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Dehydrated Pineapple

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a top view of pineapple chunks displayed on barn wood

~ raw, dehydrated ~

I love “people watching”  while I browse through the produce section.  So much can be learned.   People, tap, thump, smell, shake and look for certain markings when selecting “that” perfect item.    I am not afraid to ask someone what and why they are doing.

Years ago, I was in an Asian store and they had a large bin of pineapples up by the registers.  I watched a woman pluck the inner spears out from the top of the pineapple.   She had a layer of spears around her feet.  I just had to know what she was up to.

So, I snuck up behind her to get a closer look.  She would reach her fingers into the top center of the fruit, and tug on the inner spears.  If they readily pulled out, the pineapple went in her cart.  If they resisted, she moved on to the next.  Ever since then, that has been my approach in picking out a good pineapple.  So far, it hasn’t let me down.

A few other factors should be checked,  they need to be free of soft spots, mold, bruises and darkened “eyes,” all of which may indicate that the fruit is past its prime.   It stops ripening as soon as it is picked so choose a fruit with a fragrant sweet smell at the stem end.  Avoid those that smell musty, sour or fermented.  But then, it is best to avoid anything that smells sour or fermented. lol

Did you know that pineapples have eyes?  Pineapple “eyes”! Pineapples are a composite of many flowers whose individual fruitlets fuse together around a central core. Each fruitlet can be identified by an “eye,” the rough spiny marking on the pineapple’s surface.   There is just far too much to learn about!  :)

dried pineapple pieces in a containerIngredients:

Preparation:

  1. Cut the top and bottom off of the pineapple.  Set the pineapple upright on the freshly cut base, to remove the outer skin, cut just deep enough to remove all traces of the outer skin.
  2. Remove the core and cut the pineapple into long spears, then cut into 1/2-inch pieces.
  3. Place the slices on the mesh sheet that comes with the dehydrator in a single layer.
  4. Dehydrate at 145 degrees (F) for 1 hour, then reduce to 115 degrees (F) for about 10-16  hours.
  5. Drying time depends on several factors:

Culinary Explanations:

large pineapple chunks waiting to be dehydrated

4 thoughts on “Dehydrated Pineapple

  1. Jennifer M says:

    Dehydrated pineapple is like little slices of crack!! awesome snacks and makes the house smell so go while they are dehydrating

  2. Kaley says:

    Are these pineapple chunks crispy when they are done or are they like the store bought kind- chewy and soft?

    • amie-sue says:

      It all depends on how long you leave them in the dehydrator and how thick you slice them. Mine turn out chewy. Blessings, amie sue

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