Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa

This Polynesian inspired Grilled Pineapple Salsa is a great side to serve with Chicken, Steak, Pork, or Fish. I’ve got some kitchen tips for cutting this Pineapple so I’m subtitling this ‘How to Cut a Pineapple‘.

Chop off the top and bottom of the Pineapple. Stand it up and slice down one side to provide a flat starting point.
Lay the Pineapple down and begin slicing around the outside. Hold the knife flat against the cutting board as you slowly roll the pineapple around and cut away the outer skin.
Lay the Pineapple down and begin slicing around the outside. Hold the knife flat against the cutting board as you slowly roll the pineapple around and cut away the outer skin.
Slice the Pineapple in to 1 inch thick slices then remove the inner core from each slice. Time to get resourceful! I used the lid from my Listerine bottle to cut out the core.
Combine Fish Sauce, Honey, and Sesame Oil in a small bowl then brush on Pineapple prior to grilling. Reserve marinade for finished salsa.
Grill Pineapple on something with ridges like a Cast Iron Skillet.
Chop Pineapple rounds in to small 1/2 inch pieces after they’ve brain grilled.
Hand chopped Macadamia Nuts.

Once you’ve carved, sliced, and cored your pineapple, you can brush it with the marinade and grill it. Grill pineapple on medium-high heat to develop deep grill marks. Cut up the pineapple and the cucumber in to half inch bit-size pieces. Combine with habanero, macadamia nuts, Thai basil then stir together with any left over pineapple marinade.

This goes exceptionally well with Salmon Poached in Coconut Milk or Asian Chicken Tacos. I’m also thinking of some sort of satay of pork belly marinated in Dr. Pepper. Let me know what you serve it with!

Combine Grilled Pineapple, Cucumber, Macadamia Nuts, Thai Basil, Habanero and left over Pineapple Marinade.

Side note: Can someone tell me which is the correct usage here? 1 Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa, 2 Grilled Polynesian Pineapple Salsa, 3 Grilled Pineapple Polynesian Salsa. I was going to title this Thai Grilled Pineapple Salsa but this recipe really takes a lot of cues from everywhere. Macadamia Nuts are native to Australia. Pineapples are native to Brazil and the Philippines. Habaneros are native to Brazil and Mexico. Thai Basil and Fish Sauce are mostly native to the Thai / Vietnamese regions. Let me know if there are any regional substitutes I could use for Cucumber.

Grilled Pineapple Thai Salsa

Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa

Anthony
This Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa combines sweet, spicy, salty South East Asian inspired flavors such as Honey, Chili Peppers, Fish Sauce, Toasted Sesame Oil, and Thai Basil.
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Cuisine Polynesian

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Pineapple
  • 1/2 English Cucumber chopped
  • 1/3 cup chopped Macadamia Nuts
  • 2 Habanero Chilis finely chopped
  • 6 Thai Basil Leaves torn in to pieces
  • 2 tsp Fish Sauce
  • 2 Tbs Honey
  • 1 Tbs Toasted Sesame Oil
  • 1 Tbs Water

Instructions
 

  • For the Pineapple Marinade; whisk together Fish Sauce, Honey, Sesame Oil, and Water in a small Bowl.
  • Carve, core and slice Pineapple in to rounds. Brush with marinade then grill on medium-high heat until dark grill marks are on both sides of the Pineapple. Chop grilled Pineapple in to bite size 1/2 inch chunks.
  • Combine Grilled Pineapple, Chopped Cucumber, Macadamia Nuts, Habanero Chilis, and Thai Basil leaves in a medium bowl. Add reserved Pineapple Marinade and stir to combine. 
  • Chill for up to 2 hours before serving. 

Notes

Save yourself some time by buying canned pineapple chunks. You'll miss out on the deep grilled flavor but you'll get it done in about 10 minutes total.
Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa
Polynesian Grilled Pineapple Salsa
This post may contain affiliate links. I may get a tiny kickback from your purchase.

Leave a message

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.