat. Whack or firmly bang the pineapple onto a cutting board, a counter, or even the ground, keeping the crown end face up. Do this 2 or 3 times to get all those juices moving.^{[8]
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- Be careful when whacking the pineapple down on a table. The sudden force could cause the table to wobble.

4

Roll the pineapple back and forth.

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Lay the pineapple on its side and roll it back and forth with your hands. Think of it like kneading a ball of dough. Some juice may start coming out, but don’t panic! That means the hack is working.^{[9]
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5

Pull the pineapple apart by the thorns or spikes.

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The pineapple’s scalloped skin becomes a utensil with this cutting hack. Now that everything’s all loosened up inside, pinch one of the little leaves on the pineapple’s skin. Pull, tug, and wiggle it until a piece of pineapple slips out with the skin.^{[10]
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- If you used a knife to help you out earlier, separate the pineapple pieces by digging your finger into the bottom edge of a section’s exterior and pulling upwards.^{[11]
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- The skin or rind will still be attached when you pull out a chunk of pineapple, so make sure to eat only the meat.

6

Store the pineapple in a plastic bag in the fridge.

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When you’re done snacking on the pineapple, seal the entire fruit in a plastic bag or storage container. Simply store the pineapple in your fridge for up to 3 to 5 days to keep enjoying the juicy pieces of fruit!^{[12]
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Tips

To actually cut a pineapple, Chambers recommends “cutting off the stem, [then] shaving off each side with a knife,” ensuring you remove all of the “eyes” and spines. Slice the pineapple lengthwise and cut the pieces into chunks.^{[13]
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Randall Chambers
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Expert Interview} Or, core the pineapple with a corer tool.

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If this hack doesn’t work for you, don’t fret! The ripeness and type of pineapple you have can all play a factor. There are plenty of other ways you can cut a pineapple, so you can still have a tasty treat (just with a few more steps).

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