A peeler (vegetable scraper) is a kitchen tool, a distinct type of kitchen knife, consisting of a metal blade with a slot with a sharp edge attached to a handle, used to remove the outer layer (the "skin" or "peel") of some

vegetable Vegetables are edible parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. This original meaning is still commonly used, and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including edible flower, flo ...

s such as

potato The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...

es,

broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the Brassicaceae, cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large Pseudanthium, flowering head, plant stem, stalk and small associated leafy gre ...

stalks, and

carrot The carrot ('' Daucus carota'' subsp. ''sativus'') is a root vegetable, typically orange in colour, though heirloom variants including purple, black, red, white, and yellow cultivars exist, all of which are domesticated forms of the wild ...

s, and

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...

s such as

apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

s and

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in late summer into mid-autumn. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosaceae, bearing the Pome, po ...

s. A

paring knife A kitchen knife is any knife that is intended to be used in food preparation. While much of this work can be accomplished with a few general-purpose knives — notably a large chef's knife and a smaller serrated blade utility knife — there are ...

may also be used to peel vegetables. The blade of a peeler has a slot with one side sharpened; the other side of the slot prevents the blade from cutting too far into the vegetable.

Overview

There are numerous designs of peelers used today. Most handheld peelers are either straight or Y-type, while the particular designs vary depending on region and personal preference.

Straight peelers

A straight peeler has the blade parallel to the handle, resembling a

knife A knife (: knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least Stone Age, 2.5 million years ago, as e ...

. The blade may be fixed or pivoting. The Lancashire and French ''Econome'' designs contain a fixed blade which does not pivot. The Lancashire often has a round wooden handle wrapped in string, and is often single edged, though there are dual edged variants. The ''Econome'', invented in 1928 by Victor Pouzet, entails a unique blade design that features two slits. File:Schälmesser.jpg, From top to bottom, a paring knife, a Zena Rex Y-type peeler and a swivel (Jonas) peeler File:Couteau-econome.jpg, A French ''Econome'' straight peeler File:Kitchen Knife Bitter melon.JPG, A fixed blade straight peeler aka sugarcane/pineapple peeler common in Asia File:Vegetable peeler 01.jpg, A fixed blade Y peeler, common in China File:Sparschaeler Rex Star.jpg, Zena Star (top) and Rex (bottom) peelers

Swivel peelers

Swivel peelers have the blade mounted on a pivot; the angle of the blade self-adjusts as pressure is applied, increasing ease of use. The Jonas peeler, designed in Sweden in 1953, is a straight design with a pivoting blade attached to the end of an oblong metal loop handle, which is held like a knife. A shaft runs through the length of the handle. The blade has two edges to enable use in either direction, and by either hand. While often copied, the original is still made by Linden Sweden. For many decades, it has been the standard type of peeler in the United States.

Y peelers

A Y peeler or speed peeler has a blade perpendicular to its handle, a design closely resembling a

safety razor A safety razor is a shaving implement with a protective device positioned between the edge of the blade and the skin. The initial purpose of these protective devices was to reduce the level of skill needed for injury-free shaving, thereby reduci ...

. It is used with a similar action to a razor, shaving off skin in strips parallel to the handle. Most speed peelers have an 'eye gouger' beside the blade, a loop of metal used to dig out eyes and blemishes from a potato. A particularly famous example of this variety is the Zena Rex peeler, invented in 1947 by Alfred Neweczerzal of

Davos Davos (, ; or ; ; Old ) is an Alpine resort town and municipality in the Prättigau/Davos Region in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of (). Davos is located on the river Landwasser, in the Rhaetian ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Considered an icon of Swiss design, it was featured on a 2004 Swiss postage stamp. It has a one piece aluminum handle and a pivoting carbon steel blade with dual edges. The stainless steel handled variant, the Zena Star peeler, was the model popularized by legendary New York City street hawker

Joe Ades Joseph H. Ades (; 18 December 1933 – 1 February 2009), also known as the "Gentleman Peeler", was a well-known British street merchant, long-based in New York City. He reportedly died one day after being notified his petition for US citizenshi ...

Other types

Most "Y" and inline pivoting peelers have a straight blade. A few have a curved blade which is a closer fit to the contour of a potato or other item being peeled; it takes a wider bite, requiring fewer passes to complete peeling. A mechanical apple peeler is a crank operated device that peels apples and optionally cores and slices them in one motion. When the slicer is enabled it cuts a normal apple into a helical shape. It is designed to work on apples but will also peel a number of other fruits and vegetables such as pears, beetroot, potatoes, cucumbers and thick carrots. Several variations of this type of crank peeler have appeared in modern times, such as The CrankMaster Peeler, which claims to help those with arthritis be able to peel various fruits like apples and pears.

Industrial peelers

In an industrial setting, potatoes may be peeled using steam jets to loosen the surface skin, followed by a dry abrasion. The process may also involve treatment with

lye Lye is the common name of various alkaline solutions, including soda lye (a solution of sodium hydroxide) and potash lye (a solution of potassium hydroxide). Lyes are used as cleaning products, as ingredients in soapmaking, and in various other c ...

to soften the outer skin. One type of mechanical peeler, the Magnascrubber, tumbles the potatoes on rollers with rubber studs, which removes the skin. Similar tumbling units with variously sized disc-shaped studs are used for peaches, tomatoes, beets and carrots.Industrial Pollution Control: Issues and Techniques. 1992. Nancy J. Sell. p298-299

Overview

Straight peelers

Swivel peelers

Y peelers

Other types

Industrial peelers

See also

References

Further reading