How to Make Pineapple Water

Lately, we've been loving pineapple water. It's such an easy, refreshing way to stay hydrated. I started making it at home when I wanted something flavorful that wasn’t overly sweet like juice, but still felt like a treat. If you’re trying to drink more water or just need a little tropical pick-me-up (forget the seltzers!), this is our simple, go-to natural fruit-infused water that's gentler on your body. I’ll walk you through how I make it; it’s quick, budget-friendly, and so satisfying!

Drinking pineapple water is a delicious way to enjoy a virtually zero-calorie hydrating drink, as it is plain water and can be enjoyed with your meals instead of soda, or drink it during detox days, as it promotes healthy digestion.

This typical Panamanian drink consists of fresh pineapple water. It doesn't get simpler than this recipe. We call it agua de piña (also called agua fresca in Mexico); it has great cleansing properties and Vitamin C.

With the same technique but adding rice to the mix, we make a delicious arroz con piña, a chilled creamy pineapple, and a rice milk smoothie.

A great way to reduce waste and get the richest flavors from fresh produce is creating dishes and drinks that use every bit we can like this pineapple water, pesto sauce with carrots tops, and even watermelon rind gazpacho !

If this topic interests you, check out our post on how to make the best of your meal leftovers.

Read on: recipes with almond pulp leftovers from making almond milk »

Jump to:

• 🧾 Ingredients
• 🔪 How to make pineapple water for weight loss
• 📖 Variations
• ✅ Benefits of drinking pineapple water
• ❓ FAQ
• 🍍 More pineapple recipes
• 🎥 Video
• 📋 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews and Comments

🧾 Ingredients

Making pineapple water requires only two ingredients

• Ripe pineapple peel (from the whole fruit) - to imbue the water with pineapple flavor
• Fresh water - the less water, the more pineapple flavor.

Optional extra flavorings (not necessary):

Fresh ginger, star anise, cinnamon stick, cloves, or lemon.

🔪 How to make pineapple water for weight loss

Peel pineapple

To make this pineapple skin water recipe, peel the whole pineapple and reserve the flesh to eat on its own, or freeze the pineapple chunks for a pineapple coconut smoothie, or a strawberry pineapple smoothie.

If you plan to drink your pineapple water on its own, without any other flavoring or sweetener, leave a little bit of flesh on the rinds so the pineapple taste is more concentrated.

Otherwise, you can simply pick one or two small frozen or fresh pineapple chunks to add to the pineapple-infused water.

Tip: you can reserve the rind frozen in a plastic bag or plastic wrap in the freezer and make your pineapple water later.

Check out how to make a perfect pineapple and cucumber smoothie for weight loss.

Boil

Put the pineapple rind in a large saucepan and fill it with enough water. I use about a half-gallon (2 liters) for a medium pineapple.

Add any other flavoring you might want to add. I suggest you try pineapple water on its own the first time so you get acquainted with the flavor before trying out any other flavorings.

Bring to a boil for about 15 minutes. Psst! Your kitchen will turn into a dreamy Caribbean afternoon with the pineapple scent.

Cooldown

Remove from heat and let the pineapple-infused water cool down.

Note: you can enjoy the pineapple-infused water as tea as well. In this case, you can serve it immediately in teacups.

Strain

Straining the fruit-infused water isn't necessary as any particles usually decant to the bottom of the bottle, but if you want to ensure you have 100% clear pineapple water, pass it through a fine-mesh strainer.

Tip: I usually squeeze the soggy pineapple rinds with my hands to extract all the flavor before straining the pineapple water.

Sweeten (optional)

Although I learned to drink pineapple water as a sweet drink as a child, I find it completely unnecessary. Pineapple rinds will infuse some sweetness into the drink, and no added sugar is necessary.

But until just fifteen years ago, I drank tea with sugar, not anymore.

If you want to add some extra sweetness, you can add a tablespoon of date paste, maple syrup, agave nectar, or coconut sugar into the drink. The drink will darken a bit, depending on the sweetener you use.

Reserve

I like bottling the pineapple water in a large jar and enjoying it chilled on warm days. I also like serving this refreshing and hydrating drink in a glass with ice cubes and the remaining boiled pineapple chunks for extra fiber.

📖 Variations

After savoring the delicate flavors of your pineapple water, take the next step with those pineapple pieces with other kitchen staples.

Grab a pitcher and create a tantalizing infused pineapple ginger cucumber lemon water, a Delicious detox drink

But why stop there? You can elevate this into a third recipe by using the infused produce to whip up pineapple cucumber ginger lemon juice.

This approach is a great way to fully utilize your ingredients, ensuring nothing goes to waste while adding an extra layer of zest to your juice. Each sip is guaranteed to be a refreshing and delightful experience!

Also, this great recipe is easy to modify and adjust, giving it different flavor twists.

Flavor

Add star anise, fresh ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, lime, or lemon to the water while it boils. You can also add fresh mint leaves when the fruit-infused water is already chilled, as the leaves darken with heat.

Sweeter

Add your choice of sweeter, like coconut sugar, date paste, maple syrup, agave nectar, stevia leaves, or regular sugar.

Another drink

We make a horchata (rice base drink) called Arroz con Piña, simply adding half a cup of rice to the boiling water. Then remove the rinds and blend in a high-speed blender with cinnamon, vanilla, oat milk, ice cubes, and sweetener.

Add antioxidants

If you feel like adding some extra nutrients, Vitamin C, antioxidant content, and anti-inflammatory benefits to your drink, add a tablespoon of chia seeds and let it infuse overnight.

Add painkilling effect

You can include in the boiling water a tablespoon of fennel seeds. Fennel has been found to help relieve pain. A study from Bangladesh found that fennel extract reduced pain symptoms to a level close to what aspirin does. (source)

If you want are looking for drinks that may help alleviate pain try this juice.

✅ Benefits of drinking pineapple water

Weight loss

By changing the regular sugary drinks in your diet for this zero-calorie drink, you can easily remove a good amount of calories from your daily intake. If you love pineapple and trying to lose weight, this juice may be for you.

You can use a weight loss calculator to estimate how long it might take to reach your weight loss goals and determine the appropriate calorie deficit needed to achieve them. These calculators take into account factors such as your current weight, height, age, gender, activity level, and desired weight loss rate to provide an estimate of how many calories you should consume daily to achieve your goals.

Anti-inflammatory

Inflammation is important in the development of cancer. It helps with the transformation of cells, the growth of tumors, and the spread of cancer to other parts of the body.

Scientists have found that if they can control chronic inflammation, it can help reduce cancer incidence and also slow down cancer progression.

Bromelain in pineapple has been shown to decrease inflammatory mediators and has demonstrated significant anti-inflammatory effects in many different conditions. (source).

Intestinal function

Studies found that pineapple peel could be a promising candidate for human intestinal function and health. (source)

So don’t throw away your pineapple peels, and give this delicious Pineapple Water a try. Not only is it refreshing, but you’ll also get all the health benefits of drinking fresh pineapple juice. Cheers to staying hydrated!

If you like tonics and infusions, you need to try this anti-inflammatory powerhouse, turmeric, and ginger tea that is part of our morning rituals.

Immunity

Pineapple is an excellent source of vitamin C and manganese, both of which are crucial for supporting immune function.

Cut added sugar intake

Creating carbonated pineapple water may help in reducing the intake of added sugar commonly found in most sodas, while still offering the fizzy sensation many enjoy. Fruit-infused sparkling water is a satisfying, low-sugar, and low-calorie alternative to soda that delivers the same gratifying fizz, making it a great substitution for sugary beverages.

❓ FAQ

🍍 More pineapple recipes

And if you like this type of infusion, you will surely love our sorrel drink (made out of hibiscus flowers).

⭐ If you try this pineapple skin water recipe, let us know! 💬 Leave a comment, rate it, and don't forget to tag us @ourplantbasedworld on Instagram. Cheers!

🎥 Video

📋 Recipe