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Do you peel your carrots ?

8K views 16 replies 14 participants last post by  someday 
#1 ·
My daughter seen me peeling carrots an told my that I was waisting my time

I Know carrots don't have a skin that needs to be removed . Every restaurant I ever worked in peel their carrots all the time .

How do you feel about it ?
 
#5 ·
Thank you CHEFBUBA. You are doing what my grandmother did . She never peeled the carrots since they all were homegrown. Even in the middle of winter we had fresh carrots from a sandbox in the cellar.

I was told that carrots do NOT have a skin just like radishes .

Am I wrong ?  
 
#6 ·
They taste decidely different when you dont peel them.
It theretore depends what im doing with them as well as how im presenting them.
Theyre brighter an prettier when peeled......and I always peel fancy carrots with tops on.
But if I'm just dumping them in a stew I usually dont bother.
I'm also given to understand that the "skin" holds a greater concentration of vitamins.
 
#7 ·
When I was being broken in by my first restaurants it was always peel the carrots....always. But as I started thinking for myself and started being the guy in charge I've decided that since the skin on a carrot has a tremendous amount of nutrient value and flavor it makes much more sense to thoroughly wash it then to peel it. If they are some huge horse carrots that are typically pre washed I will just give them a rinse. If it's a nice baby local varietal I will take a fresh scouring pad and scrub it in a pan of warm water and then rinse. Carrot skin tastes wonderful when seasoned well and browned in butter.
 
#9 ·
I tried leaving the peels on my carrots for a carrot cake and was told by my chef to peel them.

"But that's where all the nutrients are"

"Then you can save the peels and eat them yourself"

And then at another place I tried (for the same reason) to make a carrot puree for a beurre blanc and it turned out greyish. I was admonished by my peers. Thankfully chef didn't see it.

Peeler for life now (except at home when the carrots are young).
 
#15 ·
Just like everyone else, it depends on - A) the type of carrot - B) what is it going in.

I usually ask myself -

Do I like the texture of the carrot skin in this application?

How important is the carrot overall in the application - is it the main ingredient or sub main ingredient... and how do I want to showcase it?

Stews or mirepoix usually no - unless I am doing something where I want a really rich color

Baby Carrots fresh from the garden, usually no but then again sometimes yes in like a composed dish or something.

above all else...sometimes I peel other times not. There's no right or wrong and that is the beauty of it!
 
#17 ·
If I peeled a carrot would you eat the peels that were left on the cutting board?

I always peel carrots, even for stock. There have been a few local/small farm grown varieties I haven't needed to peel, just a good wash and scrub. But yeah, 99% of carrots I say peel. 
 
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