I Peeled Crates of Peaches as a Pastry Cook—This Is the Fastest, Easiest Way

When I was a pastry chef, I was commissioned to peel boxes and boxes of the peaches during the summer. The fruits went to all types of desserts, including ice cream and sorbet, chips, cobblestones and my favorite of all time, Peach Melba. Sure, you could leave the skins – but it can be uncomfortable to fish loose skins from her dessert, and our confectioner wanted to save guests, this experience. So my colleagues and I rolled up the sleeves and got to work.

Now they were able to carefully remove the skins with a peeler from peaches. But I quickly learned that the fastest and easiest way to peel a peach does not require a peeler: a fast blanch in boiling water, followed by a bath in an ice pool, is everything you need to easily push the skin from peaches. This method is exceptionally well suited for mature peaches, which are often too tender and juicy to peel with a peeler.

Here you can find out how to do it:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil through high heat. Set up an ice cream pool in a large bowl by filling it halfway with ice and cold water. Set aside.
2. With a sharp shoe knife, rate a small x at the base of each peach. Select the peaches with a slit spoon or spiders in boiling water and cook until the rated skin at the base of each peach is released and withdraw. (Firer peaches may need up to 3 minutes.)
3. Transferred with a slit spoon or a spider peach to the ice pool and let yourself cool for about 5 minutes until it is cooled down.
4. Work with a peach and start on the rated X on the basis of each peach and use a shoe knife or finger to remove the dissolved skin from each peach. Discard or compost the skins and repeat them with the remaining peachers.

Although I no longer cook in restaurants, I still shit peaches in this way – especially if I need a lot of fruit for a dessert. It is still the fastest and simplest method that I found and it makes my summer baking projects so much more pleasant – and pretty.