This Must-Buy Aldi Canned Fruit Is A Refreshing Time-Saver

No-frills Aldi offers a breadth of pantry staples, all while maintaining cheap grocery prices. Such great value shopping rolls into the preserved foods, too — yet not all options come equal in quality. Subsequently, we outlined 9 canned foods you should avoid at Aldi and 5 you should definitely buy. A product worthy of purchase, without question? The Sweet Harvest Pineapple Slices. For only $1.75, you get 20 ounces of fruit rings contained in pineapple juice, all with no added sugar.

The pineapple's natural flavor won over our taste tester. They noted a balanced sweetness akin to a freshly cut pineapple, accompanied by a pleasant texture — soft yet not mushy, with just the right dose of crispiness. Opposed to other overly processed Aldi canned products, the pineapple slices perform as a reasonable substitute for fresh fruit, all with no prep work and excellent shelf stability. Across Reddit, they're routinely highly rated among all the canned (and even fresh) fruit.

As with the majority of Aldi's offerings, the pineapple comes from the retailer's own private label. For a sweeter alternative, you can also look out for the well-liked pineapple spears jarred in coconut-water. Nevertheless, for a remarkably fresh blast of tropical flavor (which can't be said for the Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup), Aldi's canned Sweet Harvest Pineapple is a great buy.

Not sure how to put the delicious canned pineapple to use? The options are abundant. In addition to a tasty standalone snack, you could conveniently top drinks with the fruit, or integrate it into a smoothie, juice, or cocktail — think an ultimate piña colada, no messy prep work involved. Canned pineapple is often better for baked goods than frozen varieties, with both the liquid and the flesh useful in cakes, pies, cookies, and more. Our reviewer also recommends employing the rings for pineapple-glazed ham, noting a convenient size and flavor alongside cured pork.

Furthermore, by way of canning's entailed heating process, the fruit's bromelain is deactivated, a marked difference from fresh pineapple. The enzyme effectively denatures proteins –- ideal for highly-effective meat marinades or increasing dough pliability – so you'll want to skip out on tenderizing applications with the canned fruit. The bromelain-free composition does offer its own advantages, though. The lack of the enzyme enables use alongside gelatin, letting you craft naturally flavored pineapple jam or jelly without much fuss. You can also integrate the fruit flavor into meat applications; whip up an aromatic chicken curry or pineapple pulled porkall without fear of over-marinating. Even opposed to fresh fruit, a can of Aldi's pineapple rings offers unique benefits.