The untold story of the vegetable peeler that changed the world

September 25, 2018 10:49 AM

Smart Design’s Davin Stowell shares the origin story of the OXO Swivel, one of the great icons of 20th-century industrial design.

One of the most important moments in the history of industrial design occurred in 1990, when the kitchen brand OXO defied the traditional, knuckle-bleeding tools of culinary tradition, and released its Good Grips line. To this day, these tools are the best articulation of the potential of inclusive design: Developed for people with arthritis, Good Grips had thick rubbery handles that were also better tools for everyone to use.

posted by poffin boffin (56 comments total)

I have a paring knife of theirs that I inherited from my father (who bought it in his late seventies), and it is one of the most used utensils in my kitchen, all these years later. I think they got it mostly right.
posted by ivanthenotsoterrible at 11:02 AM on September 25, 2018

Growing up we used one that was all metal (not very easy or comfortable to hold), but still works and is still in my kitchen.
posted by Fizz at 11:04 AM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

to editorialize a bit, i found the penultimate paragraph of particular interest:

Later on, the American Arthritis Foundation gave us some recognition. We put the endorsement onto the package, but we took that off later because we realized, one of the things that’s really important for inclusive design is that the product isn’t stigmatizing. If you identify it as something for arthritis, it’s stigmatizing for someone with arthritis, and it prevents someone buying it who otherwise might, because they think it’s for someone with special needs. We realized someone in need would instantly realize this was better for them, anyway.

as it counters my personal belief that not calling specific attention to the adaptive design of products is harmful rather than helpful. i'm still not sure i agree with it but it's good to have a different perspective.
posted by poffin boffin at 11:05 AM on September 25, 2018 [28 favorites]

So, in counterpoint, I would put forward the notion that the best peeler, is, in fact, the Y-peeler.
posted by sid at 11:10 AM on September 25, 2018 [18 favorites]

Joe Ades sold the best vegetable peeler and no one will ever convince me otherwise.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 11:13 AM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

So, in counterpoint, I would put forward the notion that the best peeler, is, in fact, the Y-peeler.

Maybe for certain kinds of peeling, like scraping carrots. But try peeling an apple with that thing and you'll see with the OXO is better for anything round where you just want to do a continuous peel, like apples, beets, mangos, etc. And the OXO will do just fine on carrots as well.

On preview: the Joe Ades peeler has the same problem as the Y-peeler.
posted by beagle at 11:16 AM on September 25, 2018 [5 favorites]

it counters my personal belief that not calling specific attention to the adaptive design of products is harmful rather than helpful.

Both approaches have merit. In this case I think you don't want to highlight it, because people might pass it over if they don't have arthritis. But you'd want it, say, on the back of the package to reassure those that do. (And/or specifically target those people separately.)
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 11:17 AM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

i spent my whole childhood battling with old-school all-metal peelers, and i'd always get a rub or blister on my index finger. i still remember the day that metal peeler was replaced in our kitchen by the oxo, and to this day i will peel with nothing else.
posted by halation at 11:18 AM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

I prefer the OXO Y Peeler over the straight peeler.
posted by fings at 11:21 AM on September 25, 2018 [6 favorites]

I have an Oxo y peeler, great shape great grip. I generally go for the old school kitchen equipment but this really is the best designed peeler I have found.

I still remember buying good grips stuff when it first came out in the UK about 1999 ish and being blown away that such a simple change could make such a big difference.
posted by RandomInconsistencies at 11:22 AM on September 25, 2018

I dislike Oxo Goodgrips because the bulky handles make it harder to store the various kitchen tools. But I am sure someday I will appreciate the chunky handles.
posted by timdiggerm at 11:24 AM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

Maybe for certain kinds of peeling, like scraping carrots. But try peeling an apple with that thing and you'll see with the OXO is better for anything round where you just want to do a continuous peel, like apples, beets, mangos, etc. And the OXO will do just fine on carrots as well.

No, the Y-peeler actually works better for round fruits and vegetables than the OXO peeler described here. You can even peel hard rind veggies like butternut squash with it. Check out this video for a demonstration of the technique, incidentally, also made by OXO. The Y-peeler is the better, newer incarnation.
posted by sid at 11:25 AM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

you can't core apples with a y peeler though.
posted by poffin boffin at 11:26 AM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

it counters my personal belief that not calling specific attention to the adaptive design of products is harmful rather than helpful.

I remember having my mind blown when someone told me "oh, those over-the-top infomercials showing people failing spectacularly at everyday tasks? A lot of that stuff is actually targeted at older people with strength and mobility issues, but they don't put those people in the commercials because then no one else would buy the products."
posted by showbiz_liz at 11:29 AM on September 25, 2018 [33 favorites]

When I first encountered the OXO line - probably a peeler but I can't remember - I was skeptical; it looked gimmicky to me, like one of those "As seen on TV" things that are always cheaply and badly made. But after trying it I was sold, and I have a few OXO utensils now even though I don't have arthritis (yet...). They've all held up very well. I especially like the can opener, it's extremely well-made and reliable. I use the Y-peeler more often than the straight peeler, but then I don't peel (or core) things like apples very often.
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:30 AM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

The term 'icon' has been utterly debased.
posted by Flashman at 11:30 AM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

Huh. It never occurred to me to pronounce it in any other way than "ox-oh." Which is weird as I spent fifteen plus years as a tech cringing when people pronounced it Mac O-ES Sex, or even Mac Ossex. Oh well, I suppose there's a reason that Idiolect is a real term.
posted by los pantalones del muerte at 11:31 AM on September 25, 2018

Ok, so I have a lot of OXO stuff, but by far the most useful thing of theirs I have are their angled liquid measuring cups. It's a simple thing, but being able to read the measurement lines from above instead of craning down to the side to look is just so much better. Second most useful is their smooth-edge can opener, though it's finicky enough to use that I don't give it a whole-hearted recommendation. Maybe the newer models work better tho.
posted by Aleyn at 11:32 AM on September 25, 2018 [9 favorites]

Huh. It never occurred to me to pronounce it in any other way than "ox-oh."

I always assumed it was a Spanish name, for some reason (I think I first noticed the brand in a hispanic supermarket where I used to shop in Florida), and therefore I've always thought of it as "o-cho".
posted by tobascodagama at 11:38 AM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

my personal belief that not calling specific attention to the adaptive design of products is harmful rather than helpful.

But all the things that just work for everyone aren't labeled in that way -- you don't see a cup as being "Usable by Deaf people!", because of course it is.
posted by Etrigan at 11:40 AM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

it's a little shouty face with grumpy eyebrows and no one can convince me otherwise

oXo
posted by poffin boffin at 11:41 AM on September 25, 2018 [18 favorites]

I have nothing against the grip on the oxo peeler, but the plastic bit that goes up parallel to the peeling blade really gets in the way, and doesn't let the blade rotate enough. Yeah yeah, probably only relative to the peeling technique I developed growing up with the all-metal peelers. Still. You have to more carefully place the oxo peeler than the metal peelers, which means you can't just whip through a giant bowl of potatoes or carrots for a potluck or community meal nearly as quickly. And it doesn't have the bit on the end for scraping out the potato eyes.

Slap an accessibility compatible handle on one of the old metal peelers, though, and then you'd have an outstanding product.
posted by eviemath at 11:56 AM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

I have a longstanding peeve against OXO. They put soft rubber in the kitchen, which opened the door to soft silicone in the kitchen. All of this sucks to hand-wash and I'll never forgive them. I appreciate the inclusive design and award-winningness, but I'd have more sympathy if they weren't trying to conquer the world with their distribution, motivating everyone else to emulate them.
posted by rhizome at 12:06 PM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

… and the bits that aren't soft on Oxo things crack, making a Rest Home for Wayward Bacteria.

man, that FC article is self-satisfied. I guess everything about commercial success is around creating and selling a myth. The best fairy tales start “I promise to pay the bearer on demand …”
posted by scruss at 12:11 PM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

by far the most useful thing of theirs I have are their angled liquid measuring cups.

I'd love a glass version, though I suppose that shape might not be possible to make in glass.
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:13 PM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

We have an OXO peeler because people said it's the best. I find it too chunky to grab, and usually wind up using a paring knife instead.

This is a pretty great story, though.
posted by uncleozzy at 12:23 PM on September 25, 2018

I don't often peel things, but their paring knife is my go-to kitchen knife.
posted by Halloween Jack at 12:41 PM on September 25, 2018

They're good grips, Brent. 13/10.
posted by oneswellfoop at 12:49 PM on September 25, 2018 [10 favorites]

I have some sort of issue with my hands, never really explained but I had OT as a kid and I hold a pen funny, it's just my thing. Probably related to Autism maybe? Some sort of sensory processing based whoopsie with the hands?

OXO is a lifesaver in the kitchen. Funnily enough I don't have the peeler, but I have just about everything else lol. I don't like their storage containers, not watertight enough, but from spatulas to tongs to graters... I love OXO. It makes cooking much easier and easier on the hands that's for sure!
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 1:12 PM on September 25, 2018 [3 favorites]

But all the things that just work for everyone aren't labeled in that way -- you don't see a cup as being "Usable by Deaf people!", because of course it is.

i'm talking about infomercials where products that would make a disabled person's life vastly easier are being shown as products for comically incompetent fully-abled morons.
posted by poffin boffin at 1:13 PM on September 25, 2018 [7 favorites]

I love my OXO peeler, but would it be possible to get replacement or removable blades? I grew up peeling vegetables with a paring knife because my mother (raised in the Depression) refused to get vegetable peelers, because you couldn't sharpen them.

So I always think about that: it ought to be possible to sharpen the blades, or at least switch them around, since I only ever use one edge of the peeler.
posted by suelac at 1:23 PM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

I cannot think of a time on America's Test Kitchen where, if there was an OXO thing in the comparison lineup, it didn't win the top spot.
posted by bz at 1:26 PM on September 25, 2018

Suelac there is a version peeler, called the Pro that have replaceable blades. You can get the blades directly from OXO.
posted by jadepearl at 1:34 PM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

OXO stuff has been useful in my kitchen for a long time. My favorite peeler these days though is the one that goes on your finger and fits in your palm.
posted by nikaspark at 1:44 PM on September 25, 2018

Team Y peeler.

Also, I recently bought a serrates Victorinox vegetable peeler and much to my shock when I just looked it up, it's technically a tomato and kiwi peeler.

I had no idea.

Go team Y peeler.
posted by GuyZero at 1:47 PM on September 25, 2018

I remember having my mind blown when someone told me "oh, those over-the-top infomercials showing people failing spectacularly at everyday tasks? A lot of that stuff is actually targeted at older people with strength and mobility issues, but they don't put those people in the commercials because then no one else would buy the products."

Same here. This economic argument on universal design and garage door openers--from a piece I think I ran across here on the blue?--was eye-opening for me.

Some common home products such as the power garage-door operator are essentially assistive technology. [...] Because they are mass marketed in a positive way as consumer products, they are widely available for about $150 and are never perceived to be special or assistive devices. Residential power door operators for people who have difficulty opening and using entrance doors, on the other hand, are not widely available. Although no more complex or sophisticated, they cost four to six times as much as a garage opener and, as a result, are not seen as a consumer or convenience product.

posted by miles per flower at 1:51 PM on September 25, 2018 [5 favorites]

OXO's design department is excellent at creating usable, more ergonomically friendly things but the secret is that the majority of their products are identical in function and nearly identical in form to the existing kitchen tools.

I regrettably own one of their few failures: their original mandoline slicer. Just try to find it on this page. There's the luxe steel slicer, the cheaper v-blade (an admission that the classic v-blade mandoline isn't that ergonomically bad and it's a very affordable tool) and the chef version 2.0, but where's the original? In the back of my cupboard because it cost too darn much and I've been too stubborn to give it away. The straight blade design is inferior to the V in nearly every case, and somehow the angle they came up with makes it a bad fit for things you'd use a straight blade for.

Now that I've vented and mentally stuck it back in the cupboard.... OXO, good stuff.
posted by mikeh at 2:20 PM on September 25, 2018

“When you peel a potato, it doesn’t matter whether you’re right-handed, left-handed, or, like a politician, underhanded. All you take off that potato is a thin layer of skin. You’ve got no waste; you do it in record time. When you come to an eye, you scoop it out—there’s the scoop.

“Come up a yard. You’ll see better. Come on, don’t worry. I won’t ask you for money. You’re quite safe. You don’t have to buy to watch. You may already have one of these—I’ve sold thousands. I’ll give you a refresher course … ”

Joe Ades (and why the Y peeler is the superior peeler)
posted by standardasparagus at 2:28 PM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

I cannot think of a time on America's Test Kitchen where, if there was an OXO thing in the comparison lineup, it didn't win the top spot.

I'll just say I have my suspicions about this and leave it at that.
posted by rhizome at 2:54 PM on September 25, 2018

Am I was the only one who was surprised that this had nothing to do with Oxo bouillon?
posted by clawsoon at 4:19 PM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

Of course no one knows how to pronounce it. They call it “oh ex oh,” not “ox-oh.”

Someone better tell the OXO.com FAQ page:

Our founder, Sam Farber, loved the letter "O." His clever wife, Betsey, wanted to create a logo that could be read backwards, forwards and upside down. And while we love the connection to "Hugs & Kisses," the similarity was not intentional. OXO is pronounced "Ox-Oh."

posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 6:29 PM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

Thanks for posting this. That was fun to read the backstory. We have both this oxo peeler and a standard old metal vegetable peeler and the biggest disagreement in my marriage is that my husband refuses to acknowledge the superiority of the oxo. A friend was once using it and exclaimed it was the nicest vegetable peeler she'd ever used and couldn't understand why we both burst out laughing at the minefield she'd stumbled into.
posted by carolr at 9:39 PM on September 25, 2018 [2 favorites]

This is so strange, I never knew this brand was supposed to be something special. There stuff always seemed plasticy and industrial designer cannot leave well enough alone-y. I think we have only the vegetable peeler and that is because they didn't have any others in the store, I prefer the old metal one but whatever. Designers always seem to confuse what they do with brain surgery and saving souls.
posted by Pembquist at 10:26 PM on September 25, 2018 [1 favorite]

He came up with that name because he liked O, X, and O. Copco had a lot of Os. The reason he liked Cs, Os, and Xs is you could read them upside down, backwards, whatever.

The kitchen tools have nothing to do with the boullion cubes and seasonings brand? Mind blown

Of course no one knows how to pronounce it. They call it “oh ex oh,” not “ox-oh.”

It's even pronounced the same! Oxo cubes! And now I'm finding out that maybe these aren't a thing in the US
posted by Pruitt-Igoe at 11:49 PM on September 25, 2018 [4 favorites]

Came in to wax poetic about our Y Peeler without knowing that was what it was called! Thanks for enlightening me!
posted by like_neon at 2:07 AM on September 26, 2018

Growing up we used one that was all metal (not very easy or comfortable to hold), but still works and is still in my kitchen.

This. But if you're still using the one you grew up with, treat yourself to a new one and be surprised at how sharp it is. In Sweden anyway they're called Jonas and readily available.
posted by St. Oops at 2:51 AM on September 26, 2018 [2 favorites]

So now I'm genuinely surprised to learn that Oxo kitchen implements aren't made by the same people who make bouillon cubes and bookstore-killing charity shops?

OXO TOWER famously got around the ban on advertising on the Thames by submitting their proposal in the 20s as "a pattern of circles and crosses" in the lit windows. Easier to get forgiveness than permission, I guess.
posted by rum-soaked space hobo at 5:34 AM on September 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

I took a cooking class where the chef who had had a career spanning 27 years was telling us about various kitchen tools and knives and when she got to her oxo swivel peelers... it's almost hard to describe, but the way her eyes lit up as she spoke and the way her hands moved to hold up the peelers- it was as if she was presenting us with something holy. She went on to say the oxo peeler was the most amazing tool and went on to show us with equal rapture how it peeled the carrot both forwards AND backwards... and was always sharp and never needed sharpening, and the handles were perfect etc, etc. There was no other tool in her arsenal that she spoke in such a way about. I left the class feeling like if I actually went out and bought one, I would be unworthy of it's ownership.
posted by fantasticness at 7:27 AM on September 26, 2018 [2 favorites]

I got to sit next to Sam Farber at one of the Board of Trustee meetings. A genuine gentleman. Smart design came in to the story much later. He's the founder of Copco. And I once got to pitch for the manufacturing of a beautiful bowl for Farberware. This is the version of the story we all knew.
posted by infini at 1:33 PM on September 26, 2018

I regrettably own one of their few failures: their original mandoline slicer.

Oh, man. If that's the same one my old roommate got, I think you're underselling how bad it was. That same roommate bought the box grater because it had a really nice grip and her hand strength wasn't great. The plastic cracked at a stress point, she got it replaced, and the replacement cracked in the same spot. I've never bothered to check if they redesigned that flaw out, because the soap dispensing dish wand I really liked the design of turned out to have a stupid glue joint that also fell apart repeatedly.

I look at every Oxo product with a pretty jaundiced eye now, checking for obvious trouble spots before I buy. I've still got a bunch of their tools, but there are a few items where I specifically don't have the Oxo version, or I've bought it and subsequently bought something else instead. The current soap dispensing palm brush is reliable, and the scraper is a seemingly impervious rectangle of metal with a nice handle. I like the design of the angled measuring cups mentioned above (the mini ones are great cocktail jiggers) but they turn cloudy in the dishwasher despite being sold as dishwasher safe and we've had to replace them more often than I'd like. The zester is actually pretty terrible and kind of awkward to use; I prefer my Messermeister channel knife when I need a long peel and my Microplane when I need zest. The top of the insulated travel mug can pop off in some circumstances (Ask Me How I Know), plus it's impossible to clean inside the lid, and now we've got two of the universally recommended Zojirushi insulated bottle instead. And so on.

And I don't even remember what brand my mandoline is, but Not Oxo was an important shopping consideration when I bought it. It's fine.
posted by fedward at 2:11 PM on September 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

roommate bought the box grater because it had a really nice grip and her hand strength wasn't great. The plastic cracked at a stress point, she got it replaced, and the replacement cracked in the same spot.

There was definitely a business evolution at some point where they started putting out things that didn't need to be OXOed, like corn holders.
posted by rhizome at 5:24 PM on September 26, 2018 [1 favorite]

it ought to be possible to sharpen the blades, or at least switch them around, since I only ever use one edge of the peeler.

You can sharpen them or flip the blade.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 9:38 PM on September 26, 2018

but they turn cloudy in the dishwasher despite being sold as dishwasher safe

You and I must have different definitions of what "dishwasher safe" is. To me it means that an item won't crack or melt in the dishwasher, usually during the heated dry cycle. Cloudy dishes have nothing to do with "dishwasher safe" or whatever material the item is made from. It's almost always caused by dissolved mineral solids in the water. So to prevent this, for decades dishwashing detergent manufacturers added phosphorus to their detergents to dissolve the solids from sticking to your dishes.

But that had the knock-on effect of making the waste water too fertile, with the results of causing massive toxic algae blooms. So the federal government eventually banned the use of phosphorus in dishwashing soap. And we were left with cloudy dishes and glasses.

So to get around this, some smart cookies decided to end-run the rules and started add tri-sodium phophate (TSP) to their soap. (I won't tell you how much or when to add it, because that's unethical and there's a better solution.)

Behold the modern day miracle that is Lemi-Shine! I usually get mine from the Home Despot, by the case. That's handy, because everyone who sees its effects usually pilfers a bottle from me. Follow the directions exactly and you'll have flawlessly shiny dishes usually in from the second or third load on. Also, it's no secret what Lemi-Shine is, it's a form of vitamin C, citric acid hemihydrate.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 1:29 AM on September 28, 2018 [3 favorites]

Cloudy dishes have nothing to do with "dishwasher safe" or whatever material the item is made from. It's almost always caused by dissolved mineral solids in the water.

So, none of our other dishes ever get cloudy, including other plastics or even other items presumably made from the same plastic. The Oxo stuff we have now (specifically the mini angled measuring cups) is all "BPA free" Tritan; we've got some Nalgene bottles known to be Tritan in addition to a few older polycarbonate items we owned before the BPA panic started. "Cloudy" might not even be the right word. The cups come of the dishwasher covered in white blotches that don't respond to acids (say, the fresh lemon or lime juice we regularly use in cocktails), and thus I have no reason to believe adding a citric acid treatment to the wash would help at all. The degradation of appearance happened the first time we ran them though the dishwasher. It got worse when I ran them through again, thinking something must have been deposited.

Even with the cups we have exclusively hand washed it still seems to happen, though, which makes me think it's something about the plastic itself. My theory (which I have no way to verify) is that the plasticizer used in the manufacturing of Oxo's Tritan products is somehow different from whatever, say, Nalgene uses in the manufacturing of their Tritan products, and thus it's leaching out of only the Oxo products we have. Something about the dishwasher cycle (perhaps a chemical in our detergent, perhaps the temperature of the drying cycle) accelerates the process, but it still happens even with cups that have never been through the dishwasher.
posted by fedward at 9:29 AM on September 28, 2018

I have and LOVE ❤️ 💕 💗 the aforementioned corn holders .🌽
posted by hilaryjade at 8:04 PM on September 28, 2018

Can we assume you have a dishwasher? :)
posted by rhizome at 9:33 PM on September 28, 2018 [1 favorite]