Grating on My Nerves

Don’t tell me to take out a food processor when it comes to latkes — or anything else that needs grating, for that matter. I’m not schlepping it out and then washing a bunch of parts for a few potatoes. Besides, many people don’t own food processors. So what’s your best bet when it comes to grating? I tried out six graters — three classic box styles, one modified version with interchangeable blades, and two flat ones. Finding the perfect combo with functionality, exertion, comfort, space, and cleaning was tough! I didn’t even think about the price on this one. Let’s see which grater is no small potatoes.

Testing, Testing

1. I grated a potato and a carrot and zested a lime with each grater, testing for comfort, exertion, and mess.

2. I stored the grater, evaluating its footprint.

3. I washed the grater to see the ease and safety of cleaning the blades.

Joined

Price: $16.95
Notes: Sharp blades, self-contained grated food, interchangeable blades. Comes with a garlic twist. Potatoes grated messily, piling in the front.
Stars: 4.3

Better Houseware

Price: $14.99
Notes: Fine grate, easy to use anywhere, needs more exertion than the others. Easy storage.
Stars: 4.5

Rainspire

Price: $9.99
Notes:

Dullish blade, requiring exertion on the mandoline side. Half the grated produce stayed in the front. Space hogger, scary cleaning.
Stars: 3

Norpro

Price: $13.53
Notes: The grated product had an odd shape. Heavy grater. Light exertion, glides easily. Easy storage. Needs careful cleaning.
Stars: 4

Spring Chef

Price: $14.99
Notes: Mandoline produces thin (better) slices. Mess is all in the front. Blades are sharp and effective. Space hogger, scary cleaning.
Stars: 3.5

KitchenAid

Price: $14.79
Notes: Comes with a container to catch and store the gratings. Blade on the duller end. Mess in the front. Space hogger, scary cleaning.

Stars: 3

Overall Winner: Better Houseware

It’s tricky because this one probably requires the most exertion, but the result is a fine grate, little mess, safe and simple cleanup, easy storage, and it’s versatile. The others made such a mess in the front, requiring me to collect the grating from the blades. Don’t know about you, but I like my fingers.

Tip: You know this already; this is just a reminder.

Work fast with potatoes because they turn gray quickly.

Soaking the potatoes in water can arrest the process, but that isn’t a help when you want to fry the latkes now.

My best tip is to mix everything together and only then grate the potatoes. This is where the tradeoff between texture and visual appeal comes into play. A food processor works way faster and is therefore better at preventing gray, but there’s nothing quite like a hand-grated potato latke with a dash of sweat and a sprinkle of knuckle.