Cut a Pomegranate – Mess Free Method!

At a glance

What stands out: Ruby red pomegranates, with jewel-like seeds, are beautiful and rich, and have memorable health benefits. This step-by-step tutorial will teach you how to cut a pomegranate and remove the arils.

How long it takes: 5 minutes
Equipment you’ll need: sharp knife, large bowl, slotted spoon or mini strainer, colander
Servings: One pomegranate yields about 1 cup of seeds.

Pomegranates

Pomegranates have been calling our name lately every time we go to the grocery store. This time, they called our name and said, “Hey lookie, we're on sale!!!” And then two jumped into our cart. We had no idea what we would do with them.

Did you know that a pomegranate is classified as a berry? It’s been cultivated for millennia and is treasured for the juicy tart seeds inside (the skin and the white membrane are inedible). The seeds are enclosed in a juicy covering and are called arils. There can be 200 to 1,400 seeds in one pomegranate!

The task of breaking a pomegranate open and getting to the seeds (arils) can be a little daunting, like excavating a hidden treasure. The arils are embedded in the membrane and take a little coaxing to emerge. This step-by-step tutorial will help you get to the little jewels inside the fruit.

How to Cut a Pomegranate

• sharp knife
• cutting board
• large bowl filled with cold water
• slotted spoon or mini strainer
• colander

Step 2: Wash the pomegranate.

Isn’t it beautiful? Maybe we'll buy a few extra and use them for a centerpiece!

Step 3: Slice off the top.

We call it the “crown” but it’s technically called the calyx.

Step 4: Score the pomegranate in four or five places.

For photo purposes, the cuts are a little deeper than they need to be. Shallow scoring is what you’re looking for, just cutting through the tough red skin. Try not to cut into the juicy arils.

Step 5: Place the pomegranate in a bowl of water.

Soaking helps to loosen the arils. Place the cut pomegranate upside down, cut side down, in a bowl of cold water and leave it there for about 10 minutes

Step 6: Separate arils.

Remove the pomegranate from the bowl of water. Pry open the cut edges of the pomegranate, exposing the arils. and begin to separate the arils (seeds) with your fingers. Do this under the water in the bowl to avoid making a mess.

Step 7: Remove membrane.

Let the arils fall into the bowl of water. They will sink and the white membrane will float to the top so you can easily remove it. When you’re done, simply skim the membrane off with a slotted spoon and discard it.

Step 8. Drain seeds.

Drain the seeds in a strainer or colander.

Step 9: Use them!

You can snack on pomegranate seeds right from the bowl or enjoy them in the fun recipes listed below. Each pomegranate will yield approximately one cup of arils.

Take a minute to marvel over how seriously pretty these little jewels are!

Recipes With Pomegranate

• Kale Pomegranate Salad (aka Christmas Salad)
• Butternut Squash Crostini with Ricotta
• Sparkling Pomegranate Punch
• Pomegranate Mojitos
• Pomegranate Rosemary Spritzer (a mocktail)

• Yield: 4
• Prep: 5 minutes
• Total: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 fresh pomegranate

Method

1. Slice off the top of the pomegranate (the end that looks like a crown).
2. Score the pomegranate in 4 or 5 places, just slicing through the peel.
3. Place pomegranate cut side down in a bowl of cold water and let soak for 10 minutes.
4. Keeping under water, pry open and use your fingers to work the arils away from the flesh, letting them fall into the water.
5. With a slotted spoon or a mini strainer, skim any white membrane that's floating on top of the water. Once you've removed the floating white membrane, strain the pomegranate seeds to remove the water.

Notes

Yield: One pomegranate will yield approximately 1 cup of arils. The nutrition information is calculated for ¼ cup arils.