Tried and tested: We recommend clever fruit hacks so you'll never peel or cut them the same way again
PHOTO: AsiaOne/Melissa Goh
PUBLISHED ONMay 12, 2020 11:40 AMByMelissa Goh
The circuit breaker has seen an influx of circuit bakers and budding cooks as they show off their newfound hobby on social media, which are making us constantly drool.
If you've been using fruits in your recipes or have been avoiding eating fruit because you're just too lazy to prepare them, we sieved through the internet and found a number of cool fruit hacks to make cutting and peeling them easier.
To spare you the trouble, we set ourselves the task of trying them out so you know which are foolproof and which are ones to avoid altogether.
Marg's Dinosaur Egg Avocado Hack
@marg13d ##mindblown ##cookinghack ##cookinghacks ##avocado ##lifehack ##tiktoklifehacks ##lifehacks
♬ original sound - margaretdrisi
TikTok user @marg13d coined this hack 'Marg's Dinosaur Egg Avocado Hack', simply because you just dig out the avocado flesh using a spoon, like how some people who eat soft boiled eggs by taking the tip off and eating it right off the shell.
Because the avocado flesh is protected by the skin, she could keep it in the fridge for a week without the flesh turning brown.
Our verdict: Pass
For this hack, you'll need to get ripened avocados. Cut off the top with a spoon and scoop the desired amount of flesh out in a flash, keeping the rest sealed up in a bag in the fridge.
After sitting for a day in the fridge, it still looks fresh without any browning.
Cut watermelon with dental floss
If there's one fruit that we dread cutting, it's watermelons because it's chunky and messy just to get them into wedges.
You'll only require a dental floss for this hack.
Our verdict: Pass, but needs practise
This dental floss hack is definitely a game-changer. Although it started off as a slight struggle, slicing it up after that was easy and fast. Just a few practice runs in and you'll be a pro.
You'll want to make sure you get the dental floss to cut as close to the rind as possible, otherwise, a substantial amount of flesh will be wasted.
Getting more juice from a lime
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♬ Lottery - K CAMP
We know how hard it is to get a good squeeze out of a lime. So to make it worth the effort, this hack requires you to place the lime in the microwave for 20 seconds, rolling it on the countertop before slicing it in half to get the juice out.
Our verdict: Pass
As odd as it is to place a lime in the microwave, this hack actually worked out pretty well, but we wouldn't go as far as to say you'd get "five times more juice", as stated in the video.
We compared the difference between squeezing the lime with and without microwaving it. For a fairer comparison, we chose two limes that are about the same size.
(Without microwaving the lime)
(After microwaving the lime)
The lime that was popped into the microwave required less strength to squeeze, but the amount of juice it yielded as compared to the other was almost the same.
Will we use this hack again? Yes, as it requires only half the strength.
Orange peeling hack
@lenagryszko A Ty jak obierasz pomarańczę? ? | How to peel an orange ##howto ##lifehacki ##kuchnia ##owoc ##pomarańcze ##cookinghacks
♬ Amour plastique - Videoclub
If the recipe calls for oranges, here's a quick way to remove the skin. Simply cut off the top (stem-end) of the orange, score the skin from top to blossom-end, then peel the skin and you're done in a minute.
Our verdict: Pass
I usually cut oranges in slices with the skin on as peeling the skin would sometimes cause damage to my nails. With this hack, peeling the skin off was easier than expected, especially with the help of the scoring.
Peeling pineapple
@dillonroberts22 really?
♬ 原聲 - dillonroberts22
The pineapple peeling hack went viral in 2019 and we thought we'd give it a try to find out if it works once and for all.
Instead of cutting the skin and slicing it diagonally to remove the eyes, remove the crown in a zig-zag pattern following the individual berries or 'fruitlets' (the squares seen on the skin). Peel off the fruitlets and you can enjoy it in chunks.
Our verdict: Pass, but still troublesome
The idea of peeling pineapple and eating them in chunks is novel, but it still requires as much effort to get the fruitlets out, especially if the pineapple you have isn't entirely ripe.
To cut down on time, I'd just buy pre-cut pineapples from the supermarket, or canned ones if I'm making a dessert with it.
Cutting kiwi in two ways
These methods will come in handy when you're putting together a fruit salad and want the kiwis to be cut into cubes.
The first kiwi hack involves cutting the top and bottom of the fruit and then making an incision on the skin and peeling it off with a spoon.
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♬ Bundesliga Hymne - Bundesliga
The other hack we found is cutting the kiwi in half and inserting a whisk in the middle, twisting it sideways and four perfect cubes will effortlessly fall off.
Our verdict: Pass
Both methods were a success, although the spoon method involved slightly more work as both ends have to be cut off first, and you'll have to scoop up the flesh with a spoon after.
The whisk method, however, is faster and completely cleans out the kiwi, without having to scrape any remaining flesh.
Dragon fruit hack
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♬ ILLEGAL WEAPON 2.0 - 2 - JASMINE SANDLAS,GARRY SANDHU
Cut the ends of the dragon fruit, then slice it in half before scoring the fruit vertically and diagonally. Run the knife around the edge of the flesh and dig in with a fork.
Our verdict: Fail
We concluded that the method was not effective as not all the flesh would come out and there would be wasted fruit.
Peach cutting hack
This peach cutting hack requires cutting the peach lengthwise from top to bottom, then slicing it into half and twisting it slightly to release the cubes.
Our verdict: Half successful
It is good for half the peach, but the seed from the other half does not come out as easily. So we wouldn't consider this a successful hack.
Remove strawberry stem with a straw
Sometimes a chunk of the strawberry is removed while cutting away the top portion of the strawberry while removing the leaves.
Try this instead: use a drinking straw and run it through from bottom of the berry to the top, to make the leaves "pop out". It is an easier way to remove the leaves and it saves your berries from losing too much of its flesh in the process.
Our verdict: Pass
The hack was a success, and it is quite easy to do as long as your straw doesn't bend.
Peeling grape skin with a toothpick
@joleenpierce8 I like grapes ?##fruit
♬ original sound - delilahharmon
Use a toothpick and cut the grape skin lengthwise, pull down the skin and give the grape a light squeeze to get it out.
Our verdict: Fail
We tried several times and only managed to peel off a bit of the skin but failed to get the flesh of the grape to pop out.
Let us know what other hacks you'll like us to try!
melissagoh@asiaone.com
Additional reporting by Seow Kai Lun and Trini Ng.