How To Peel Tomatoes Like A Pro

If you don't know what you're doing, peeling tomatoes can seem like too much bother. Going at them like apples or oranges can result in a goopy mess, as tomatoes are too soft to withstand that kind of pressure. Still, leaving the peels on is one of the most common mistakes amateurs make when cooking tomatoes, so we recommend going the professional route.

To peel tomatoes like a pro chef, first set a pot of water to boil. Then, use a paring knife to remove the core from the top of the tomato, and score the bottom with a small X. Once the water is boiling, put the tomato in for 30 to 60 seconds (just until the skin begins to peel), then plunge it into an ice bath until cool, which should take just about a minute.

When the tomato is cool enough to touch, remove it from the ice bath and use your paring knife to easily remove the skin, starting at the bottom X. This one-two punch of hot, then cold water is known as blanching, a technique often used to loosen up the outer layers of certain vegetables.

Blanching tomatoes in order to peel them is a classic method for a reason. Other strategies have emerged, but each has some notable drawbacks. For example, one alternative is to freeze, then thaw the tomatoes for similar results, but this takes much longer — up to six hours to freeze the tomatoes and another hour to thaw them.

You could also try a microwave hack to peel your tomatoes in a flash — even faster than blanching. This technique mostly mirrors the traditional method, except it microwaves the tomatoes for 30 seconds rather than boiling them for about the same amount of time. You do save time by not waiting on a pot to boil, but you have to keep a closer eye on the microwave, which can cook tomatoes faster than a few seconds in hot water.

Depending on what dish you're making, though, you may not even have to peel anything. Consider grating your tomatoes instead, a method from the Mediterranean that's especially useful for sauces and condiments. Simply cut a tomato in half and grate the open face of each half against a coarse grater. You'll know you're done when you hold only tomato skin in your hand, which you can then discard or compost.