a complicated recipe.

But there's more than one right way to skin a clove of garlic.

Take a gander at these handy methods we've uncovered, and give one a try the next time

you're tasked with peeling a clove.

The easiest way to peel garlic is to get someone else to do it for you.

Garlic can actually be purchased pre-peeled, but unless you live in an area without easy

access to fresh garlic, you risk just looking lazy…and if a chef is too lazy to peel garlic,

then what other culinary corners are they cutting that you can't see?

Pre-peeled garlic can also be something of an unknown quantity, depending on where you

buy it, and it's definitely going to come at a premium.

Plus, since peeling garlic is about to become the easiest thing in the world for you, there's

really no need to risk your reputation by turning garlic into the kitchen equivalent

of a bag of Cheetos.

Besides, many chefs, including Rachael Ray, consider pre-peeled garlic a big no-no.

“Peeled garlic that you get in the grocery store?

Don't do that.

And the chopped stuff in the jar?

That's got preservatives in it.”

This classic—and very satisfying—technique for peeling garlic is familiar to chefs everywhere.

Simply place a clove of garlic on your cutting board, place the blade of a large knife flat

on top of the clove with the sharp edge facing away from you, and hit the knife with the

heel of your hand.

This achieves the triple effect of crushing the garlic, separating the skin, and relieving

unwanted tension.

However, if you didn't want the garlic crushed, or you aren't comfortable with punching a

sharp knife, this may not be the technique for you.

Love them or hate them, microwaves are an undeniably convenient way to make things hot.

They are also a pretty convenient way to peel garlic if you are so inclined, and they do

it without using any sharp edges or extra aggression.

Harnessing the garlic peeling powers of your microwave is so easy.

“Once its been in the microwave for 20 seconds, the individual cloves will pop out of the

skin, really, really easily.”

This works for one clove, or a hundred…but there are a couple of downsides.

By microwaving the garlic you are effectively cooking it, and this can reduce the pungency

of the stinky bulb.

If you don't have a microwave, a knife, or access to pre-peeled garlic, then fret not

— you still have options.

Truth be told, garlic doesn't seem particularly attached to its skin.

And all it takes is a little stress to get it to let go.

So if you're in a pinch, and have no other means to get the skin off a clove of garlic,

you can give this method a try.

Grab the garlic at each end of the clove and gently twist it.

If you do it right, you should hear a snap as the skin comes away from the bulb, and

the two should be easily separated.

The downside to this is that it works best with long, thin cloves, so it might be tricky

to do with your more common short and fat examples.

But if you're desperate, and you have somehow managed to make it this far into your recipe

without a knife, you might as well give it a go.

If you have money to burn and plenty of storage space in your kitchen, then this next hack

might be for you.

This must-have garlic peeler is a simple cylinder made of silicone.

Place a single clove of garlic into the cylinder, and roll back and forth on the table, and

in not very much time at all the garlic will appear magically freed of its skin.

Unfortunately, if you need to cook up more than a small batch of anything, this gadget

will leave you frustrated because you can only peel a couple cloves at a time.

The novelty wears off pretty quick, and while it is admittedly a pretty cheap splurge if

you do decide to get one, you should know that the esteemed television personality Alton

Brown fervently decries any gadget he considers a, quote, "unitasker" — also known as any

kitchen tool that does one thing and nothing else — and the silicone garlic peeler definitely

falls into that category.

Take two metal bowls, a jar, or a Tupperware container and dump the cloves inside, cover,

and shake shake shake.

After about ten seconds, the garlic will appear naked laying in the shreds of its former skin…and

who can blame it?

If you were put into a can and vigorously shaken, you'd probably shed your skin too.

If none of the above options suit your garlic peeling circumstances, then hopefully this

will do the trick.

It requires almost no technique, no special equipment, and the only downside is that it

can get a bit loud if you use metal bowls.

Also, if you don't have any suitable containers to shake the cloves in, you can probably achieve

the same effect simply by throwing the garlic at the wall.

But if you really hate peeling garlic, you've likely already tried that.

Check out one of our newest videos right here!

Plus, even more Mashed videos about your favorite stuff are coming soon.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.