Skinning

The skin of stone fruits is notoriously difficult to remove. By far the easiest way is to blanch the fruits first in boiling water, but care must be taken not to cook the fruits, especially if they are really ripe. First score a cross shape in the bottom end of each fruit. Bring a pan of water to the boil and immerse each fruit on a slotted spoon. Count 10 seconds for very ripe fruit, up to 20 seconds for less ripe, just until the skin begins to curl.