Before you start, put a pot of water on to heat. Then carefully cut out the tomato core with the point of a knife.
Make a cross about 2cm long in the skin at the base of each tomato.
Immerse tomatoes in simmering water for 10-20 seconds until the water comes back to the simmer and the skin starts to peel.
Remove tomatoes and cool in iced water.
The skin will now peel off easily.
Daniel Pfyl, hospitality management lecturer at Otago Polytechnic, shares some professional techniques to make your cooking easier. This week, skinning a tomato (or a peach).
Why peel a tomato? It's mostly for appearance.
If you are cooking tomatoes the skin will fall off and curl up in the sauce, says Chef Pfyl.
Tomato that is going to be used fresh, such as in a salsa does not need to be peeled.
If you want tomato flesh without the seeds, cut the tomato down the side in petal shapes and slip off the seeds.
Chefs use the cores and seeds for stock.
More information on cooking from the Otago Polytechnic can be found on www.otagocookeryl4.blogspot.com
