Why You Should Peel Butternut Squash with a Chef's Knife, Not a Vegetable Peeler

There are many things in life worth struggling for: A promotion at work, getting your best time on a one-mile run, your dream backyard. Peeling a butternut squash is not one of them.

This fall and winter, skip the struggles with your vegetable peeler and opt for an easier method to get the skin off of a butternut squash. The technique we have in mind? Using your chef's knife. Contrary to common practice, using a vegetable peeler on a butternut squash can be a fruitless endeavor thanks to the shape of the squash and the thickness of the skin.

Instead, as The Kitchn points out, you can use a sharp chef's knife to get the job done more efficiently. "Instead of trying to peel it like a potato, think of squash like a melon: When you cut up a honeydew or watermelon for a salad, you start by cutting it into to smaller sections, and then use a sharp chef's knife to remove the peel. You can do the same thing with a butternut," suggests author Meghan Splawn.

First, you'll want to cut off the top and bottom of the squash so it can balance securely on an even surface. Then, divide the squash into two sections by cutting across it horizontally. Next, channel that aforementioned melon mentality: "Now stand one of the sections up and guide your knife between the peel and the flesh like you're removing the rind from a melon, down the sides of the squash. You should be able to get the tough outer peeler and the thinner pithy peel off in one swoop," writes Splawn.

From here, you can either throw the two pieces into a roasting pan or cut up the squash into smaller cubes. Now, remind us why we struggled with the vegetable peeler for so long? If only we devoted that time to working on that one-miler.