From peel (Old French peler 'to strip'), from Latin pilāre 'to remove hair' — peeling fruit is etymologically depilation.
A kitchen tool for removing the skin of fruits and vegetables.
From peel + -er. The verb 'peel' entered English from Old French peler 'to remove hair, strip,' from Latin pilāre 'to depilate,' from pilus 'hair.' So peeling a potato is etymologically the same act as hair removal — stripping the outer covering. Key roots: *pilo- (Latin: "hair