---
title: "Pit: what it means in cooking — Tiny Plates"
description: "To pit is to take the hard stone out of fruit such as cherries, olives, peaches, plums, dates and avocados, using a knife, a pitter or your fingers."
url: "https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/pit"
---

# Pit

To pit is to take the hard stone out of fruit such as cherries, olives, peaches, plums, dates and avocados, using a knife, a pitter or your fingers.

Also called Pitted, Stone, Stoned, Destone.

To pit means to remove the single hard seed, called the pit, from a fruit. In the UK it is called the stone, and recipes say "stoned" or "destoned". Cherries, olives, plums, peaches, apricots, mangoes, dates and avocados all have one.

## How to do it

**Cherries and olives:** use a cherry pitter, which pushes the pit out through the fruit. Without one, put the fruit on the mouth of a narrow bottle and push the pit through with a chopstick or a sturdy straw. For olives, you can also press each one with the flat of a knife until it splits, then pull out the pit.

**Peaches, plums and apricots:**

1. Cut around the fruit along its seam, down to the pit, all the way round.
2. Hold one half in each hand and twist in opposite directions.
3. Lift the pit out of the half that holds it. Use a [paring knife](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/paring-knife) if it clings.

**Avocados:**

1. Cut around the avocado lengthwise, down to the pit, and twist the halves apart.
2. Scoop the pit out with a spoon, or cut the half with the pit in quarters and peel the pit away.

**Mangoes:** the pit is flat and wide. Stand the mango on its end and cut down each side of the pit to take off two "cheeks".

## Common mistakes

* Hitting an avocado pit with a knife while holding the fruit in your hand. The blade can slip into your palm. Keep the avocado on the board, or use a spoon.
* Trying to twist a peach whose flesh clings to the pit. Some peaches, called clingstone, will not come free. Cut the flesh off the pit in slices instead.
* Missing a pit. Count the fruit and the pits, especially when baking whole cherries into a [clafoutis](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/clafoutis) or pie.
* Pitting cherries in a white shirt. The juice stains.

## In recipes

"Pitted" or "stoned" means the pit is out. Some recipes ask for unpitted cherries for flavor and warn guests. Removing a central core with many seeds, as in apples, is called [coring](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/core), and removing loose seeds from peppers is called [seeding](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/seed).

## Recipes that use this technique

6 recipes from the sites we collect.

* [![](https://www.skinnytaste.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/ShrimpCevicheandAvocadoSalad-2.jpg)Shrimp Ceviche Stuffed Avocadowww.skinnytaste.com · 155 min](https://www.skinnytaste.com/shrimp-ceviche-and-avocado-salad/)
* [![](https://pinchofyum.com/tachyon/2012/11/Roasted-Cherry-Brownies.jpeg?fit=225%2C225)Roasted Cherry Browniespinchofyum.com · 40 min](https://pinchofyum.com/roasted-cherry-brownies)
* [![](https://www.skinnytaste.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Cherry-Lime-Ice-Pops.jpg)Cherry Lime Ice Popswww.skinnytaste.com · 135 min](https://www.skinnytaste.com/cherry-lime-ice-pops/)
* [![](https://www.skinnytaste.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Peaches-and-Cream-Popsicles.jpg)Peaches and Cream Popsicleswww.skinnytaste.com · 20 min](https://www.skinnytaste.com/peaches-and-cream-popsicles/)
* [![](https://www.skinnytaste.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/cherry-sorbet-recipe.jpg)Cherry Sorbetwww.skinnytaste.com](https://www.skinnytaste.com/cherry-sorbet/)
* [![](https://minimalistbaker.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/5-ingredient-truffles-SQUARE.jpg)5-Ingredient Salted Caramel Peanut Butter Trufflesminimalistbaker.com · 123 min](https://minimalistbaker.com/5-ingredient-salted-caramel-peanut-butter-truffles/)

## Related terms

* [CoreTo core is to cut out the tough center of a fruit or vegetable, such as the seeds of an apple, the stem of a tomato or the heart of a cabbage.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/core)
* [SeedTo seed is to remove the seeds and pith from fruit and vegetables such as chilies, bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash and pomegranates.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/seed)
* [HullTo hull a strawberry is to remove its green leafy cap and the hard white core under it. The word also means taking the outer husk off seeds and grains.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/hull)
* [Paring knifeA paring knife is a small knife with an 8 to 10 cm blade for peeling, trimming, coring and other detailed work. Here is how to use it safely.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/paring-knife)
* [ClafoutisClafoutis is a French baked dessert of fruit, classically cherries, set in a thin pancake-like batter. See the ratio, the bake time and the cues.](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/clafoutis)

[More in knife skills and preparation](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary/category/knife-skills)[Every term from A to Z](https://www.tinyplates.dev/glossary)