One of the most efficient ways to provide your body with the needed nutrients and to stay healthy is by cooking for yourself instead of relying on food delivery or going out in restaurants. But, to be a cook that produces tasty and nutritious food is not. It requires a lot of practice. Hundreds of hours of practice. But, most importantly is the tools in your kitchen. Without the right tools, you will never be able to become an efficient chef in your home. That is why it is so important to have a vegetable peeler.
Most people do not even think about purchasing a vegetable peeler, let alone use it. But, believe it or not, it is one of the most important tools that you must have in your kitchen. So, next time you want to buy a brand-new sharp knife, you should also get a vegetable peeler.
However, when you go shopping for such a tool, you might get confused because there are hundreds of different variations, models, and brands available. To help you make the right choice for your type of cooking, here are some tips I have to share with you.
1. Look for a metal handle
Whenever you want to buy a new kitchen knife, you are probably looking for something a little bit more expensive with a nice metal handle and a blade that is also made from the proper stainless steel. Most people do some research before purchasing a knife.
Well, I advise you to do the same thing whenever you purchase any other product for your kitchen. This is especially important when choosing a vegetable peeler. Why? Well, whenever you get a cheaper product, it will not last you more than a few months. It will not last long at all and it will not deliver you the performance that you need.
So, when you finally go shopping for this tool, I would recommend looking for a metal handle. It does not have to be stainless steel, but it should at least be made from some kind of metal. Even one that is made with zinc alloy will be more than durable as proven with this Y-shaped European-style peeler I found online. If you want to know more about it, read more here.
If you purchase this tool with a metal handle, I assure you that it will last you at least a few years.
2. Make sure the blades are stainless steel
Just because this item will be used for peeling instead of cutting, it still needs to have high-quality blades. Yes, even though it is used for peeling, the blades need to be separated, made out of stainless steel and they also need to be very sharp. That is why you should be very careful when using a peeler. You should treat it the same way as you treat and knife.
As you probably already know, stainless steel is best used for kitchen tools and utensils. This is the standard because stainless steel prevents corrosion. You can safely put it in the dishwasher or wash it by hand and it will never start to corrode.
Corrosion might not be that dangerous to ingest, but it might change the taste of your food which is probably something that you do not want to happen. So, make sure you stick with stainless steel otherwise you will have trouble with rust.
3. Comfortable design
This is probably something that a lot of people forget to consider. The design of the handle all your peeler is actually very important. Especially, if you plan on using it every single day or every other day. In other words, if you use it regularly and the design of the handle is not good and it is uncomfortable, it can cause you future health problems. You might start to feel pain in your wrists, and your knuckles and in your fingers. This happened because the design of the handle is not ergonomic.
People with larger hands especially have problems with non-ergonomic kitchen tools. To save yourself from this kind of trouble and from that kind of chronic pain, I suggest that you first test the peeler in the store before purchasing it.
However, if you are not allowed to test it or if you are ordering online, you could try looking for reviews or ratings to see what people have to say about this product. If the majority are satisfied with the design of the entire peeler, go ahead and buy it.
4. Get a protective cover
Like I already said previously, you will need to treat your vegetable peeler with the same amount of respect that you have for your knives. This tool also has a blade, more specifically, to blades which are very sharp and serrated. Just simply brushing your finger against this kind of blade, you will cut yourself. If you are not careful, you could hurt yourself pretty badly.
So, if you want to be extra careful, you probably could go one step further and get yourself a vegetable peeler that comes with a protective cover. These covers are usually made out of a sturdy fabric, but you could always buy a metal protective case if you want even more protection.
However, if you are unable to find a vegetable popular that comes together with a protective cover, I am sure that you will be able to find one online. They are usually quite cheap and can be found for around five dollars. At least that was my experience when I searched online.
5. Look for a swiveling blade
Another feature you should be looking out for is whether the blade can swivel. This is not that important, but it can make the peeling process a little bit easier because it can follow the curvature of a vegetable. It makes it easier for you because you will not have to use that much strength while peeling.
After reading through this entire article, I hope that these tips will help you make the right decision when choosing a vegetable peeler for your kitchen.
