Characteristics of the Best Grater for Parmesan Cheese
Grating cheese may seem easy until you encounter a bad grater, one that makes you lose more cheese than you grate. Having the best parmesan cheese grater is essential for grating, shredding, and zesting.
Cheese graters offer great versatility in the kitchen, regardless of their size. We’ll share the nine best cheese graters for parmesan cheese to help you find the perfect cheese grater for your needs. Let’s dive in.
What is a Parmesan Grater?
A parmesan grater is a small handheld kitchen tool with blades that swiftly shred parmesan cheese into strips. This grater has rows of uniformly spaced holes with sharp edges on one side and smooth edges on the other.
The grating side’s sharpened edge helps to evenly extract finely grated parmesan cheese strips from the aged Parmesan cheese’s hard texture. Usually, a parmesan grater is made of stainless steel and thoughtfully designed to make it simple to grate while holding the tool in one hand and a block of parmesan in the other.
Our Favorite Parmesan Cheese Grater
From the nine items reviewed in this article, the OXO - 32780 OXO Good Grips Multi Grater is our favorite parmesan cheese grater. This adjustable grater has a soft and comfortable handle, a non-slip rubber base to prevent slipping, and it’s dishwasher safe. Also, it snaps apart for easy cleaning.
An Overview of the Best Graters for Parmesan Cheese
- OXO - 32780 OXO Good Grips Multi Grater: Best for overall use
- Presto Salad Shooter Electric Slicer/Shredder: Best automatic cheese grater
- Boska Stainless Steel Grater - Cheese Grater: Best stainless steel cheese grater
- Utopia Kitchen - Cheese Grater & Shredder: Best grater for hard cheese
- Round Mandoline Drum Slicer Rotary Cheese Grater: Best multi-functional cheese grater
- KitchenAid Fresh Prep Slicer/Shredder: Best attachment cheese grater
- Chef'n Chef's GraterZoom Grater and Slicer: Best compact-design cheese maker
- Zyliss Restaurant Cheese Grater - Handheld Rotary Cheese Grater: Best rotary cheese grater
- Cuisinart Boxed Grater: Best budget-friendly cheese grater
Our Parmesan Cheese Grater Reviews
OXO - 32780 OXO Good Grips Multi Grater: Best for Overall Use
Amazon’s Choice in Graters by OXO
Brand: OXO
Material: Stainless steel
Color/s: White
Weight: 8.3 ounces (235.30 grams)
Style: Multi grater
Number of blades: Two
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Ergonomically designed, non-slip base, foldable
Recommended uses: Grating, shredding, zesting
About Product
The OXO – 32780 OXO Good Grips Multi Grater is a two-sided stainless steel grater with a plastic frame. It has a comfortable and easy-to-grip handle. It also has non-slip feet on each side that absorbs pressure well.
This grater is foldable for easy storage. When closed, you can slide the handle or hinge apart for easy cleaning or grating. You can clean it by hand or throw it in a dishwasher. You can use it with parmesan cheese while standing it up or flat over a bowl.
Although the grating surface is a little smaller than some of the other graters, and the plastic didn’t feel durable, this grater’s versatility and affordable price keep it at the top of our list.
Pros
- Snaps apart for fast and easy cleaning
- It has a soft and comfortable handle
- It is durable
Cons
- It has a smaller grating surface
Presto Salad Shooter Electric Slicer/Shredder: Best Automatic Cheese Grater
Amazon’s Choice in Electric Knives & Slicers by Presto
Brand: Presto
Material: Plastic
Color/s: White
Weight: 2.5 pounds (1.13 kilograms)
Style: Electric slicer
Blade shape: Round
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Automatic
Special feature: Interchangeable blades
Recommended uses: Shredding, slicing, salad shooting
About Product
One of the easiest ways to slice or shred cheese, fruits, and vegetables for delectable salads, soups, and other dishes is with the Presto Salad Shooter Electric Slicer/Shredder. It is essentially a handheld food processor, but better because it dispenses food directly into a bowl or pot, reducing the number of dishes you’ll need to clean up afterward.
It comes with two medium-grade cones, one for slicing and one for shredding, each with a stainless-steel cutting blade. They are so sharp that they can chop a carrot into coins or shred an entire block of cheese in less time than it takes to boil water. You can buy additional blades for finer and thicker grates (sold separately).
All the parts, except for the base, which houses the engine, are dishwasher-safe, and due to its compact size, it is simple to store. It’s also important to note how noisy the motor is.
Pros
- Easy to operate
- It requires less effort since its electric
- It is versatile; you can use it for cheese and vegetables
Cons
- The motor is noisy
Boska Stainless Steel Grater - Cheese Grater: Best Stainless Steel Cheese Grater
Amazon’s Choice in Cheese Knives by BOSKA
Brand: BOSKA
Material: Stainless steel
Color/s: Steel
Weight: 1.76 ounces (49.89 grams)
Style: Single-blade grater
Number of blades: One
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Multi-functional
Recommended uses: Grating
About Product
The Boska Stainless Steel Grater – Cheese Grater is a light-duty multi-functional cheese grater. With traditional graters, you run the cheese over them, but this grater runs over the cheese, which is safer for your fingertips and more convenient.
Although it is great for daily home use, it is not the best for large chunks of cheese or potatoes. It is sleek and will fit in your drawer without taking up much space. Its metal handle is uncomfortable, and using it as your primary grater would be challenging. Nonetheless, it is a useful tool for a little cheese to top salad or spaghetti.
This grater often clogs due to its small size; however, it’s still ideal for grating enough mozzarella for a sandwich. It requires excessive pressure compared to other graters. This might work well as a backup grater in your kitchen. The shape makes cleaning simple, either by hand or in a dishwasher.
Pros
- It is lightweight
- It is safe for your hands and fingers
Cons
- Not ideal for large cheese grating
Utopia Kitchen - Cheese Grater & Shredder: Best Grater for Hard Cheese
Brand: Utopia Kitchen
Material: Stainless steel
Color/s: Black, mint, plum, red
Weight: 9.6 ounces (272.15 grams)
Style: Six-sided box grater
Number of blades: Six
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special features: User-friendly design, non-slip rubber base,
Recommended uses: Grating, shredding
About Product
When it comes to hard cheese grating, this six-sided grater performs well regardless of the type of cheese. The non-slip base makes it stable, so you won’t struggle with your cheese to grate it. It also allows you to personalize the shred size significantly. The slicer side functions well, although it might not work well for grating soft-textured cheese.
You can expect to use it primarily for hard-textured cheeses because the nonstick base keeps the grater strong enough to shred a block of parmesan using all sides. This grater has six types of grating textures:
- Slicer: Use it to grate medium-sized cheese and veggies.
- Coarse: Use it to shred chocolate, ginger, hard and medium cheese, and frozen veggies.
- Fine: Use it for shredding lemon zest, nutmeg, parmesan, garlic, and citrus.
- Ultra coarse: Use this side for grating veggies like rosti and fritters and soft-textured cheeses like Cheddar and Edam.
- Medium shaver: Use it for shaving parmesan, chocolate, and thin ribbons of vegetables for a salad.
- Star (wavy slicer): Use this side to slice chocolate and Parmesan flakes that are airy and tiny.
Be careful when grating and cleaning by hand to prevent grazing hands or fingers on the sides. It is dishwasher safe.
Pros
- It is easy to clean
- It’s an all-in-one grater; it offers six grating options
Cons
- Not durable; some sides tend to bend while grating
Round Mandoline Drum Slicer Rotary Cheese Grater: Best Multi-Functional Cheese Grater
Brand: BNUNWISH
Material: ABS plastic
Color/s: Blue, green, white
Weight: 2.3 pounds (1.04 kilograms)
Style: Handheld rotary grater
Number of blades: Five
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Compact design, BPA-free
Recommended uses: Grating, shredding
About Product
The Round Mandoline Drum Slicer Rotary Cheese Grater is a great multi-functional grater. This would be, without a doubt, your new favorite cooking utensil, even if you’re not a cheese lover. It is ideal for fruits, vegetables, almonds, chocolate, breadcrumbs, etc.
Its three different-sized stainless steel blade drums for fine and coarse grating and slicing can significantly reduce the amount of knife work. Its precision is unparalleled.
It has a strong suction base stabilizing the grater while operational, essential for applying the right amount of pressure to shred soft and hard cheeses smoothly. It is easy to clean; you can wash it in a sink by hand. The attachments are top-rack dishwasher safe but incredibly simple to disassemble and clean by hand.
Pros
- Saves time and kitchen space
- Easy to operate and clean
- 100% safe for your hands
Cons
- It is expensive
KitchenAid Fresh Prep Slicer/Shredder: Best Attachment Cheese Grater
Amazon’s Choice for “KitchenAid Mixers Accessories”
Brand: KitchenAid
Material: Plastic
Color/s: White
Weight: 1.3 pounds (0.58 kilograms)
Style: Attachment grater
Blade shape: Round
Dishwasher safe: No
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Interchangeable blades
Recommended uses: Vegetable slicer/shredder
About Product
The KitchenAid Fresh Prep Slicer/Shredder is the finest cheese grater for people who want great yields with little work and already own a KitchenAid stand mixer. Although the appliance attachment is more expensive, it is well worth the investment because it does all the work for you to produce mountains of precisely uniform slices or shreds in minutes.
It comes with a food pusher with an attachment that can handle both tiny and large fruits and vegetables and cubed blocks of cheese. It has a smaller slicing blade that works well for cucumbers and zucchini, a medium-sized grating blade for cheeses and frozen vegetables, and a bigger coarse shredding blade for cabbage and potatoes.
All blades are stainless steel, so you don’t have to worry about rusting or discoloration. Since they are easily interchangeable, switching from slicing potatoes to grating cheese is simple. The grater is simple to use. Simply pick the required size, choose a speed, set a bowl on the bottom, and insert the food into the tube.
The unit is also simple to disassemble after grating. You can clean the blades on the top rack of the dishwasher and then put them away in the storage case that comes with them.
Pros
- It saves time slicing or shredding veggies
- It offers ideal slicing performance
Cons
- Compatible with KitchenAid stand mixer only
Chef'n Chef's GraterZoom Grater and Slicer: Best Compact-Design Cheese Grater
Brand: Chef’n Chef’s
Material: Plastic, stainless steel
Color/s: Arugula/wasabi
Weight: 0.01 ounces (0.28 grams)
Style: Compact
Number of blades: One
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Compact design, lightweight
Recommended uses: Slicing, grating
About Product
The Chef’n Chef’s GraterZoom Grater and Slicer is a uniquely designed cheese grater that is lightweight and easy to operate. It has an easy-to-open chamber that locks tightly during operation to prevent spillage.
This grater has a rotary blade that rolls forward to grate and backward to slice. It works great for chocolate, ginger, garlic, parmesan cheese, etc. It is top-rack dishwasher safe. Additionally, this grater guarantees your hand and fingers 100% safety, thanks to its compact and modern design.
Pros
- Easy to use and clean
- 100% safe for your fingers
Cons
- Not ideal for large chunks
Zyliss Restaurant Cheese Grater - Handheld Rotary Cheese Grater: Best Rotary Cheese Grater
Brand: Zyliss
Material: Steel
Color/s: White
Weight: 5.8 ounces (164.42 grams)
Style: Classic rotary grater
Blade Shape: Round
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special features: Compact design, effortless grating, foldable handle
Recommended uses: Grating
About Product
The Zyliss Restaurant Cheese Grater – Handheld Rotary Cheese Grater offers a classic-style grater for cooks who wish to recreate a fine dining experience at home. It is ideal for hard cheese, chocolate, and nuts. This grater may not work well with soft-textured cheese like mozzarella and cheddar.
It could easily get clogged and exceedingly challenging to clean if you use mozzarella and cheddar. It might take numerous trials to determine the precise amount of pressure required to operate the grater.
Whether right- or left-handed, the grater is simple to use thanks to its integrated mechanism that turns the crank both clockwise and anticlockwise. Additionally, using the grip is comfortable. After grating, you may take the item apart and put it on your dishwasher’s top rack. The grater’s handle is foldable for convenient storage.
Pros
- The handle and drum are detachable for easy and quick cleaning
- It’s comfortable to use; grate more cheese in less time
Cons
- The plastic construction can easily break
Cuisinart Boxed Grater: Best Budget-Friendly Cheese Grater
Amazon’s Choice in Graters by Cuisinart
Brand: Cuisinart
Material: Stainless steel
Color/s: Black
Weight: 8.8 ounces (249.47 grams)
Style: Boxed grater
Number of blades: Four
Dishwasher safe: Yes
Operation mode: Manual
Special feature: Non-slip base, soft-grip handle
Recommended uses: Fine shredding, coarse shredding, fine grating, slicing
About Product
The Cuisinart Boxed Grater is a budget-friendly cheese grater that offers versatility without the frills for less than half the price of the OXO’s box grater. It has all the necessary blade types and grate sizes; therefore, we suggest it for beginners.
This cheese grater works well for most grating and shredding tasks. It features four sizable surfaces on each side for fine, coarse, fine grating, and slicing grating. It feels superior to graters of a comparable price because of its firm rubber grip. This model from Cuisinart is ideal if you’re searching for a basic box grater.
Pros
- Durable stainless steel
- Great handle for comfort
- Easy to clean
Cons
- It takes up quite some storage space
Your Parmesan Cheese Grater Shopping Guide
Sharpness
Your grater should be sufficiently sharp to chop through cheese or vegetables quickly. For example, sharpness is critical when zesting because a flat grater will likely dig into the lemon or citrus pith rather than scrape the delicate, aromatic skin.
Stability
Because it makes it easier to grate cheese and minimizes cheese loss, stability is crucial. A rasp grater, for example, is best designed for speed of use rather than stability. If you have the storage space, having a sharp, easy-to-clean grater for quickly grating parmesan over pasta and other small tasks and a more durable grater alternative for bigger operations might be beneficial.
Versatility
Because the side holes of box graters are sometimes of different diameters, they are the best. Rasp graters also get praise for being easy to use and effective at various grating tasks, like zesting a small amount of ginger. You can frequently prepare almonds, veggies, and other meals using manual rotational or electric graters.
Comfort
Technically, using your cheese grater shouldn’t cause you to get hand cramps. Additionally, even if your hands are wet, they shouldn’t slide on the grater’s handle.
Storage
Always consider graters that occupy less storage space. Since you won’t use your grater often, it shouldn’t take up most space in your cabinet.
Ease of Cleaning
It is essential to consider graters that are easy to clean. Most graters are dishwasher safe, while some are best for the top rack of the dishwasher. However, parts like motors or plastic should be hand-cleaned. To prevent cheese fragments from drying in the crevices of your grater, rinse it out as soon as you can after usage.
If food gets trapped in the holes, wash the grater with warm, soapy water and use a small brush to remove the trapped food.
Type
Box Graters
Box graters have four sides; each side frequently has a separate set of blades and shred sizes. Thanks to their generous surface areas, you can shred enormous quantities of cheese and other components.
Box graters have the disadvantage of being bulkier to store than their handheld counterparts. However, they compensate for this by doing away with the requirement for numerous grating instruments.
Handheld Graters
You can finely grate small amounts of cheese or fruit using a handheld grater over a bowl. They are excellent for novice cooks because they are inexpensive and just have one shredding size. Handheld graters might not be the greatest choice if you want to achieve different shred sizes from one grater.
Rotary Graters
This kind works best for shredding chocolate, almonds, and hard cheeses. How do rotating graters function? Whatever you’re grating gets enclosed in a revolving blade. All you have to do to move the grater across the cheese’s surface is turn the hand crank. You can effortlessly pour the shreds from the barrel into your food.
Electric Graters
These graters are frequently add-ons for bigger kitchen machines like to-stand mixers or food processors. Except if you already own one of those gadgets, they are only useful for shredding vast quantities of cheese or fruit.
Zesters
Zesters grate finely and are similar to portable graters but have much smaller holes. It is the perfect grater for ginger and garlic paste-making or zesting citrus fruits. They are frequently more convenient to use than the pinhole side of a box grater due to their flat, portable form.
Shredding Size
Consider whether you desire coarse, fine, or shredding holes. While some graters (typically handheld and zester types) only have one size of a shredding hole. While box graters and electric graters allow you to get numerous shreds from a single piece of equipment. Some box grates even have large slicing blades.
Some Reader Questions Answered
What Can I Do With Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese?
Parmesan cheese is a native Italian iconic hard cheese produced and used worldwide. You can use this distinctively salty cheese in many ways, such as a topping for pizzas and pasta. Additionally, you can use it as an essential ingredient in some sauces, such as garlic parmesan sauce, parmesan cream sauce, etc.
You can use freshly grated parmesan cheese to make baked spaghetti, creamy parmesan mashed potatoes, bruschetta chicken, Zucchini onion pie, parmesan chicken, lasagna, etc. Also, you can snack on it on its own or with crackers.
Parmesan cheese is a versatile ingredient that goes well with many recipes; feel free to try it in one of your recipes and share your experience in the comment section below.
How To Grate Parmesan Cheese
Always go through the manufacturer’s instructions before using a new cheese grater. A typical cheese grater has to be stationary when you pass a block of cheese over it with moderate pressure. You will obtain finely grated parmesan cheese if the cheese is still cold from the fridge or harder.
How Do I Clean My Parmesan Cheese Grater?
When cleaning a parmesan cheese grater, it’s best to check the directions provided by the manufacturer. Some graters are dishwasher safe, while others require manual handwashing.
If you are unsure how to clean your grater, gently cleaning by hand won’t damage it. You can use a small brush to clean graters with crevices where cheese can get caught.
What Else Can I Grate With a Parmesan Cheese Grater?
There are plenty of other uses for cheese graters. Although many complex appliances are for chopping, dicing, and slicing, sometimes you only require a simple hand tool like a grater. Here are other ways to get creative with a parmesan cheese grater:
- Slice peppers
- Grate spices
- Shred carrots or potatoes
- Shred cabbage
- Grate chocolate
- Grate tomatoes and garlic
What is the Difference Between an Etched And a Stamped Grater?
You often come across the terms “etched” and “stamped” when shopping for cheese graters. These terms generally describe the process used to make the blades. Etched graters have surfaces with razor blade-like indents created by a chemical process. These graters tend to be sharper and ideal for creating fine shreds.
Stamped graters, conversely, have large stiff blades that protrude from the grater and pull cheese away from the block rather than cutting it.
How We Tested
We sampled nine cheese graters and tested them for sharpness, stability, comfort, and versatility. We used each of these graters to grate parmesan cheese to determine which one grates the best. Afterward, we rated each grater based on design, ease of use, comfort, cleaning, performance, and overall value.
Recap
People sometimes overlook cheese graters; however, these handy kitchen tools can make food prep much easier. You can use them for shredding soft or hard chunks of cheese. Thanks to their incredible versatility, you can also use them for shredding vegetables, zesting lemon or citrus, or grating spices.
We recommend the OXO - 32780 OXO Good Grips Multi Grater for grating parmesan cheese. This grater delivers everything you expect from a grater, from grating to zesting and shredding. It has an easy-to-clean stainless steel surface and an easy-to-grip handle. You can use it over any size bowl or on a flat surface. Additionally, it is worth the price.
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