The Easiest Way To Grate Cheese: Over Parchment Paper

Parchment paper makes grating prep easier than ever

The hack: Make kitchen prep cleaner and faster by grating ingredients over parchment paper.

How to do it: Forget the pains of picking up after every morsel that spreads across your cutting board after grating cheese, citrus zest or chocolate. Take a piece of parchment paper, fold it in half and use it as your work surface. When you're done grating, bring together the opposite edges of parchment and turn it into a funnel. Neatly place your freshly grated ingredients wherever they belong—whether that's straight into a container or atop your imminent mac-and-cheese dinner.

Why it's worth it: No one likes creating more of a mess than necessary. Plus, your grated ingredients are now ready to go in a neat pile when you need them.

Tip: This works best for larger projects. When you're looking to grate three different kinds of cheeses for your next baked pasta, this tip will help you move efficiently through tedious prep.