Peelers

Peelers have multiple meanings in common usage. In the kitchen, a peeler is a handheld utensil used to remove the skins from fruits and vegetables. In historical British contexts, "peelers" is a nickname for police officers, derived from Sir Robert Peel, who established the Metropolitan Police in 1829. The two uses are distinct despite sharing the root word.

Kitchen peelers vary in design. The most common are straight-blade peelers, with a blade parallel to the handle, and Y-shaped peelers, or "Y-peelers," with the blade set perpendicular to the handle. Materials range from stainless steel with plastic or wooden handles to all-metal constructions. Variants include serrated blades for tougher skins, julienne blades for producing strips, and tools with a built-in potato-eye remover. Users typically grip the handle and draw the blade away from the body to remove a thin layer of skin, guided by the contours of the fruit or vegetable. Many models are dishwasher-safe, though care depends on construction.

Historically, "peeler" was used as a nickname for police in the United Kingdom, reflecting Sir Robert Peel's reforms. The term fell out of common use in favor of "police" or "bobby" in most contexts, though it may appear in literature or regional speech. Today, "peeler" is mainly of historical interest in describing police history or in some informal retellings.

Peelers thus encompasses both culinary tools and an archival term for law enforcement, illustrating how a single word can reflect everyday function and social history.