Short work of tedious task

This was a bit of a challenge to set up for first time use, but the instructions were well written so didn't take long. Once set up this thing is great! Don't know how I got along without one all these years. Makes short work of peeling and coring, and was pleasantly surprised that it also slices... all three tedious chores done with an easy crank of the handle. The only reason I didn't rank this a 5 was because there is no option not to slice, so if you need things left whole this won't do it for ya. But other than that, a good sturdy handy gadget.

First of all, this thing is built extremely well - very sturdy, and the suction cup works perfectly - this thing simply does not move once you suction it to your counter. And the suction cup does not leave any marks.

Overall, it works very well and quickly. In a few seconds, you can have an apple cored, peeled, and sliced into spiral rings. The kids love the rings as a snack, but obviously they work well for pies, too.

Once in a while, the peeler will appear to "maul" your apple: instead of nice, neat rings, it appears to shred them. After a couple of tries, I finally figured out that this is simply a matter of making sure the apple is positioned on the prongs so that the core will be centered as it goes through the cutter. A simple way to do this is to pretend you're looking down the barrel of a gun: look through the center of the corer at the bottom of the apple - if it's all lined up everything will work great.

Also once in a while, it will miss some peel on a lopsided apple. This is usually because we're peeling too fast - which is easy to do because this thing is pretty fun. Just back the crank up a half turn and go over the spot again and it will be fine.

Bottom line: after you figure out some subtle nuances, this thing works great, and it's actually fun. If you position the apple for them, kids can actually use it (under adult supervision - there are sharp parts, after all).

The only reason I didn't give it a 5 rating is because you can't adjust the thickness of the rings, and you can't core the apple without also slicing it into rings (say, for baked apples). You can, however, core and slice without peeling.

Also, be aware that this peeler is available in cast iron or cast aluminum. I thought other web sites had this model for cheaper, then I realized they were selling the cast aluminum model. The cast iron model is Back to Basics A505, the aluminum model has an "A" suffix, as in A505A.

Apple Corer review

My order came quick. It works as says, is sturdy and of good quality. I haven't had any problem with suction. The only problem I did have with it was the peeler does not peel the whole apple as it mainly peels the middle. This really wasn't a big deal though. You also need to use firm fruit with uniform shape for best coring and peeling results. I made dried apples, apple pie and sliced apples, which I froze for later use. This product cut out considerable time and I'm so glad I made the purchase.

I also use it for potatoes and I love it! I just wash the potato and stick it on the corer. You can have it peeled or leave the peel on for extra nutrients. It makes a nice spiral shape and can be popped in the microwave for a few minutes (including potato cores) I use butter, parsley or chives to microwave with them. It's a nice change from mashed or baked.

eating apples

never easier -- I love this thing. Easy to use. Inexepensive. Makes snacking on apples quick and easy - and you avoid the apple stuck in the teeth. thing.

The vacuum base really holds secure. I wonder how I survived so long without an apple peeler. It does not do a perfect job on very lopsided or irregular apples, but just a few swipes with a paring knife will remove any remaining peel. Also there will be a small circle of peel left at each end of the apple that must be sliced of by hand. Overall, this really speeds up peeling apples and doesn't waste much of the apple with the peels.

Apple Corer and Peeler

This product is very difficult and time consuming to set up and calibrate. The apples have to be of uniform size, otherwise there is a risk of peeling the entire apple rather than just the core. It's messy, inconvenient and definitely not worth the money. It took me less time and mess to use a regular, paring knife. A paring knife and a manual apple corer/slicer would be a much more efficient, cleaner and less expensive option.

Great Apple Corer and peeler

The attribute I like the most of this apple corer and peeler is the suction cup to hold it in place while using it. With most of these products (and I have one) you have to bolt it on to something like a counter top. With this one you just set it down and and move the lever. It didn't move at all while peeling a bushel of apples. It's also easy to clean. Just rinse it under hot water and your done.

Excellent quality ... very well built to last and does a great job on apples & potatoes!

We cook dinners for our church on Wednesday nights. Its a great fellowhip with all our church members. We bought the apple corer and peeler so we could make apple pies etc. When cooking for a large group it takes alot of time pealing apples and is difficult when your hands aren't in the best shape. Let me tell you that apple corer and peeler is the best thing I have bought in a long time. I was amazed at how well it worked and the fact it not only pealed the apples, but corered and cut them in rings so that all I had to do was slice down through the rings. I made enough apple pies for over 70 people and it was a breeze. I love it. Thanks.

For the most part, it is a great help in the kitchen. Beats all that hand peeling for pies and crisps!! First one broke apart after much use, but chose to replace it with another!

Amazing

I don't know how I lived without this tool. Saves a ton of time. In addition to using it for pies and apple sauce, it is great for kids who don't like skin on their apples.

This product worked well only on apples that were completely round (like granny smith) it did not work efficiently on red delicious where the apple contours. I returned the product.

I love it. I peels and cores apples very easily. It also, peels potatoes, and you can make curly fries.. With the suction base, it doesn't slide off the counter. I'm glad I found it, it's just what I was looking for..

Cast iron apple corer and Peeler

I've peeled and cored about 2 bushels of apples with this so far and I really like the peeling part of it. It gets very close for most of the apple. The coring part is okay but the apples tend to be difficult to remove. As for the slicing part, it's okay too as long as the apple is symmetrical and doesn't have brusies. All in all, it's a big help when you're making a bunch of applesauce but I did the second bushel without the slicer and coring part and used a regular hand held apple coring quartering device for the second half of the proceedure.

love this apple corer and slicer. so easy to use. love that you can also just peel,slice ,and core seperately by making simple adjustments.

Strong, sturdy, made well, easy to use, easy to clean, makes me smile each time I use it...

Very hard to work with tends to tear Apples apart.

Apple Corer is great

The Cast Iron Apple Corer and Peeler with Suction Base is sturdy and well built-- to last a lifetime! I've found it best to 'disengage' the Corer/Slicer part and just peel the apple first; then disengage the peeler, reengage the Corer/Slicer, and core and slice the apple. Trying to do all at the same time with a Delicious Apple, caused the spike holding the apple to turn the stem end into mush and prevent the apple from turning. Maybe I just need more practice or patience, but even with my two step process, it does a quick job of peeling, coring and slicing an apple. My two year old granddaughter loves watching it and she especially loves eating the resulting treat.

Apple Corer and Peeler

I was so happy to see this product offered by Food Network! I own a Back to Basics Peeler I got years ago from a different retailer. That company doesn't carry it anymore and I wanted to give it as a gift for Christmas. I bought others from kitchen stores in my area but they were all inferior to what I owned. Very poor metals and components. I ordered this one from Food Network not knowing exactly how it compared to what I have. To my delight, it was exactly what I have! Wow! It made my holiday. To be able to give a gift such as this, with a great value and super quality, was IT for me! I'm happy:)

This is fun to use! I had pretty much quit baking apple pies (one of my favorites) because I took so long to peel cut and prepare the apples. No more. It is definately much faster than I could ever hope for. I've eaten a bunch of apples since we got it, and still having fun. And clean up is almost nothing.
Potatoes, I've tried once and didn't have much luck, but it probably is better. But its really an apple peeler, so that doesnt bother me.

One word of caution. They don't cover the blades at all. I was thinking about how I needed to be careful until I inspected it, and to inspect it picked it up with the slicing blade across my thumb. (It was on the backside, not readily viewable.) Had it slipped, or been a bit sharper, I would have had a nasty cut.

Still, its a good addition, but I would be very cautious about letting kids use it. I have a healthy fear of blades because I keep mine extremely sharp, but most kids don't yet.

Overall, its a great little machine, and will probably last forever. If you peel a lot of apples, you can't afford to be without one.
Walter