Scrutable

As a long time teacher of workshop skills I would like to think that I have a literal feel for good tool design. Evidently not when it comes to vegetable peelers. Throughout my years teaching food tech I found adults to be very attached to one of three designs of peeler.

Myself I favour one over the other two, with a passion, I would rather use a knife than one of them. My Wife favours the one I hate.
Please vote and defend your choice in the comments.

Somewhere between B and C. One that swivels a little bit, but not as much as the one we recently bought.

I voted for A, but it looks slightly awkward to hold. I prefer its right-angled cousin like this:

By the way: what's the point of the swivel?

The swivel allows the blade to automatically adopt the correct angle against the potato. It doesn't really work for me.

<pedantry ON>

and C would be a Lancashire peeler.

<pedantry OFF>

I'm sure my parents had a 'Yorkshire peeler" that was similar to the Lancashire, but only had a single sided blade; so you had to peel towards yourself when it was held in the right hand or peel away from yourself when held in the left.

I have one similar to the "Jonas peeler" (Type B), and find it fast to use, and it lasts; we're on our second after over 40 years of regular use, the first has been relegated to "the stuff we take with us for camping etc"

Gfamily wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 16, 2020 10:03 pm

I'm sure my parents had a 'Yorkshire peeler" that was similar to the Lancashire, but only had a single sided blade; so you had to peel towards yourself when it was held in the right hand or peel away from yourself when held in the left.

I have one similar to the "Jonas peeler" (Type B), and find it fast to use, and it lasts; we're on our second after over 40 years of regular use, the first has been relegated to "the stuff we take with us for camping etc"

Yup B is my preferred one - except for something like a butternut squash, when I find something similar to Britonian's slightly better.

I don't get on with C - I'd go for a knife in that situation instead.

I use (E) a Victorinox peeler, which is like (A), but angled at about 45 degrees. It is my preferred choice by a long way. My order of preference would be

Victorinox >> A > B >>>C >D Although if C is blunt, I far prefer a knife I can sharpen. It would depend also on the knife*.


*Some people are knife Philistines. I was officially unhappy to find someone cutting up vegetables with my prized bread-knife, which has the same scalloped blade as this Wusthof Grand Prix II Offset Handle Serrated Knife. It slices bread without producing masses of crumbs, has a beautiful curve to the blade, so you don't end up dragging the point over the cutting board, cuts nice slices (not wedges) and generally is a joy to use. I have no idea how it could be sharpened, so I'm not looking forward to the day it gets too blunt to use.

jimbob wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 16, 2020 10:20 pm

Yup B is my preferred one - except for something like a butternut squash, when I find something similar to Britonian's slightly better.

I don't get on with C - I'd go for a knife in that situation instead.

Now for squash and swedes/turnips and strangely sweet potato which clogs the blade of C, I prefer to cut the veg into inch and a half thick slices, lay the slices down and then cut the skin off with vertical slicing with a big knife.

I'm with Brightonian, but would add that I don't use my peeler very often. I wash the outside of vegetables, but usually then leave the skin on.

Martin_B wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 16, 2020 11:52 pm

I'm with Brightonian, but would add that I don't use my peeler very often. I wash the outside of vegetables, but usually then leave the skin on.

Yes I cant remember the last time I peeled a vegetable. I get a bit scared of injuring myself on things like butternut squash so I don't use it very often.

When I do peel I usually use a knife but if I was going to use a peeler I would probably go for something like a because the others are just a bit like knives.

Mostly I'm a skin on person too. When peeling B and C allow more force and precision to be applied. A is ok for just scraping easy peels off.

Probably the correct answer is whichever comes to hand first (yes I have too many gadgets) and hasn't been recycled with the peeling which seems to happen far too often. My green bin needs a metal detector function to catch peelers and teaspoons.

One of the greatest moments of my life was when I realised our type A peeler, which was a bit blunt, could be used in both pull and push actions and was still razor sharp in the push direction.

I mean a new one would be like a fiver but you don't, do you, not for ages, cos you don't think of it at the time and then it's oh God carrots but wait what if I push? Truly a miracle.

science_fox wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 12:11 pm

Mostly I'm a skin on person too. When peeling B and C allow more force and precision to be applied. A is ok for just scraping easy peels off.

Probably the correct answer is whichever comes to hand first (yes I have too many gadgets) and hasn't been recycled with the peeling which seems to happen far too often. My green bin needs a metal detector function to catch peelers and teaspoons.

I have lost a few Brabantia C style peelers that way, cos what colour do they make the handle? Potato peeling coloured that's what.

I grew up with a C-type and could never understand why it was so f.cking hard for me to use until I realised that to peel in the direction I'd been taught meant I wasn't using the blade as I was left-handed. Getting the A-type was a revelation and it's all I'll use now.

Ok I'm going to ask...what are people's reasons for peeling veg, from a cost/benefit point of view?

I mean if I am preparing food for other people I might peel some stuff due to expectations, but apart from that?

Also going to assume these are vegetables that will be cooked.

I'm with Brightonian. The one we've got had lasted decades and the swivel blade is good for misshapen veg. It also takes very fine peelings so you don't lose much of the rest of the veg.

Disco - mainly used for prepping butternut squash and potatoes for roasting and as I grow my own spuds they can often be in need of peeling as even after scrubbing with a brush, not all the soil is removed.

For things like carrots, the peelings go to the guinea pigs for some variation to their diet.

discovolante wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 1:35 pm

Ok I'm going to ask...what are people's reasons for peeling veg, from a cost/benefit point of view?

I mean if I am preparing food for other people I might peel some stuff due to expectations, but apart from that?

Also going to assume these are vegetables that will be cooked.

It nearly always depends on what I'm making with the veg.

Butternut squash and aubergine: because it's skin in a curry etc. is not good.
Winter squashes: because the skin is extremely tough. A peeler is no good to you here.
Potatoes: when making extremely fluffy white mash, traditional roasted potatoes, or certain kinds of potato salad, or using mash as an ingredient.
Carrots: if the skin is wrinkled etc.
Beets: because the skin is nasty
Onions: see beets. But the skins are good for stock still. Not a peeler job either.

And that's about it for what I peel.

Fishnut wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 1:31 pm

I grew up with a C-type and could never understand why it was so f.cking hard for me to use until I realised that to peel in the direction I'd been taught meant I wasn't using the blade as I was left-handed. Getting the A-type was a revelation and it's all I'll use now.

That one pictured and the Brabantia ones I buy work both ways as they have two blades.

dyqik wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 2:04 pm

discovolante wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 1:35 pm

Ok I'm going to ask...what are people's reasons for peeling veg, from a cost/benefit point of view?

I mean if I am preparing food for other people I might peel some stuff due to expectations, but apart from that?

Also going to assume these are vegetables that will be cooked.

It nearly always depends on what I'm making with the veg.

Butternut squash and aubergine: because it's skin in a curry etc. is not good.
Winter squashes: because the skin is extremely tough. A peeler is no good to you here.
Potatoes: when making extremely fluffy white mash, traditional roasted potatoes, or certain kinds of potato salad, or using mash as an ingredient.
Carrots: if the skin is wrinkled etc.
Beets: because the skin is nasty
Onions: see beets. But the skins are good for stock still. Not a peeler job either.

And that's about it for what I peel.

Butternut squash in a curry - yes I agree
Aubergine - meh, more faff than it's worth
Winter squashes- agreed
Potatoes - mash: meh, whatever; roast: yes agreed; potato salad - nah
Carrots - nah just sling them in
Beetroot - yeah fair enough
Onions - obvs

I mean, for things like mash my preference is for no skin, taste wise, but I really just cant be bothered to add that extra time to my day to peel them when the difference isn't that significant.

Boustrophedon wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 2:07 pm

Fishnut wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 1:31 pm

I grew up with a C-type and could never understand why it was so f.cking hard for me to use until I realised that to peel in the direction I'd been taught meant I wasn't using the blade as I was left-handed. Getting the A-type was a revelation and it's all I'll use now.

That one pictured and the Brabantia ones I buy work both ways as they have two blades.

They may have changed or the ones my mum had may have been cheap ones but they definitely were not ambidextrous and I hated it

I use a short sharp knife.

I got in the habit of peeling carrots as Mrs Y insisted we peel non-organic ones to remove pesticide traces or whatever. Can't remember where she got that advice from.

Now the kids have flown I only peel them if they're a bit gnarly and it's easier to peel than wash them clean. Parsnips I still peel without really thinking about it. Spuds if for mash, otherwise meh. Shaving flakes of parmesan rather than grating if I'm trying to look swanky.

For carrots or cucumbers, I don't care which type.

For potatoes I can't use A, cause I just don't have fine control with that. With B/C/D I can use the thumb of the hand with the peeler to push the potato past the blade. That just doesn't work with A, and it just feels risky without that kind of control. Also A does not have a pointy tip with which to gouge out the potato's eyes.

discovolante wrote: ↑

Fri Jan 17, 2020 1:35 pm

Ok I'm going to ask...what are people's reasons for peeling veg, from a cost/benefit point of view?

I mean if I am preparing food for other people I might peel some stuff due to expectations, but apart from that?

Also going to assume these are vegetables that will be cooked.

All squashes - some require a knife.
Spuds, CBA to make mash, leave skin on for roasties (big spud cut into smaller lumps)
turnip skin is tough
carrots, no peeling, cook as they come
Swt potato - depends on cooking method.