At the house of Le Parfait We are known for two things:
- Make durable and timeless glass jars, perfect for containing and keeping delicious foods. (Yeah, it's true)
- Our way of spending as little time as possible in cooking while maintaining a maximum taste/pleasure ratio. (No, we are not lazy; we are simply much more interested in the dining part than by the kitchen part of food.)
Which brings us to the subject of today: the peelings ... and why, most of the time, you do not need this additional and tedious step consisting in peeling (most) of your vegetables and fruits.
First-and cry out on all roofs-the peels are full of good things like fibers, vitamins and nutrients, and they can often bring more taste and contrast to your meal.
Second: waste is bad. Of course, we are all for this compost life and everything, but the vitamins and the health benefits mentioned above will feel both in your stomach and that of the worms.
Third: if your vegetables and fruits are organic, seasonal and good source, there is practically no reason to peel them. Of course, they may be a little dirty, but they are without pesticides so a good old scrub will do the trick!
Which brings us to the fun part, cooking and conservation of bark:
The first thing to know is which peel or not, and it is quite simple to determine: is the skin of your vegetable as thick as that of Daenerys Targaryen dragons? (Yes GOT comes back in a month so you become a little obsessed) then peel (it's worth for squash, celery-raves etc.). Is it still really dirty after a scrub (think of Winterfell after the storm)? Then peel. (It can happen with beets for example) for others, you are ready to leave and these canned recipes are there to prove it:
But if you really like to peel your vegetables (you know, if you like to spend time cooking, if you find that it looks like a meditative state, or if you just want a more creamy potato puree), here is a smart way to reuse the peels: a concentrate of vegetable broth based on bark of our dot-to-dot friends.
There you only, you just have good peels