This Insightful TikTok Reveals a Potato Peeler Hack

TikToker Reveals Potato Peeler Hack to Make the Most Out of the Common Kitchen Tool

By Regina Sienra on April 12, 2023

screenshot of tiktok showing how to use potato peeler

Photo: Screenshot from TikTok

Potato peelers are common kitchen tools, and its design appears to be pretty intuitive. All you have to do is slide the blade down the surface of a vegetable to gently get rid of its skin. Despite sounding like a really simple process with a very basic tool, it looks like many of us have been missing out on the real potential of these utensils. A TikToker named Jenni (jenniabs), known for posting about dinner recipes and kitchen tools, has shared a trick regarding potato peelers that will blow your mind—and even save you some time in the kitchen.

In a video captioned, “Kitchen tools 101,” the cooking influencer asks viewers if they’ve ever wondered why potato peelers swivel back and forth. It turns out there’s functional reason for this. “You can not only go down but forward when you're peeling so that you can peel the entire thing super fast without having to actually lift up the peeler off of the vegetable,” she explains, as she swiftly peels an entire sweet potato in a matter of seconds.

“Do you peel the old school way like this? Or do you you swivel back and forth?” she asks her audience. The video has since gone viral, eliciting funny and amazed comments. “I've always gotten mad 'cause I thought mine was just always loose,” wrote one follower. Another said, “This is why we need cooking classes in high school!” Others pointed out that the swivel feature also makes it accessible for both right and left-handed people.

Some of her followers also raised their concerns about peeling something towards one's body or the dangers of accidentally slicing yourself, but she was quick to respond why it's nearly impossible. “You're never really lifting the blade off of the potato so you're not actually putting the blade in a position to cut you,” she explains, adding how doing it the “old school way” is more dangerous. “You put the blade up, you put it down, it gives you an opportunity to accidentally miss and cut your skin,” she states. Jenni then adds that if you're not confident enough to do it this way, you can also hold the potato down with a fork.

This is far from the only insightful video Jenni has shared on TikTok. She has posted a DIY sandwich bread recipe and some tips on how to shred chicken quickly, among other helpful tips and hacks for anyone who loves to cook. To stay up to date with her kitchen advice, you can follow Jenni on TikTok.