Does It Really Do That: Samurai Peeler

At Alfano's Restaurant in Washington, Pa., they'll tell you they serve only the best and that means, back in the kitchen, using the right tools.

"For any chef, the peeler is kind of the right hand. Whenever you are cooking, the main ingredient for all your stocks and sauces is carrots, onions, celery, things like that so you are always reaching for a peeler," said Chef Marc Alfano.

According to TV infomercial's Chef Tony, that should be the Samurai peeler.

"The Samurai speed peeler is the amazing dual action peeler and slicer that works down one way and up the other so you do twice the work in half the time," Chef Tony said.

But does it really do that? Chef Marc agrees to help us find out if Chef Tony's Samurai peeler is all he claims. Chef Marc has his own favorite peeler.

"I love this peeler because of the shape of the handle. This is a little more ergonomic," said Chef Marc of his favorite peeler, but he also says he also likes the feel of the Samurai peeler and thinks the dual action is a good idea.

"Chef Tony's peeler goes both ways," said Chef Marc. "It seems like it does a pretty good job."

But it might take some practice to get used to it. We try peeling an onion with the skin on.

Chef Marc said it does a good job. The Samurai peeler quickly peels the zucchini and does a good job on the cucumber too.

But will the Samurai peeler really slice wood? Chef Tony says it will.

"Made with forever sharp stainless steel blades, it's tough enough to cut through this two by four, yet it will still peal the skin from this beautiful peach," he says in the infomercial.

We give it a try and within seconds, the Samurai peeler flies apart.

The cutting edge is halfway across the room. It broke apart, but Chef Marc easily puts it back together, puts on some protective glasses and tries again.

This time the Samurai peeler cuts the wood, but after cutting the wood, will it still cut the skin off a peach?

Peaches are out of season, so we try it on a soft pear and sure enough, it peels the pear.

The Samurai peeler also converts to a mandolin. Chef Marc uses this one in his restaurant.

"This is a Japanese mandolin. The idea is to get uniform little pieces," he said.

Will the Samurai mandolin measure up?

"It seems to be shredding it rather than slicing it," Chef Marc said.

When it comes to the Samurai mandolin, sorry Chef Tony, your mandolin just doesn't cut it,

But when it comes to the Samurai peeler:

"It's comparable. It's a peeler. The difference is the fact that it goes both ways. Technically it goes up and down so it would cut your time in half a little bit and it does the onion pretty well," Chef Marc said.

Chef Marc says he gives the Samurai Peeler thumbs up.