How To Cut And De-Seed A Pomegranate - Simply Recipes

Late October to early November is the season for pomegranates, pinkish red orbs filled with crunchy, juicy seeds (known as arils), bursting with flavor.

Where to Find the Best Pomegranates

You can get them at most supermarkets. But if you live anywhere near where they are grown, it's best to get them at a local farmer's market.

There, you are most likely to find the ripest pomegranates - the ones whose peels are beginning to crack open, their plump, ripe arils expanding beyond the peel's ability to contain them.

My parents have a big, beautiful pomegranate tree that fills with fruit every autumn. We wait until the last possible moment to harvest them, so their seeds have time to ripen to a deep red burgundy.

All About Pomegranates READ MORE:

How to Eat a Pomegranate

Over the years, we've experimented with how to eat a pomegranate pretty much every way possible. The challenge is how to open and de-seed them. Some people wonder: "Do you eat pomegranate seeds?" The answer is yes!

Cutting a Pomegranate

Pomegranate juice will stain, and you don't want to destroy the arils while removing them. Some people cut them in half through the middle and use a wooden spoon to whack the arils out of the pomegranate. We have never found this method particularly effective with our pomegranates. It can be rather messy, and ends up bruising a lot of the arils, especially if they are ripe and juicy.

What follows is a step-by-step guide on how to eat a pomegranate and effectively open it - which, if done well, results in not one broken aril, and takes hardly any time at all.

How to Make Juice from Pomegranates

If you want to make juice from the arils, pulse a cup at a time in a blender, just enough to break the arils. Then, use a rubber spatula to push the juice through a fine sieve. Note that if you over-blend, you'll end up blending in the more bitter core of the aril. Just pulse a few times and strain.

Add sugar to desired sweetness level. Two large pomegranates will generally yield about 1 cup of juice.

Note that pomegranates are very acidic and will react with metals such as aluminum or carbon steel.

How to Freeze Pomegranate Seeds

Once you have de-seeded your pomegranate, make sure the arils are dry. Arrange them in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet lined with wax paper. Place in the freezer for 2 hours or until frozen. Once frozen, put them into a freezer bag or container and store them in the freezer.