The very best asparagus peeler of all time is, alas, not readily available here in the United States of America. And we call this the greatest country on earth. Ha!
The beauty of this German-made number is the opposing peeling blades facing each other on the inside of a pair of tongs. Hold the asparagus stem near to top end, gently clamp down on the stalk with the tongs and slide them down the shaft. Long thin peels strip right off. Because the pressure on the stalk is equal on both sides, the stalks do not snap or break. Two blades per stroke cuts the time in half.
(Okay, so it’s not like anyone’s growing old peeling asparagus with a one-bladed peeler. But still, cna’t we just be grateful for the pleasantness of another of life’s small economies?)
Why didn’t someone think of this sooner?
The peeler shown here was purchased in a Berlin housewares store during the height of Spargelzeit , aka white asparagus season. I haven’t found this one or anything similar on US sites, but luckily the UK Amazon site carries similar models, you can check them out here.
