My kitchen drawer was a graveyard of single-purpose tools. Garlic press. Citrus zester. Ginger grater. All three sat there taking up space, each used maybe once a month. Then I bought a Microplane-style rasp grater for five dollars at a discount store, and within two weeks I had thrown all three of those other tools into the donation box.

Here is why this one cheap tool does more than gadgets that cost three times as much.

Garlic: No Peeling Required

Take a clove of garlic, skin still on. Run it across the grater. The flesh grates through into a fine paste while the papery skin stays intact in your hand. Discard the skin. You now have minced garlic in about five seconds with no garlic press to clean. A garlic press has about six parts and is annoying to wash. The grater rinses clean in three seconds under running water.

Citrus Zest Without the White Pith

A traditional zester removes strips of zest. A rasp grater creates fine, fluffy zest that distributes evenly through batter and dough. And because the blades are so sharp and shallow, they grab the colored outer layer without digging into the bitter white pith underneath. You get all the flavor with none of the bitterness.

Ginger Paste in Seconds

Peel a knob of ginger with the edge of a spoon—or do not, if you are lazy like me and the ginger is organic. Run it across the grater. It turns into a wet paste that dissolves completely into sauces and marinades, no stringy ginger fibers to bite into. I used to mince ginger with a knife and always ended up with chunks. The grater solves that permanently.

Also Good For

Parmesan cheese—it grates into airy clouds instead of dense shreds. Whole nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, and chocolate for garnishing desserts. Hard cheeses, spices, and chocolate all benefit from the fine, even texture this grater produces.

My kitchen drawer now has room for actual useful things. Three tools out, one five-dollar tool in. The garlic press is someone else’s problem now.