Garlic Presses

JeanneCake · April 14

My husband is addicted to Eric Kim's Buttered Gochujang noodles and our garlic press is (now) broken. So I am in the market for a new one; I'd like something that is easy to clean (the old one wasn't, it was the type that had a section with holes for minced, and then a section for slicing.)

Which one do you recommend?

Alex · April 15

OXO (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) to the rescue!

Kerry Beal · April 15

I'm a Zyliss fan myself.

here

**curls** · April 15

I also recommend the Zyliss garlic press.

**MaryIsobel** · April 15

This Konic press from Ikea is my favourite so far: https://can.desertcart.com/products/253609566-ikea-koncis-garlic-press-stainless-steel-16-cm-000-891-63?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw_e2wBhAEEiwAyFFFo0SaWN27hJBy_fKHbLcS8X4sJrhgkuFJoQ9Ee10RwSNd_0lOPqhWyBoCY_YQAvD_BwE

liuzhou · April 15

I'm not a big fan of garlic presses. I have, however, had this one for about twenty years. It's a no name brand from my local supermarket. The good thing about it is that the mesh part the crushed garlic goes through is removable, making for easier claning.

Although I use garlic almost every day, I prefer to use a Chinese cleaver to just bash it or chop it depending on what I'm cooking. Even easier cleaning, too.

SusieQ · April 15

1 hour ago, MaryIsobel said:

This Konic press from Ikea is my favourite so far: https://can.desertcart.com/products/253609566-ikea-koncis-garlic-press-stainless-steel-16-cm-000-891-63?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjw_e2wBhAEEiwAyFFFo0SaWN27hJBy_fKHbLcS8X4sJrhgkuFJoQ9Ee10RwSNd_0lOPqhWyBoCY_YQAvD_BwE

This is the best I've ever had. Cleaning is a breeze. No, really.

JoNorvelleWalker · April 15

(eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

Has been earning its place on my kitchen counter for sixteen years.

Katie Meadow · April 15

The Chinese grocery store one is kinda cute. I could see losing that little detachable thing in short order. I agree that garlic presses are very annoying. Sometimes I just use the box grater instead. That's annoying too, but easier to clean.

lindag · April 15

I have the same one that Jo has. It was rated #1 by Cooks Illustrated.

It didn't used to be so expensive though (like everything else these days).

**ElsieD** · April 15

I have the same one that @JoNorvelleWalker and @lindag have. I've had it for years and if I ever needed to buy another I'd get the same one.

AlaMoi · April 15

had one once. round, with lever. tiny holes. mega-PITA to clean . . .

so, presuming one has a knife/knives, and a thick/bangable/smashable cutting board . . .

(honest question!) why a press?

one can chop, dice, mince - from "whole' to smashed, from smashed to knife pureed . . .

I find 'chopping off' both the root end and the tip - followed by a nice flat smash - generally removes 99.25% of the skin.

from there it's only a question of how fine-sized the garlic must be, for the dish.

rotuts · April 15

I have two or so garlic presses .

one , from my mother , much older than I

cleaning varied . it nice to have one w the tool that pushed out the residue

for shure .

but they all have on issue : you need to be able to buy good quality garlic

that's not as easy as it used to be.

some versions , possibly from China , are tasteless

so , I now use Fz garlic , minced in little units :

Dorot

https://dorotgardens.com

quite some time ago , only TJ's had the garlic , and other Fz herbs from the same maker

now , it a bit more ubiquitous

after all , Market Basket carries the line. basil is quite nice . parsley pretty bad .

is this the same as fresh , you crush w your press ?

, depends how good your fresh garlic is .

Edited April 15 by rotuts (log)

JeanneCake · April 16

My husband loves more garlic than the recipe calls for (Kim calls for 6 cloves, my husband likes it better when I double it LOL) and it's just easier to push peeled cloves through the press than to chop it myself. I chopped it by hand last night, and knowing that he loves to have this at least once a week (!) and I refuse to use that pre-minced stuff in a jar or the squeezy bottle (it tastes off to me) I'd like to have options

I agree with @rotuts about the sad state of what's being sold as "fresh peeled garlic" - Market Basket in particular is guilty (at least the one near me) of selling soft, tasteless garlic lately. I'm going to look for this frozen stuff!

JeanneCake · April 16

19 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

The Chinese grocery store one is kinda cute. I could see losing that little detachable thing in short order. I agree that garlic presses are very annoying. Sometimes I just use the box grater instead. That's annoying too, but easier to clean.

I had one of those, and you're right, I lost the little insert!

rotuts · April 16

@JeanneCake

try Dorot , ( Fz ) you might like it .

its constantly ' garlicky '

I was not very precise when I mentioned ' store garlic '

I meant fresh , unpeeled heads of garlic . I avoid it because Im never sure what Im getting.

more often, at all the local stores I go to , its inconsistent .

grew garlic for a time. several different types. I liked Russian hard neck , if that's what it was called . had real fire in each clove.

can't find that at the supermarket .

one caveat of the frozen Dorot : after you open it , and pop out a frozen small cube

seal the rest as best you can from freezer flavors , or burn .

like to hear if its helpful , consistently , in your kitchen.

Shel_B · April 16

On 2/26/2003 at 1:35 PM, Stone said:

I find it lets out too much of the oil resulting in too strong a flavor (if raw) or easily burnt flavor if cooked at all.

It can result in too strong, or intense, a flavor, but there are plenty of ways to control that. Likewise, the garlic being easily burnt.

For example, we know that adding a small amount of water to the oil in which the garlic is cooking can eliminate the chance of the garlic burning. Or adding the garlic after other ingredients.

There are times when I want the garlic to be as fine as that which comes from the press as it blends into sauces more smoothly and innocuously, almost disappearing. Other times I'll throw an entire clove or more into a dish only to remove it/them when the subtle flavor has been given up, other times I'll grate it, or make a paste, or add large pieces to a dish. Removing the core from the clove will temper its intensity.

The flavor and intensity of garlic is easily controlled.

Shel_B · April 16

On 4/14/2024 at 5:55 PM, Alex said:

OXO (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) to the rescue!

Not recommended because the number and size of the holes makes it difficult to easily control the result. The hopper is somewhat small. I bought one and gave it away. YMMV

**ElsieD** · April 16

Every year in these parts, Carp, a village outside my city along with Perth, a place a bit further out, hold what they call Garlic Fests. All kinds of garlic is sold there there, all locally grown. Russian Red was one of my favorites.

Shel_B · April 16

20 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

(eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

Has been earning its place on my kitchen counter for sixteen years.

+1, although it is a bit of a PITA to clean and I sometimes wish the hopper was bigger. But the results are quite good. I remember when ATK/CI did their review and commented that the holes and their placement were excellent, which waswhat motivated me to purchase it. It's also well-built and sturdy.

**TdeV** · April 16

As an amusing aside, today I've been reading THE COMPLETE GARLIC LOVERS' COOKBOOK FROM GILROY, THE GARLIC CAPITAL OF THE WORLD (it's a bunch of greatest hits recipes). I suppose I first went to that festival in 1979 or 1980. Anyway, I mentioned to DH tonight that I was going to make a dish from the book (maybe 60 clove chicken) for our next Wine Time and wondering how much information I need to disclose to the (unwary) participants. I mean the cookbook says that after one cooks garlic for a long time, it's quite sweet. But what it DOESN'T mention is that the participant will be tooting for several days to come, and their sweat will be marvellous. I remember feeding a friend a roasted garlic head/toe with brie and baguette (dinner) and she went home to her husband (who had not attended). In the middle of the night he moved out of the marital bed to the couch because he just couldn't stand the toots!

Shel_B · April 16

20 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

The Chinese grocery store one is kinda cute. I could see losing that little detachable thing in short order. I agree that garlic presses are very annoying. Sometimes I just use the box grater instead. That's annoying too, but easier to clean.

Yes, a press can be a PITA, but sometimes it's the right tool for the job, as is every other way of dealing with garlic.

Have you considered the shark skin and ray skin graters. I saw one in use recently and have become intrigued.

JeanneCake · May 5

An amusing side note - we ended up buying both the Zyliss and the Kuhn presses - I bought one and Husband bought the other unbeknownst to the other. So when I delightedly brought my Kuhn home (I get Amazon stuff delivered to the bakery, he gets stuff delivered to the house since he's home all day) to show him, he produced the new Zyliss and showed it off 😆

Anyway.

The end result is that he loves both of them (I opened my package at work and he opened his so returning one wasn't a possibility) and he now volunteers to prep the garlic (😊) so he can have the dish as often as he wants LOL

gfweb · May 5

Whatever you mash it with...don't frigging burn it.

😀

weinoo · May 6

On 4/15/2024 at 9:28 PM, TdeV said:

As an amusing aside, today I've been reading THE COMPLETE GARLIC LOVERS' COOKBOOK FROM GILROY, THE GARLIC CAPITAL OF THE WORLD

I'm pretty sure I have that book somewhere...I do remember, and this is quite some time ago, that when driving past Gilroy at harvest time (be it heading north or south), the air was perfumed mightily.

As far as garlic presses go, just a waste of space in a drawer. Nothing that a sharp knife or a microplane can't handle.

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