Pineapple get picked when they are ripe, not before.
Some fruits ripen off the tree, as sugars concentrate. Pineapple isn't one of them. The fruit flavor can change once picked, but the pineapple will not ripen more. This fruit has a couple of indicators that tell you it is ready to be cut. Fruits that are too ripe also have visual indicators; these lack a good flavor and do not store well.
Appearance
Pineapples get harvested when they are ripe, not before. The exterior of the fruit will be brown and yellow. A dull yellow color indicated an old fruit that will have poor quality; a bright color indicated a fresher fruit. Discoloration or spots indicate a fruit that is bruised, so avoid those. Also look for leaves that are firm, not dry. Dry leaves are another indication of age.
Smell
Pineapples smell when ripe. To test if a pineapple is ripe for cutting, hold it to your nose and sniff. You should smell a faint pineapple scent. Use smell and appearance in combination when selecting pineapples and deciding when to cut them, since even pineapples that are old or of poor quality will smell ripe.
Storage
Pineapples are best kept at room temperature, until sliced. As you leave pineapples on the counter, the yellow hues deepen. This is normal and also indicates a slight change in flavor of the fruit, although not an increase in sweetness. Pineapples can be damaged at temperatures below 40 degrees F, so they do not last long in the refrigerator. Store cut pineapple slices in the refrigerator and consume within a few days, for best flavor.
Myths
The "Sugarloaf" cultivar of pineapple has loose leaves at the crown that pull out easily when touched. As J. Morton of Purdue University indicates, this gave rise to a belief that pineapples were ripe to be cut when you could pull the leaves out of the crown easily. There is no relationship between the looseness of the leaves and ripeness for eating of the fruit.
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