Peaches are delicious, nutrient-dense, and can be used in a variety of recipes. Peeling this fruit is actually quite easy if you already know the right way.
Step
Step 1. Choose ripe peaches
Ripe peaches are much easier to peel. When the peach is ripe, the skin can usually loosen a little but not pull on the flesh at all. Choose the most fragrant fruit and can be pressed with the thumb, but not to a dent when pressed.
- If the peach is still rock-hard, it's not ripe.
- If you can damage the skin by simply pressing your finger, the fruit is overripe. Overripe peaches can be used to make pies or other recipes.
- Just make sure the fruit you're using isn't rotten:
- On unripe peaches, avoid round spots that enlarge or coalesce into one another.
- On ripe peaches, avoid deep dents. That part can spread quickly.
- Avoid the pale gray spores that can sometimes be found if the fruit is closely observed.
- Avoid wrinkled, black, or brown-black fruit.
Step 2. Rinse the fruit
Rinse the peaches quickly in cold water before starting the next step, especially if you see soil or other debris on the surface of the fruit. You certainly don't want any bacteria to get into your food and fruit.
Step 3. Boil the fruit
Bring water to a boil in a saucepan large enough for your amount of fruit. But don't put too many fruits in the pot at once (maximum of four medium-sized ones). Adding too much will lower the temperature of the water and slow down the boiling process and make this step less effective.
Make sure you use a pot of the right size and fill with enough water to cover the fruit
Step 4. Cool with cold water
Fill a bowl with cold water, then cool the boiled fruit there.
While you're refrigerating, check that the fruit isn't too mushy
Step 5. X-shaped cut fruit
Use a knife to make X-shaped cuts at the pointed end of the fruit (not the part with the stem. When the fruit is boiled, the flesh expands and stretches the skin. The flesh then shrinks back when cooled and makes the skin loose and easy to peel off.
Do not make cuts that are too deep or too large, as this will damage the fruit when it is boiled again later. The ideal cut is 3 to 5 cm long and only cuts the skin
Step 6. Boil the fruit again
Add three to four peaches to the boiling water. Let sit for 30 to 40 seconds (depending on how ripe the fruit is). When boiled, the skin will loosen quickly.
- The more ripe the fruit, the less time you will need.
- Don't let it sit for more than 40 seconds, as that will make the fruit mushy.
Step 7. Refrigerate the fruit again
Remove the fruit from the water and cool in cold water. Let it sit in cold water for five minutes, then you'll be ready to peel it.
- While it's cooling, you can add other fruit if you're really going to peel a lot.
- Don't refrigerate it for too long. You only need to refrigerate it for one minute. If you refrigerate it too long, the texture and taste of the fruit will change.
Step 8. Peel the fruit
Take the cooled fruit and hold the skin end of the X-cut you made. Pull the cultivar slowly. You should be able to pull it easily. Keep peeling until all the skin is peeled, then discard the skin.
Peel slowly and be careful not to pull the flesh
