Ina Garten Can’t Live Without This $12.99 Kitchen Tool

And neither can I!

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Every September, as kids head back to school, I get a twinge of nostalgia. Though back-to-school has new meaning to me these days (I'm a mom of three), I’m always reminded of my very last back-to-school.

It was September of 2008 and I had just moved to New York City. Instead of pencils, notebooks, and gluesticks, my back-to-school list included a brand new set of knives, chef whites, and a list of kitchen gadgets I’d never heard of.

Instead of Target or Staples, I headed to J.B. Prince Company, a well-loved kitchen supply store in the heart of Manhattan. I was about to start my journey at the Institute of Culinary Education and I needed to gather all the tools of the trade. 

To this day, I still own the same knives and one very loved kitchen tool: a Microplane grater. This multipurpose tool has always been by my side. It has moved to multiple homes, and come along with me on private chef gigs, video sets, work events and more. It still looks brand new, and is just as sharp as the day I purchased it. 

Turns out, I’m in good company for my love of this handy little zester, grater, and everything in between. My culinary icon Ina Garten has been known to show her love for her Microplane grater. 

Read More: The Simple Ina Garten Trick That Will Keep Your Knives Sharper for Longer

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Why You Need a Rasp (Microplane)

While Ina refers to it as a rasp, the Microplane is crucial to many of her most popular recipes. For example, I make her Lemon Chicken Breasts at least once a week. For this genius recipe you need nine (yes, nine!) cloves of minced garlic and the zest of two lemons. The Microplane grater makes incredibly short work of this normally grueling kitchen task. I grate the garlic first, then switch to the lemon, which pushes out any residual garlic stuck in the grates.

While zesting lemons is key to many a famous Ina recipe, the Microplane can do so much more than that. If you are a cookie perfectionist like me, using the Microplane to smooth the edges of Ina’s Raspberry Shortbread Hearts is a pro move. Once baked, simply do a few passes of the Microplane to scrape off uneven edges and form symmetrical hearts, even if they bake up a little wonky. 

I’d be remiss to leave out the most important task that a Microplane can tackle. Cheese! Many pasta dishes rely on the light and feathery texture only a Microplane can create from Parmesan or Pecorino Romano. Ina’s Easy Spring Carbonara is the perfect example. If you use pre-grated cheese, the sauce will clump. If you use a box grater, the shreds won’t be fine enough to dissolve into the sauce. 

Almost 20 years later, I think it’s safe to say the investment I made in a Microplane has paid off!

BUY INA'S FAVORITE KITCHEN TOOL NOW: Microplane ($12.99)

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