A rotary, Moulinex-type grater was the obvious next venture for the Microplane people. It makes complete sense: the thin metal that is necessary for the Microplane process could be greatly strengthened by being formed into a cylinder, and the heavy work of grating large quantities might be made easier with the rotary action.I'm an enthusiastic owner of two of the original Microplane graters, so I quickly ordered one of these. The first thing that gave me pause was the lip on one side. It serves no real purpose, and its presence makes the operation right-handed only. The grater certainly looks nice, but the plastic used is low-grade, and it doesn't feel durable at all.
The first problem I encountered was when grating a block of hard, old Parmesan. Even holding it sideways, the grated cheese clogs up inside the barrel, either eventually falling out in messy blobs or requiring a chopstick to extract it. Fresher Parmesan only compounds the problem.
Next is that it doesn't fit together very well - a thin sheet of cheese quickly slides around the outside of the barrel and jams it, requiring disassembly to remove. Also, on my particular grater, the end of the squeezing arm that is supposed to match the curvature of the barrel is seriously misaligned.
Next, it hurts to use it! The hand that holds the grater quickly aches from constantly counteracting the rotational action. That gets quickly tiring. I soon remembered why I gave my Moulinex grater away. That hand also has to squeeze the arm down into the hopper, made doubly painful by the weak, bendable plastic construction that requires extra force.
However, it got through its first grating job in one piece, though it took me a minute or two to straighten my left hand out. But next was cleanup: the flat Microplanes are a cinch to clean - a quick run under a hot tap and perhaps a wipe with a soapy sponge. This grater separates into two pieces, each with obnoxious nooks and crannies that food particles have to be chased out of.
Finally, on its second grating job, on a block of soft fresh Parmesan this time, the barrel simply broke apart. Upon investigation, I discovered that it is held together by seven tiny hooks - any lateral pressure on it causes the hooks to slip out. Further, the barrel is not actually attached to the rotary handle at all. It is held in place by two " plastic protrusions, and those are only on one side - which explains where the lateral pressure came from. It was probably designed that way so that alternate barrels could be inserted - good idea, but the designers' solution is a shoddy one.
So, Microplane people - how about an all-metal, professional-grade, ambidextrous version? This one should be subject to recall.
