# POLL: To peel or not to peel -- kiwifruit, that is **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [April 26, 2026, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572 "2026-04-26T18:51:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/21 "2026-04-27T17:46:57Z")
I cut the kiwi lengthwise into two halves and dig out the flesh with a spoon. ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/22 "2026-04-27T18:42:36Z")
> [@mozchron](#): > > What kind of psychopath eats kiwi skin??? That’d be me. ---
**Author:** ![chela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chela/32/21582_2.png) [@chela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chela)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/23 "2026-04-27T18:48:34Z")
I eat them whole after a good scrub, the skin is quite thin, thinner than apples ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/24 "2026-04-27T18:50:41Z")
There’s the golden gooseberries without fuzz, and the kiwi gooseberries with fuzz. I eat the first without peeling. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/25 "2026-04-27T19:04:48Z")
I was going to ask about what I sometimes see labeled “golden kiwis.” Could that be what you’re talking about? ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/26 "2026-04-27T19:06:25Z")
I would eat that without peeling it. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/27 "2026-04-27T19:06:40Z")
Cut and scoop for plain eating. Smoothies, scrub, cut, plop them in the blender. I usually get the golden ones for eating, the green ones for the smoothies. They are an excellent nutrition source. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/28 "2026-04-27T19:19:36Z")
I was well into adulthood when I learned that some of you weirdos don’t peel it. Since then I’ve had it and the method OP uses is not bad, it’s not noticeable when sliced that thin. But if you quarter the entire fruit that’s too much skin at once. ---
**Author:** ![Eric1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3bc359/32.png) [@Eric1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eric1)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/29 "2026-04-27T19:22:07Z")
I was puzzled that dried kiwi is peeled but realized a dried kiwi peel would taste just awful. But with regular kiwi, I would just eat the peel. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/30 "2026-04-27T21:52:31Z")
There are green, gold, and (new) ruby or red kiwis. All from the same proprietary plant in New Zealand. Kiwis used to be called “Chinese gooseberries.” This was shifted to “kiwis” as a marketing strategy. [![](https://www.mashed.com/img/gallery/what-is-a-kiwi-and-how-do-you-eat-it/intro-1621874130.webp) ](https://www.mashed.com/img/gallery/what-is-a-kiwi-and-how-do-you-eat-it/intro-1621874130.webp) However, there are other gooseberries (but a different botanical family) called “gooseberries,” some confusingly called “golden.” They tend to be smooth-skinned. [![](https://britishfoodhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/20190626_172703-01.jpeg) ](https://britishfoodhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/20190626_172703-01.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/31 "2026-04-27T22:16:51Z")
Gooseberries make excellent jam and pie! 😊 The small berries in the illustration look like currants to me. Are gooseberries and currants related? ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/32 "2026-04-27T22:27:35Z")
I’m only familiar with the green. Do the other varieties taste much different? ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/33 "2026-04-27T22:51:31Z")
They’re sweeter/less tangy. I like the gold. Had the red in NZ last year and found it less interesting. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2026, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/34 "2026-04-27T23:20:00Z")
Thank you so much-- very informative! I have a serious case of FOMO, fear of missing out, and that includes fear of missing out on fruit. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Girlfriend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.girlfriend/32/193_2.png) [@Dr.Girlfriend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Girlfriend)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/35 "2026-04-28T00:23:52Z")
The first time I ate a kiwi I didn’t know about peeling it and this pretty much describes the experience even though it was 40-ish years ago. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/36 "2026-04-28T00:36:33Z")
I’ve only eaten kiwi sliced in half, with a spoon. Never peeled it whole. Never ate it with the skin on. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/37 "2026-04-28T02:48:23Z")
I’d like to use “fear of missing out on fruit” in a poem. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/38 "2026-04-28T04:04:01Z")
3 completely different things named gooseberries. There’s also cape gooseberry, Physalis peruviana, a type of groundcherry. Which is also not a cherry, they’re nightshades, basically sweet tomatillos and grow with a soft husk. > [@terentii](#): > > Are gooseberries and currants related? Yes, gooseberries are in the currant genus, Ribes. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/39 "2026-04-28T04:57:38Z")
Ok, I just bought a container of red kiwis. Review: I split the kiwi in half. Red kiwis don’t have fuzz. The skin feels thick and rigid in my mouth. It’s not bad, but not great either. The overall experience is superior to peeling a kiwi, which I find tedious. For the 2nd half, I scooped out the insides with a grapefruit spoon. A very satisfying culinary experience. 10/10. I even celebrated by purchasing a few extra grapefruit spoons at Amazon. Thanks to my fellow posters for introducing me to this treat. Skins are high in fiber and generally good for you: I enjoy eating apples with their skins on. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2026, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572/40 "2026-04-28T14:25:22Z")
This thread is very interesting to me, as I grew up with kiwis since the 80s (that is, in my memory, when they started becoming quite popular in the US), and we either always ate them with a spoon or they were sliced in half and then scooped out half by half in one piece if we needed to cut them up or something. And that’s how our extended family did it, so that’s all I’ve ever known. I’ve literally had no idea people actually peeled them. Are they typically peeled whole? With a knife or vegetable peeler? And then are they chopped up, or eaten out of hand? Isn’t that slippery and weird? I know this all sounds dumb, but I’m completely ignorant of what apparently is a common practice (not the first time for me.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-to-peel-or-not-to-peel-kiwifruit-that-is/1029572.md?page=3)