Stop Peeling Your Produce

APPLES

Peeling the skin off of your apples is a mistake if you're looking to get the most nutritious bang for your buck. Apple skins contain insoluble fiber, vitamins C & A, & antioxidants / flavanoids. Fiber is a crucial part of our body's functionality and by removing the skin, you're eliminating most of the fiber.

NOTE: Apples are notoriously high in pesticides. Buy organic or make sure to give your apples a good scrub before noshing.

CUKES

Cucumber skins are full of flavour and texture, but they're also full of vitamins & nutrients. In fact, the skins are where most of the antioxidants are hiding which include fiber, vitamin K, and potassium. As mentioned, when you remove the fiber from the vegetable, you're removing the most valuable part of it.

NOTE: English cucumbers have thin, super easy to eat skin while locally grown field cucumbers tend to have a thicker, harder skin. If you're having a hard time with the field variety, peel strips of the skin off but leave as much as possible to get the most nutritional benefit. Always make sure to give your cukes a good scrub before snacking.

EGGPLANT

You can always spot antioxidants when you look at a fruit or veggie that has a dark, colourful exterior. Eggplants are a perfect example of that. Eggplant skins contain fiber, flavanoids, magnesium, and antioxidants like nasunin which have anti-cancer properties. Considering eggplants are 92% water, removing the skin removes almost all of their additional nutrition.

POTATOES

When you're aiming for a dreamy, creamy mash, you're obviously going to want to peel your taters. In almost every other instance however, you should be eating those skins. Potato skins contain fiber, iron, calcium, vitamin b6 & vitamin c. Peeling your potatoes removes up to 90% of the potato's iron and almost half of its fiber.

NOTE: Potatoes are notoriously dirty. Make sure to use a potato brush to give them a good scrub before consuming their skins.

CARROTS

The highest amount of phytonutrients hides in the skin or just below the skin of carrots. Carrots have a reputation as being a superfood for our eyes due to the high content of vitamin A and removing the skins removes some of that eyesight preserving goodness. Carrots are easy to use unpeeled so stop peeling them and reap those benefits.

NOTE: Carrots are notoriously dirty and the skins can harbour dirt in the tiniest of cracks. Make sure to give them a good scrub prior to using.

CITRUS

The peels of citrus fruits contain high levels of vitamin c, higher than what you'll find in the actual fruit itself. Eating a citrus skin is not enjoyable but zesting your skins and using that flavourful, fresh zest in your cooking or on your salads is a great way to retain that nutrient content.

As I mentioned earlier, most fruits & veggies are mostly water, which means they're great for hydrating our bodies, but if we remove their skins, we're removing what makes them especially wonderful for us. Skip the peeler if you can and reap the benefits of what your produce skins provide!

HAPPY VEG

Information taken from;
https://www.readersdigest.ca/food/healthy-food/fruits-vegetables-should-and-shouldnt-peel/
https://www.stack.com/a/fruit-vegetable-peel/