You’ve Been Peeling Potatoes Wrong For Your Entire Freakin’ Life

There’s something so zen about peeling potatoes. Once you get into a rhythm, it’s almost a relaxing Thanksgiving task (and there are very few relaxing Thanksgiving tasks). But if you’re preparing potatoes for a large group, you might end up with a pretty gnarly hand cramp. Plus, peeler accidents do happen on occasion — and peeling with Band-Aids is difficult (and not very sanitary). So, what’s a mashed potato fan to do? Easy. First step? Ditch the peeler.

It sounds a little strange to peel potatoes without a vegetable peeler, but once you try this new method, you’ll understand why it’s not a crucial part of the process. Foody Tube released a genius video that proved that all you need aside from potatoes is water, a pot, and a knife.

The knife is important for a crucial step. You’ll want to make a cut around the potato that’s deep enough to reach past the skin. After that, you boil the potato as-is. Then, you just pull off the skin to reveal a perfect potato. This method also reduces a lot of food waste — sometimes, we get a little extreme when peeling, and take off more potato than intended.

Foody Tube also noted that your potatoes end up being a lot more flavorful. A lot of the natural flavor comes from the peel, which usually ends up down a food processor or in a garbage can.

Just make sure to handle the potato appropriately after boiling in water, unless you want to start a legit game of Hot Potato while doing your Thanksgiving prep. (But really, don’t.)

Thanks to this hack, your mashed potatoes will turn into a family favorite side for years to come.