The girls have decided that pomegranates are their new favorite food. Last night Trinity declared “Pomegranate is my true love loves!” Lilly just kept shoving handfuls of arils in her mouth and asking for more. When I tried to get her to say pomegranate she replied “kah-kah!” So….add that one to the Linglish-English Homonym list as the 3rd (4th?) meaning for “kah-kah.” I made another fun pomegranate recipe last night (a middle eastern dish!) but thought that before I post that recipe I would document the de-ariling (yes, I think I just invented a word) process.

Anyone who is familiar with Alton Brown knows that the man is nothing short of a food genius. He knows everything about everything about food.  A few weeks ago I watched a show he did about pomegranates. He offered some very helpful tips on how to get the arils out without looking like you tied dyed your shirt (or your kitchen) when you are done. With six huge, beautiful pomegranates on hand we decided we should familiarize ourselves with his strategies.

First, cut a small portion off of the top and bottom of the pomegranate:

Score the outside of the pomegranate vertically 5 or 6 times. Do not cut through the white pithy part, just score the outside:

In a large bowl of water. Push in on one end of the pomegranate with your thumbs while pulling apart with your fingers on the other end.The pomegranates we had were actually so big I couldn’t get the right leverage to pull it apart! Andy stepped in:

Gently ease the arils out. They will sink to the bottom. Any white pithy part that falls into the water will float to the top:Skim the pith off the top of the water and discard. Pour the arils into strainer. Place some paper towels on a pan and spread the drained arils out to dry:Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use within a two weeks. Whole pomegranates will stay good, refrigerated for 1-2 months.