Vegetable peeling is the industrial removal of the outer skin from root vegetables, potatoes and similar crops using abrasive, steam or lye methods, and it directly affects yield, appearance and downstream processing suitability.
In trade practice
Steam peeling uses brief high-pressure steam exposure to loosen the skin before water jets remove it, giving a clean surface with lower product loss than abrasive drums. Lye peeling applies a caustic solution to dissolve the skin and suits irregular shapes, but requires careful effluent management and thorough rinsing to meet food safety requirements. QA teams check peel residue, surface defects and trim loss at the peeling stage; excessive peel-on or bruising at this point carries through to the finished frozen or chilled product. Buyers specifying peeled product should define acceptable peel residue and surface blemish limits in the product specification.
In a specification
A specification for peeled product typically states the peeling method permitted, the maximum allowable peel-on percentage by count, and surface quality criteria such as absence of deep cuts or bruising.