By: Jean Flint
As gadgets go the Chef’n PalmPeeler is a neat thing to own, and it’s just as neat as a gift. That’s how I got mine, and I prefer it to other peelers I’ve used in the past because it’s comfortable and easy to use.
The most striking thing about the PalmPeeler is that it doesn’t have a handle. Instead, it has a flexible rubber finger grip that slips on as easy as a ring and rests comfortably past the second knuckle of the index or middle finger. In addition to the stainless steel blade there’s also a built-in potato eyer at the end of the blade closest to the finger grip. I find that feature easiest to use with the finger grip on only past the first knuckle – makes it easier to push down with my fingertip and dig in.
The PalmPeeler is easy to use because it fits right into my hand. It offers more nuanced control than a peeler with a handle because I can follow the contours of whatever I’m peeling with the palm of my hand, which is less of a strain on my hand and wrist during long peeling jobs.
It also comes in a variety of colors that are easy to spot if you’re like me and forever losing things in catch-all drawers. Chef’n’s site displays three available colors: orange (Apricot), green (Arugula), and red (Cherry) with white rim and logo. Mine is yellow with a black rim and logo, and I’ve also seen blue with black, green with black, black with stainless steel, etc. Different retailers may have different color selections.
I’m familiar with a couple other peelers, and prefer the PalmPeeler. The OXO Swivel Peeler has a non-slip handle and the Lefse Time Potato Peeler has a handle contoured for good grip, but with the PalmPeeler I don’t have to worry about it slipping out of my hand. Any side-to-side jarring that might shift it against my palm probably won’t be able to slide the PalmPeeler forward at the same time, so it will stay on my finger and in my hand ready for action. Since switching to this peeler, I don’t miss the more rounded spoon-like potato eyer of the OXO or the metal edges of the Lefse’s handle pressing into my palm.
The PalmPeeler is top rack dishwasher safe. If you don’t have a dishwasher, take if from me that this is not terribly hard to clean – just make sure that you soap and scrub the back of the blade too. Other peelers have more accessible blades, but it’s possible to wash this one in back simply by tilting the blade to the left and scrubbing at it from the left and then the same on the right.
The flexible finger grip is intended to be one-size-fits-all, but very narrow or very wide fingers might not find it a comfortable fit.
While using the PalmPeeler, peelings sometimes get stuck between blade and palm guard and need to be shaken, rinsed, or pulled out. This isn’t a perfect tool for peeling anything round – more so than other peelers, at least, because it’s hard to see around the palm guard to locate any small, yet-unpeeled patches.
For vegetables that require a little more bite, there’s also the Chef’n Serrated PalmPeeler, advertised on the Chef’n’s site in the same three colors but with a solid same-color edge and logo instead of white ones.
The Chef’n PalmPeeler is a handy little gadget that I find more comfortable and easy to use than conventional vegetable peelers. Definitely a good choice for any fruit and veggie peeling needs.