When I saw that whole pineapples were on sale for 87 cents each, I immediately knew I had to come up with something to make from them! This is the time to buy when they are in season. Cube them up and freeze for smoothies later on.

Today I made Pineapple Fried Rice and it was delicious! Served in the hollowed out pineapple, they make for a pretty spectacular presentation. You could either roast or grill the pineapple halves. Just be sure to wrap the leaves in foil to protect them from the heat and of course, from burning.

Since we are using a few of the whole pineapples for serving, the first step is to take a sharp knife and cut straight through the center of the pineapple starting at the leafy end. From there, I made slices into the flesh taking care not to go too deep so that the outer skin remained in tact. I sliced in the opposite direction making cube shapes and scooped them out using a melon spoon. These have sharp, serrated edges which make scooping a breeze.

Remember that some of those pieces may have core attached, so just give them a quick trim. Reserve these (and any juices) for the fried rice.

As mentioned above, you could roast these with the leaves wrapped in foil or simply place them face down on a hot grill (or grill pan) which is what we did here today.

The pineapple fried rice begins with any long grain rice of your choice prepared to package instructions. I used a mixture of leftover white and brown rice I had on hand, but any rice will do.

In a large saute pan, add a small amount of coconut oil and begin to saute the onions and carrots (which take the longest to cook). When those become tender, add garlic, peas and corn. On medium high heat, I begin to stir fry these all together adding sesame oil, soy sauce, fresh (or powdered) ginger, salt, pepper and the reserved pineapple cubes with their juices. As the pineapple halves sit, they will produce more juice. I just drained that back into the rice.

Then it’s ready for serving. Take your roasted or grilled pineapple halves and fill them with about a cup or so of the rice. Garnish with a sprinkle of green onion and enjoy!

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