My new microplaneMy new microplane

Why have I so stubbornly refused to get one of these wonderful gadgets for all these years?! My good friend Dave Stefanik and I were shopping at Sur La Table the other day and he was in the middle of a recital of all the expensive kitchen equipment he has that he never uses, including several thousand dollars’ worth of All-Clad cookware, when we passed a display of Microplane graters. He said, ‘Now that is one purchase that I’ve never regretted!’ To which I replied, ‘But I have the Zyliss rotary grater!’ and he said, ‘No, you simply have to get one of these!’

So I did. And today I tried it out for the first time. I know everyone else bought these things 10 years ago but I resisted, partly because I couldn’t believe they were that much better than the graters I already had, and partly because they shortly became available in a bewildering variety of shapes, sizes, and choice of coarseness. You know, research has proven that consumers are actually unhappier when given more choices, not happier.

Anyway, I was flabbergasted at the ease with which this grater transformed a hard, elderly chunk of parmesan into a fluffy cloud of freshly grated cheese, virtually effortlessly, cheese I was ready to throw away because I knew my Zyliss wouldn’t have been able to do a thing with it. I am now completely sold on these Microplanes and urge any readers who don’t already own one to go buy one forthwith.

Comments

Is it my imagination, or didn’t I buy you a Microplane about five years ago? Maybe that was for Uncle Ted. It is a nice tool.

I agree about having too many shapes to choose from. They originally just had that one, then all of a sudden there were 10. People see that and get frustrated and don’t end up buying anything.

Must have been Uncle Ted because I’ve never had one until now. Dave tells me this shorter rectangle is the most useful size and shape, rather than the long, skinny type. Which one do you have?

It WAS me and I use it all the time!! I love them!

The crepe recipe looks fabulous. Must try that. Next time I’m at your house I will try the microplaner. Looks interesting.

I have the long skinny one. I like it, but it can be hard to get things like lemon zest out of the rasp, and I won’t even use it for garlic or ginger. Maybe if I sprayed with beforehand it would be easier.

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