How to Clean a Food Grater, Rasp or Microplane

Every good cook knows the value of adding freshly grated nutmeg, cheese or citrus to a recipe. It’s the manual cleaning of the trapped food within the grater afterwards that can dampen the experience. Let this article help you find the easiest methods and strategies to keep your grater clean and prevent residue buildup.

Strategies to prevent buildup of hard to clean residue

Strategy 1
When you are using the finest grinding side of the grater – apply a layer of plastic wrap (cling film) to the outside of the grater. The plastic forms a protective layer between tiny crevices. Once you are done grating peel of the plastic and collect the zest that would otherwise have remained unused.

Strategy 2
Oil the grater before grating. Apply a thin film of odorless vegetable oil onto the serrated edge. The oil itself should not get in the way of your grating task. When it comes to the washing up – the food residue will come off far easier.

Cleaning the Grater

Step 1 Soak the grater in warm soapy water.

Step 2 Use an unused toothbrush or a short bristled pot brush. Brush against the cutting side of the grater in order to preserve the life of your pot brush. Thus hold the grater upside so that you can brush opposite to the grating motion.

Dish washer - you can place your grater in the dishwasher for a thorough cleaning.  However if your grater is made from tin then it may be prone to oxidizing and the dishwasher would be the last place you want to put it.

Step 3 Drying – It’s best to leave your grater to dry in the open air on a dish rack.