The Best Garlic Presses for Mess-Free Mincing

Luckily, a trusty garlic press can ensure nothing gets between you and your beloved garlic bread. These useful contraptions handle mincing (and in some cases, peeling, too) while keeping your fingers clean and your cutting board spotless. There are lots of options on the market, so we consulted a few experts to find out their go-to garlic presses and why these ones reliably get the job done. Read on to shop their picks of the best garlic presses.  

When shopping for a garlic press, look for stainless steel. The metal is strong enough to easily push through garlic, sturdy enough to withstand the test of time, and odor-resistant. Plus, the non-reactive material won’t produce funky smells or flavors after coming into contact with garlic’s natural acids (or anything else in the kitchen).

Achy palms aren't a fair trade for evenly minced garlic. Avoid the stress on your hands by selecting a garlic press with an ergonomic design that’s easy to clamp and simple to operate. Look for slim handles and rubberized grips to ensure you won't feel like you’re wielding a grip strengthener.

If you frequently cook with more than a couple garlic cloves, you might prefer a press with a chamber large enough to accommodate more than one in a single go. Choose one that can swing open a full 180 degrees so you can easily load in multiple.

You want a tool that makes cooking easier, not one that leaves even more clean-up. To that end, look for a model that “ejects” the peels, saving you the trouble of digging them out with your fingers. Some models even have built-in cleaning tools that get into the tool's nooks and crannies.

If you’d like the option of being able to pop your garlic press into the dishwasher, look for one that notes it's dishwasher-safe (many today are). Extra points go to one-piece models, rather than those that separate into multiple parts and require disassembly and reassembly.

With its functional design, heavy-duty build, and affordable price, the Alpha Grillers' garlic press is a game-changer. First off, there’s no need to peel! The press crushes each clove and pushes the garlic through fine holes to produce a ready-to-use paste, while the peels conveniently remain inside the inner chamber. When you’re finished, just toss the tool into the dishwasher or give it a quick rinse by hand (using the included cleaning brush for some extra help, if necessary). You can also use the included silicone peeler tube to roll the papery exterior off the cloves. Patsy Ross, the marketing manager at garlic company Christopher Ranch, says a silicone roller is her favorite way to peel garlic. “Thanks to the friction of the cloves on the roller, the skins just pop off,” she explains.

This ergonomic press was designed with the comfort of your palms in mind. “It is heavy, stout, and easy to use,” says Judy Bozzo, a long-time chef in Gilroy, California (often touted as the world's “garlic capital"), noting that she especially loves this gadget’s soft non-slip grips. The chamber is roomy enough to hold a few cloves at a time, so you’ll likely only need to clamp down once or twice to produce all the minced garlic you’ll need for a meal. The press also features a built-in cleaner to release any stubborn peels or lingering morsels. 

Unpeeled cloves can be tricky for many garlic presses to handle, but this well-designed press minces them with relative ease. A powerful lever design pushes each clove through beveled holes while leaving the skins behind. The sieve on the press also swings outward so you can easily scrape off any remaining garlic clinging to the tool. Though it's a bit bulkier than other models, the strong metal cuts through tough peels with minimal resistance. And thanks to curved handles, the press is comfortable to grip as you’re squeezing your garlic into a chunky paste.  

Some presses leave little bits of garlic and peel stuck inside. This one anticipates those cleaning pitfalls with a built-in mechanism that scrapes the front of the grill as you open up the press, ensuring every bit of minced garlic makes its way into your meal. Open the press further to reveal a platform of “teeth” that fit perfectly into the holes, to push out any stuck-on debris. The press even makes it easy to remove the skins left from mincing unpeeled cloves—simply push a “peel eject” button. By the time the press reaches the sink, it only needs a quick rinse.

A squeezable press isn’t the only design for cutting up garlic—you can also twist your way to minced garlic galore. This model uses beveled teeth to cut through cloves bidirectionally, yielding minced bits piled into neat triangles ready for immediate use. The multifunctional device is also pretty proficient at mincing up other foods like nuts, ginger, and herbs. Simply give it a swift rinse when you're done, or let the dishwasher do the work for you.

If a rocking motion sounds preferable to squeezing, this garlic crusher could be just the ticket. Simply grip both sides of the tool, rest the holes on top of a clove, and push down while teetering the plate back and forth to crush. You’ll end up with finely minced cloves ready for cooking, just like you would with a press. The stainless steel material is odor-resistant, and you can safely run the tool through the dishwasher when you’re finished.

This smart rolling design allows children (or anyone!) to safely lend a hand in the kitchen. Simply place peeled cloves into the interior chamber, snap on the lid, and roll it around on a cutting board or countertop. As the wheels turn, a stainless steel blade slices cleanly through the cloves. Once all the garlic is crushed, take the contraption back from your little helper, carefully remove the blade, and wisely bestow upon them the maxim that everything tastes better when you make it yourself. 

While unpeeled cloves pose a challenge for many presses, some models are specifically designed to extract and mince the garlic while leaving the skins behind. Other models also come with handy tools to streamline the peeling process. There’s also the old-fashioned way: “Using a large chef’s knife, press down on the flat side of the knife (away from the sharp edge) and smash the clove,” advises Ross. “The skin will pop off.”

Since ginger is denser and more fibrous than garlic, many clamp-down designs struggle with it. “I usually grate ginger,” suggests Bozzo. A microplane would likely do a better job than a garlic press.