This square of rubber may not look like much, but in the last few weeks, it has quickly become one of my new favorite kitchen tools. It has single-handedly transformed the task of peeling persnickety cloves of garlic from annoying to easy-breezy.
This garlic peeler is genius in its very simplicity. Bundle the cloves inside the rubber mat and roll it back and forth against the counter a few times while pressing down on the cloves. The rubber grips the papery skins and tears them away without damaging the garlic. Unroll, pick out the cloves, and brush the skins into the trash.
Done. It works like a charm, every time.
There doesn't seem to be anything special to the rubber itself. If you have some rubber shelf-liner lying around, you could probably cut off a square and make your own. Even so, the official product is an inexpensive purchase for such a handy tool:
• Fox Run Garlic Peeler, $1.99 on Amazon.com
• The Ultimate Garlic Peeler, $3.99 on Amazon.com
• Kuhn Rikon Garlic Peeler, $7.95 from Sur la Table
Have you ever tried one of these?
Related: Smart Tip: Peel an Entire Head of Garlic in 10 Seconds
(Images: Emma Christensen)
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Have one and love it!
Also makes an awesome jar lid opener!
Yay for multi-purpose gadgets!
The price at amazon went from $1.99 to $12.99. Maybe because the item got too much attention after this post? Impressive.
Okay, is this similar to a jar opener? You know the kind you get as a giveaway from booths at the county fair.
Because I have one of those and I've tried to use it for peeling garlic cloves with no luck. I wonder if I wasn't rolling the cloves firm enough, I'll have to give it another try.
I bought mine at the dollar store years back.
@Guilherme - That's...crazy! The price was $1.99 just yesterday. I can't say that I'd pay $12 for a square of rubber.
@jatoha - Yes, I think it is similar to a jar opener (and @pmpearce, I also use mine for jar opening!). You do have to press down fairly hard while you roll. It doesn't require Hulk force, but it's more than a gentle roll. Hope that helps!
Going to try this with my flat square silicone pot holders. Thanks!
I just put the amount of garlic I want, place it in a cleaned glass jar (like a mayo jar) with a lid, then shake it up really hard, and viloa, cleaned garlic.
Whatever happened to just using your hands? My wife and I just rub the cloves in our hands vigorously if we need the whole cloves or smash it with the side of our knife if chopped/minced/pressed. I guess to each their own.
@somewhiteguy - I'm with you in the shake method. It works with a few cloves or a whole head (I use 2 metal bowls for a head or more). Or, I just smash with the flat of my chef's knife.
I do not have the space for unitaskers in my tiny little kitchen ... even one as small as this!
I have the little roll shaped one... and its great. Relatively hard to clean in comparison, but for 3 dollars and practically no space in the drawer? Thi is one unittasker I'll happily keep around :)
I use a scrap of that rubbery shelf-liner material for exactly this (and as a jar-opener!).
You can also use your kitchen dish-washing gloves. Just rub your hands together, then rinse the cleaned cloves of garlic.
i use my jar opener that is very similar to this. just a very thin sheet of silicone.
Checking back in -- flat square silicone pot holders did an AWESOME job. I was mostly using the flat-of-the-knife and jar-shaking methods, but this has those beat. Well, except it was kind of fun banging on the garlic with the knife.
Or, use the bowl method for a bit more fanfare. Google "garlic bowl trick" for Saveur's "How to Peel a Head of Garlic in Ten Seconds" article. You have to use at least two cloves of garlic for it to work, according to The Gleaming Retort's post " So Why Does the Garlic Trick Work?"