NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
    • The Great NZ Road Trip
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • Deloitte Fast 50
    • Generate wealth weekly
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Eat Well / Food News

Ask Peter: Pomegranate fruit and molasses

Peter Gordon
By
Peter Gordon

Chef, restauranteur and author

VIEW PROFILE

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article

Can you give me some help on pomegranates? They are in a lot of recipes and restaurant dishes. How do I choose a ripe one when buying them? I buy ones that look rosy and beautiful but there is no way I can get the seeds out easily — having to scrape the seeds out and separate them from the hard pithy bits. I have also recently bought a bottle of pomegranate molasses and add it to dressings for salads and into sauces but would love some other ways to use it.I know you will have some wonderful ideas.
Thanks, Judy.

Ah, this lovely gorgeous red pearl of a fruit originating in Persia. Amazingly they are almost always in the shops in London. Older friends have said they remember them as exotic fruit that were always around at Christmas, although they didn’t always know what to do with them back in the 60s. What I really enjoy doing with them is juicing them — just as they do on the streets in Istanbul.

Usually a stall will sell pomegranate and orange juice, both freshly squeezed in one of those presses where the fruit aren’t spun around, but pressed on a “cone” that squeezes the juice out. I’ve done this myself many times. I have on occasion mixed the fresh juice with sugar, cooked it over a rapid simmer to a light syrup, then mixed in grappa and left it in the fridge for a day. It’s great spooned over a panna cotta, along with some freshly released seeds, or topped up with soda water and a dash of vodka for a summer punch.

To remove the seeds you have several options

Personally, I prefer to run a knife around the outside, without cutting through the fruit (the white pith is bitter and this avoids spreading the bitterness into the seeds, and also stops you having a handful of halved seeds) then twisting the fruit open. Then I rip each half into half again, to give me 4 pieces, and then I invert them, pushing the skin into the centre. Pull the seeds away from the skin, removing any pith and Bob’s your uncle.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

My good mate Yotam Ottolenghi, who knows a thing or two about pomegranates, prefers to simply cut the fruit in half, like an orange, and then (ideally over a sink, and wearing an apron) he bashes the base of the fruit with a rolling pin over a tray. This forces the seeds to shoot out of the skin, but it can also spray some of the red juice as well. You’ll always need to remove the pith. Whatever way you use, the results will be spectacular.

How to tell if they're ripe

As to when are they ripe — they can be deceptive. This, I believe, has more to do with the variety than the fruit themselves. There are varieties that are almost black, and some that are orange, although in New Zealand they tend to be in the red spectrum.

Usually a dark red fruit will render dark red seeds, but sometimes the paler ones, with paler seeds, are equally as sweet n’ sour. So in some ways if they’re being sold, you have to assume your vege person is making sure they’re ripe. Once open they won’t ripen any more so I’m afraid you’ll have to make the best of them. There are also huge ones and small ones. The Istanbul ones for juicing tend to be huge (like a really large orange) and dark crimson in colour, with seeds the colour of a deep-red rose.

Pomegranate molasses

I simply adore pomegranate molasses and use it in place of balsamic vinegar in anything that calls for balsamic. It’s also great drizzled over vanilla ice cream, mixed with berries and icing sugar to spoon over creamy meringues, swirled into a vodka tonic with a dash of rosewater or stirred through a lamb stew just before serving.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

And can you imagine a salad of baby cos leaves tossed with feta, blanched baby green beans, toasted chopped hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds, pomegranate molasses, EV olive oil and plenty of black pepper? Divine!

This week’s photo is from my visit to the Topkapi Palace in early 2012 — see how “everyday’’ these wonderful fruit are.

--

In our Ask Peter series, executive chef Peter Gordon answers your curly culinary questions. If you're stumped over something food-related, send your question to askpeter@bite.co.nz and keep checking in for answers. You can read more on Peter on his website, have a read of his Ask Peter articles or check out his recipes on our site.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest Recipes

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks
Food News

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks

Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry
Food News

Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry

Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media
Food News

Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media

Slow-cooking secrets: How to master flavourful meals with ease
Food News

Slow-cooking secrets: How to master flavourful meals with ease

Soba to spaghetti: Why chilled noodles are the perfect summer meal
Food News

Soba to spaghetti: Why chilled noodles are the perfect summer meal

Cold brew, hot summer: How to make the perfect iced coffee at home
Food News

Cold brew, hot summer: How to make the perfect iced coffee at home

Latest Food News

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks
Food News

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks

Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry
Food News

Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry

Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media
Food News

Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media

Premium
Inside NZ's booming functional drink craze for gut and brain health
Food News

Inside NZ's booming functional drink craze for gut and brain health

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Food News

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks
Food News

Why your winter meals need these flavour-boosting tricks

Simple tips and tricks to make winter food taste fresh, bright and anything but beige.

22 Aug 11:00 PM
Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry
Food News

Why tinned tomatoes are the unsung hero of your pantry

16 Aug 02:00 AM
Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media
Food News

Why cottage cheese is making a surprising comeback, spurred by social media

07 Aug 11:00 PM


NZ’s convenience icon turns 35
Sponsored

NZ’s convenience icon turns 35

02 Sep 09:23 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP