Make your dishes taste amazing with freshly ground pepper
When adding pepper to a dish, freshly ground is the preferred choice. This is because the pepper has less time to oxidize, which means it has a more robust flavor and loses less of its health benefits. To get the best freshly ground pepper, you need the best pepper grinder.
What to know before you buy a pepper grinder
How does a pepper grinder work?
Most pepper grinders feature two conical shaped burrs. When the user rotates these burrs, any peppercorns caught between them are cracked and crushed. When the crushed pepper becomes small enough to pass through the burrs, it comes out the bottom of the grinder to season your food. By changing the distance between the two burrs, the user can adjust the fineness of the pepper.
Manual vs. electric pepper grinders
While grinding pepper requires some effort, it probably wouldn’t be described as a strenuous activity. Still, for convenience, it’s possible to purchase either a manual or an electric pepper grinder. The benefit of an electric pepper grinder is that it does the work for you. Many may even feature an LED light so you can better see how much pepper you’re adding to your food. The downside to an electric pepper grinder is you have the added (but nominal) expense of replacing batteries.
What to look for in a quality pepper grinder
Sturdy food-grade material
Peppercorns can be tough. When you’re shopping for a pepper grinder, you want a model that’s built to last. While the grinding mechanism — the burrs — should be made of either carbon steel or ceramic, the housing may be manufactured using a wide variety of materials. You can find wooden pepper grinders, stainless steel pepper grinders and plastic pepper grinders. If the pepper grinder you’re considering is plastic, make sure it’s BPA-free.
Variety of grind settings
All pepper grinders have the option to create fine ground pepper, coarse ground pepper or something in between. The best models, however, have markings on the housing so you can be precise and consistent with the grinding to achieve the same results each time.
Easy to fill
The best pepper grinder is a top-fill model — just remove the lid and fill the container as needed. Alternatively, a side-fill model is acceptable, but in general, that type requires a little more care and precision when filling.
Easy to clean
Most pepper grinders come with instructions stating they should not be washed in a dishwasher. Many models don’t recommend hand-washing, either. Cleaning with a damp cloth is the preferred method. Because of this, you want a pepper grinder that can be easily disassembled so you can wipe down all the components.
How much you can expect to spend on a pepper grinder
While some high-end pepper grinders may cost as much as $200, the average homeowner doesn’t need to spend that much to purchase a quality model. For $15-$50, you can get a pepper grinder that meets all your expectations.
Pepper grinder FAQ
Where does pepper come from?
A. Black pepper actually comes from a flowering vine. …read more
Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
