Best garlic gadgets

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Best garlic gadgets – on test

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Best garlic gadgets – on test

Caroline Hire – Food writer

Published: November 27, 2013 at 5:29 PM

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When it comes to fiddly ingredients, garlic cloves are up there. We tested peelers, presses and choppers to bring you a review of time-saving best buys.

Best for… peeling

Joseph Joseph scroll

Joseph Joseph Scroll

Pros:

Speedy and efficient

Features:

Peels multiple cloves, dishwasher safe

Comments: This is an upgrade from the standard silicone tube peeler. For a few extra pounds it makes shorter and more efficient work of removing the skin from individual garlic cloves. Designed with a wider middle, multiple cloves are held in place unlike a design with equal diameter. If you’re sick of getting garlic under your nails then this is the answer.

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Best…garlic press

Lakeland garlic press

Pros:

price
requires little strength

Features:

crushes peeled and unpeeled cloves finely
dishwasher safe

Comments: This garlic press doesn’t offer any added features and that’s what we liked about it. We found presses that both crushed and sliced tended not to do the latter well. Garlic presses can be tricky to use if you have smaller hands or stiff joints, but this one was super lightweight and manageable. It doesn’t offer a cleaning tool to get the garlic out of the holes but it left comparatively little behind and was easy to scrape clean with a knife.

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Best for…slicing

Oxo Good Grips

OXO Good Grips garlic slicer

Pros:

creates fine
even slices

Features:

Sharp
fully protected mandolin-style blade
dishwasher safe

Comments: For fine, uniform slivers of garlic, this gadget couldn’t be beaten. It slices to a thickness of 1mm, much more quickly and efficiently than possible by hand. It’s ideal for when presentation matters and gives maximum garlicky flavour.

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Best for… the no-nonsense cook

Cuisipro grater

Cuisipro Fine Rasp

Pros:

fast and fine grating
versatility

Features:

snap-on cover
measurements for grated ingredients
dishwasher safe

Comments: This superfine handheld grater turns garlic into a paste in a matter of seconds. If you want results and aren’t fussy about the smell of garlic on your hands then this is an excellent choice. It’s equally suitable for ginger, nutmeg, Parmesan and zesting, plus you can measure up to 3 tbsp using the handy storage cover.

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Best for…garlic-free hands

Garlic twister

Garlic Twist Cross Cutter

Pros:

easy clean
no waste

Features:

stylish and simple design
dishwasher safe
ultra durable

Comments: Most of the gadgets we tried left a little garlic behind, this was our favourite of the two that didn’t, producing a finished texture well suited to most dishes. We found the trick is to turn the grater in one direction to crush and then do a half turn in the other to create two small piles of garlic that are easy to remove. No little holes to poke the garlic out of, this gadget can be rinsed and washed with no effort.

Available from The Garlic Twist (£19.95)

For all of the products mentioned in this review, various retailers have been suggested by our affiliate partner Monetizer 101 and are not suggested or chosen by BBC Good Food. For more information on how these retailers are selected and the nature of our partnership, please read the Monetizer101 FAQ page.

Buyer’s Advice

Why buy?

A sprinkling of salt and the flat side of a cook’s knife is surely the most efficient way to render garlic to a paste. Slicing accurately is equally at your fingertips using a sharp knife. The downside? Very garlicky hands. And that’s where garlic crushers, slicers and peelers come in. They also speed up preparation time.

What should I buy?

The finer you chop or crush garlic, the stronger it tastes. This is because more of the cells that release the strong aroma and potent flavour are broken down. If you’re after a powerful hit, a press or crusher is your best bet. For a more delicate flavour, opt for a slicer. We think a peeler is a worthwhile investment as even the products that don’t require pre-peeling still work more efficiently when you do.

Garlic bulbs

What we looked for

Quick to use: We chose simple designs that articulated smoothly. Stiff or clunky mechanisms were discarded.
Easy to clean: Garlic gadgets have a reputation for being difficult to clean. We avoided products with awkward to reach parts and all were dishwasher safe.
A good crush or slice: We looked for tools that left our garlic evenly chopped or sliced with little wastage.

More advice on buying kitchen kit

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This review was last updated in October 2018.

Do you have a garlic gadget you can't live without, or do you prefer a manual approach? Let us know in the comments below...

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