Vegetable peelers go dull rather fast. I spent many, many years just tossing them out and buying new ones. I wish I learned this trick when I first moved out on my own:Just take the back of a paring knife and run it back and forth against the blades. Flip the peeler over and do the same. I bought a paring knife at the 99 cent store just for this purpose.
By attosa from Los Angeles, CA
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I used to use a regular standard potato peeler for taking the skins off fruits and veggies. If I had many to do, I'd always get a blister below my index finger...
When peeling vegetables, peel the large end first, then the small end. That way you will have the rough skin as a "handle" while you're holding the small end, and you'll have the large end to hold as a "handle" while you peel the small end.
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Anytime I chop veggies for a meal, soup or stew, I save all of the end pieces and skins - pretty much anything that is left over. I wash them, dry them, and freeze them in a ziploc baggie for making stock for soups and sauces.
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For an inexpensive homemade vegetable broth, I save all the peelings from potatoes and carrots, ends of celery, etc.
