I love pomegranate season. LOVE it.
Every week, I buy as many as my budget will allow and eat every last morsel. I’ve also been trying to include Sophie in the kitchen as much as possible, so I’ve been trying to streamline my prep process. Pomegranates can be tricky (they were for me, till I figured this trick out), so since I plan on sharing a few pomegranate recipes this season, I thought I’d walk you through the method that makes eating a pomegranate a cinch. Seriously. Once we get the segments apart, Sophie can remove all the seeds and sort everything out.
First off: wear an apron. The juice has a tendency to splatter every once in a while, though the water bowl really helps with that.
Step 1. Cut off the top of the pomegranate. You want to be able to see where it’s naturally segmented. This will vary pomegranate to pomegranate. Sometimes, I have 4 segments. Sometimes I have 7. This little trim off the top removes any guesswork.
Step 2. Locate the segment seams. You’ll see that the pith (the white part) is thicker in some areas. Those are the membrane segments.
Step 3. Slice along the segment seams with a sharp knife. No need to pierce all the way through the pomegranate. You just want to cut through the skin.
Step 4. Pull the segments apart. Peel off the little white membrane and set it aside.
Step 5. Remove the seeds with your fingers and put them in a little bowl of water. Some people swear you can turn the segments over and rap them with a wooden spoon and the seeds will magically fall out. This trick has never ever worked for me. So, I use my fingers. Do what you will.
Step 6. Remove any bruised seeds or white pith that may have gotten in your water bowl. Transfer the seeds to a bowl or bag to store. Discard the water.
ENJOY!
See? Maybe not as hard as you thought, right? Seeds will keep for around 4-5 days in the refrigerator before they really deteriorate. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!
P.S. I’m sharing an incredibly easy salad on Monday (using pomegranate) that would be PERFECT for Thanksgiving. Stop by, say hi!
I had to laugh at the “transfer to a bowl or bag to store”, cause we never, EVER have anything left to store. We eat it as we dissect it. Also, I was just telling my husband the other night that cleaning product companies should subsidize pomegranates and pineapples. Cause my kitchen never gets stickier than when I let my kids eat one of the two. If they could get those into more homes, their profits would skyrocket!
Just curious– why put the seeds in water? Just to wash off stickiness that has oozed out while extracting?
Yes, but mostly to help separate any remaining pith/membranes from the seeds. I can easily skim off anything I don’t want, then scoop out what I do want. Easy-peasy.
Thank you for this! We just seeded our first pomegranate quite successfully! I’ve never tried before, no matter how many times the kids have asked, because I was intimidated by how to do it. So thank you!
Beka – YAY! I’m so glad the method worked for you! Here’s to many more yummy pomegranates!
I have been doing it this way since you showed me how earlier. We have a pomegranate bush that has been wonderfully prolific this year. I have put this knowledge to good use.
Also, I think the beauty of the bowl of water is that it truly helps prevent any splatters from the juice from reaching the person doing the dissecting.