BOY, Do We Need to Thank Alfred Neweczerzal!
Fun fact to know and tell at the dinner table: Swiss citizen, Alfred Neweczerzal (say THAT 5 times fast), invented and patented the vegetable peeler in 1947. This gadget was developed after Alfred had the chore of peeling potatoes during his tenure in the army.
We all owe Alfred a BIG thank you! Don’t we appreciate how this handy tool has made life easier? But don’t look at your vegetable peeler as just a potato or carrot peeler. It can do so much more. Besides efficiently and quickly peeling, its sharp dual blade creates thin slices of a variety of foods for a variety of uses. For instance:
MAKE VEGETABLE CURLS FOR SALADS OR AS GARNISHES. A sharp peeler will make thin ribbons of asparagus, cucumber or carrots. Then these ribbons can become a salad itself, or they can decorate all sorts of dishes as lovely garnishes.
SLICE ONIONS WITH EASE. Thinly sliced onions are great on burgers, salads, and sandwiches, but they can take a long time to cut by hand. Instead of using a knife, you can do it much faster with a potato peeler! The slices come out extra-thin, and it requires much less time and effort.
CREATE CHOCOLATE SHAVINGS. These take a dessert to a whole new level, not just in taste, but in presentation, so elevate your dessert game. They’re easy to make; just run your peeler along a very cold chocolate bar to create pretty and impressive shavings.
SHAVE PAREMESAN CHEESE. When a recipe calls for shaved Parmesan, use your peeler. Run it along a block of fresh Parmesan to make cheese curls to add to salads or pasta, or garnish your individual bowls of soup with them.
CREATE GARNISHES FOR SPECIAL DRINKS. A peeler will give you thin strips of orange, lemon or grapefruit skin, avoiding the white and bitter pith in the process.
SHAVE HARD BUTTER. When the butter is too hard to spread, your vegetable peeler saves the day. Use it to shave off strips of butter for easy spreading.
DE-SEED A CHILI PEPPER. Remove the super spicy seeds in a jalapeño or serrano chili by slicing off the top, then working a peeler around the middle.
CREATE FANCY LEMON SLICES. A slice of lemon that looks like a flower is the easiest way to pretty up water on a dinner table. Just use the peeler to make ridges down the sides, then slice up with a knife per usual.
DESTRING CELERY STALKS. If you avoid celery, because you hate those annoying strings that always get stuck in your teeth, pay attention: All you have to do is shave the curved side to remove said fibers with ease.
PEEL A MANGO! The tough skin of a mango is no match for a vegetable peeler — and this trick results in a much prettier presentation than the usually sloppy mess of a knife.
We all owe Alfred a BIG thank you! Don’t we appreciate how this handy tool has made life easier? But don’t look at your vegetable peeler as just a potato or carrot peeler. It can do so much more. Besides efficiently and quickly peeling, its sharp dual blade creates thin slices of a variety of foods for a variety of uses. For instance:
MAKE VEGETABLE CURLS FOR SALADS OR AS GARNISHES. A sharp peeler will make thin ribbons of asparagus, cucumber or carrots. Then these ribbons can become a salad itself, or they can decorate all sorts of dishes as lovely garnishes.
SLICE ONIONS WITH EASE. Thinly sliced onions are great on burgers, salads, and sandwiches, but they can take a long time to cut by hand. Instead of using a knife, you can do it much faster with a potato peeler! The slices come out extra-thin, and it requires much less time and effort.
CREATE CHOCOLATE SHAVINGS. These take a dessert to a whole new level, not just in taste, but in presentation, so elevate your dessert game. They’re easy to make; just run your peeler along a very cold chocolate bar to create pretty and impressive shavings.
SHAVE PAREMESAN CHEESE. When a recipe calls for shaved Parmesan, use your peeler. Run it along a block of fresh Parmesan to make cheese curls to add to salads or pasta, or garnish your individual bowls of soup with them.
CREATE GARNISHES FOR SPECIAL DRINKS. A peeler will give you thin strips of orange, lemon or grapefruit skin, avoiding the white and bitter pith in the process.
SHAVE HARD BUTTER. When the butter is too hard to spread, your vegetable peeler saves the day. Use it to shave off strips of butter for easy spreading.
DE-SEED A CHILI PEPPER. Remove the super spicy seeds in a jalapeño or serrano chili by slicing off the top, then working a peeler around the middle.
CREATE FANCY LEMON SLICES. A slice of lemon that looks like a flower is the easiest way to pretty up water on a dinner table. Just use the peeler to make ridges down the sides, then slice up with a knife per usual.
DESTRING CELERY STALKS. If you avoid celery, because you hate those annoying strings that always get stuck in your teeth, pay attention: All you have to do is shave the curved side to remove said fibers with ease.
PEEL A MANGO! The tough skin of a mango is no match for a vegetable peeler — and this trick results in a much prettier presentation than the usually sloppy mess of a knife.
Alice Osborne
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2006
Email the author! alice@dvo.com
