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This viral hack for peeling garlic is blowing Twitter's collective mind

Who's gonna tell our grandmas about this one?

Sage Anderson

on June 17, 2019

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While the internet is riddled with ridiculously unnecessary "life hacks," we think you'll find this one quite a-peeling.

If you've ever cooked anything, ever, you've probably used garlic at one point or another. If wine is the nectar of the gods, garlic is the holy vegetable (root? bulb?) equivalent. In fact, so many cultures around the world rely on garlic in their cooking, that it's now become a meme that that amount listed in recipes is merely a suggestion.

That doesn't mean that's it's any less of a delicious pain in the ass to peel.

Sure, many seasoned chefs out there are accustomed to the ol' knife smash technique. But a variety of viral techniques have popped up over the years, including lots of shaking the garlic like it's a polaroid picture.

But there has to be a another way — something more refined, something that wouldn't destroy the integrity of the garlic.

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We were all collectively today years old when we found out that there had been better way this whole time.

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Twitter user @VPestilenZ posted a trick that involves using a knife to gently stab and pull each individual piece of garlic out of its skin, effectively peeling and separating them at the same time.

Casual home cooks, professional chefs, and even celebrities like Chrissy Teigen (known for her own plethora of kitchen hacks,) were all impressed. Maybe even a little dumbfounded. How had this hack gone unknown for so long? Did our abuelas/bubbes/nonas know about this?

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Some users who attempted to put the hack into action were skeptical — many were left wondering if this was like pull-apart pineapple "hack," where the end result is significantly messier and less satisfying than the video makes it seem.

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The only way to be truly certain is to try it out for yourselves — so go! Be free and peel to your hearts delight! Just watch your knife skills on this one, lest we create a new injury called "garlic hand."

Topics X/Twitter

Sage Anderson

Sage is the newest Culture writer on the block at Mashable NYC. They recently graduated from Sarah Lawrence College, and have previously worked for The Dr. Oz Show, NorthSouth Productions, and on Netflix's 'The OA Part II'. Off the clock, they can be found testing out cupcake recipes, collecting dolls, and watching Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure for the millionth time.