Kuhn Rikon Ratchet Spice Grinder, Ceramic Mill for Salt and Pepper, Green

Wow, I wish I'd bought this ages ago! I now realise how awful my old one was/had become. It was ceasing to grind hardly at all and, on inspection, the grinders had all but disappeared! This works with minimum effort and grinds like a dream. It looks swish too. I'm so happy I want another one in a different colour, but that would be ridiculous!

I had been 'humming and hawing' over getting these for ages as I had gotten into the habit of replacing all of my kitchen gadgets, but I decided against it as the simple glass (and somewhat dirt-cheap and recycled) salt and pepper grinders/mills I had been using were functioning perfectly, but this all changed last week when one of them broke. Having already done my 'research' and settled on getting these Kuhn Rikon ones, I gleefully decided to order one of the red ones to see what it was like. As always, it arrived super-quickly thanks to Amazon Prime, so I excitedly opened the package to see what the grinder was like, so without further ado, let's get on with the review! >>>>WHAT'S IN THE BOX? Er... What box? If you're expecting these to arrive in some fancy retail packaging, you're in for a bit of a let-down. My one arrived in one of Amazon's jiffy bags wrapped in a cellophane bag and with a carboard tag tied to it with an elastic band. I guess in terms of plastic pollution this is a good thing, eh? >>>>FIRST IMPRESSIONS? It's a little difficult to give a first impression on something which has just got a single purpose, but in terms of build quality and the quality of the grinder mechanism, it was love at first sight. >>>>FILL 'ER UP! As this comes with nothing much in the way of instructions, I was initially confused as to how to fill it with salt. There's nothing in the way of a bit that unscrews as is normally the case with salt/pepper mills, so it was with some delight that I pulled open the 'chute' on the side of the grinder and realised that this was how to fill it up! Within seconds I had a box of sea salt crystals and was gleefully filling up the grinder. >>>>RATCHET AND CRANK Oh. My. GOODNESS, these things are fun! In addition to how kooky they look, they're equally kooky to use. Instead of the usual twisting mechanism that 99% of salt & pepper mills have, the mechanism on these comprises of a lever which you push forwards and pull backwards that turns the grinder. You can adjust the coarseness of the salt/pepper by turning the dial in the recess at the bottom of the gadget and then throw the lever forwards and backwards. The amount of salt/pepper that comes out while enthusiastically throwing the lever is impressive and the effort required to do so is minimal. >>>>SUMMING UP These are absolutely fantastic salt/pepper/spice grinders with a great, kooky design and bold looks, which are surprisingly fun and tactile to use. I can't vouch for their longevity yet so the jury's still out, but I have no reason to believe that they're not going to last. There's one thing for sure though - you bring these out during a dinner party or when friends are around, and they're going to be a talking point.

Excellent ratchet grinder. As I am very disabled I was worried that I wouldn't be able to grip the ratchet or have enough power in my arms to push it to and fro but with a little effort I can get plenty of pepper out. We have it set on quite a fine grind and it works magnificently. It is easy to adjust for a coarser grind when needed. The best feature is the little drawer on the side for refilling you just tip the corns straight in without having to disassemble the whole grinder. I also like the transparent section which allows a clear view of the amount and type of peppercorns in the grinder. This is a much cheaper solution than other rheumatoid arthritis friendly grinders and it is a really stylish bit of kit.

The best salt & pepper set I have ever purchased or used. Ingenious lever design enables easy, controlled grinding. Love the colours!! Deserves a red dot award for design.

Great salt and pepper grinders! A little expensive but so worth it especially for me as I have arthritis in my hands. So no more buying loads of batteries or struggling to grind, so simple back and forward movement. You can change how coarse or fine you want, they are large and sturdy. Easy to get a grip if you lack mobility. Easy to refill. I love them, won't go back to using anything else. At last I've found what I was looking for. Very happy customer. And they arrived very quickly. A good range of colours. 👍😀

Looks great and so easy to use both grinding peppercorns and refilling . Excellent choice

Best pepper grinder out there. Easy to refil and easy to use, even with arthritis

Excellent gadget, better than any peppercorn mill I’ve had before

I got this for my mum who has some arthritis in her hands plus had a broken wrist from a fall, because the grinders that require you to twist the top and bottom were a bit too much for her. This one is miles better as it is easy for her to do the grinding movement without straining her wrists or fingers. Very happy with it.

I have one of each colour for salt, black pepper and white pepper. Love it. So easy to use.

Découvert dans la famille, je me suis empressé de commander ces moulins a poivre (et sel) parfaitement géniaux. La poignée les rends utilisable même par des petites mains d'enfant, mouture réglable de gros a très fin. En finition inox pour le sel et poivre, je vais en commander en couleur pour les herbes séchées.

i am happy with it; it works fine for me

(Update: November 15th, 2025- this sturdy little pepper grinder is still performing as if it was brand new. And- even though I tend to be a bit hard on my kitchen stuff- it also looks brand new! It’s still lots of fun using it, every single time.) My dad always showered his food with lots of cracked black pepper. He didn’t care for anything spicy like Tabasco sauce, but always seasoned everything he ate with lots of pepper. When he made dinner, he would sometimes forget that not all of us were the kind of pepper fans he was, so he would apply a good shake of the large-grind pepper he favored to our food, too. I always disliked that, and would assiduously scrape it off the best I could. I’m not sure why, but recently, I began craving lots of pepper on my food. And I wasn’t craving “regular” pepper- I wanted the kind of pepper I remembered my dad using, and you can’t buy that at the store- at least, I couldn’t find pepper like he used in any pre-ground form. I had an old pepper grinder that had been in a drawer, so I ordered some “regular” peppercorns with my grocery order from a big box store. I quickly realized that I was going to have to go out of my way to find the right combination of grinder and peppercorns, as what I ended up with on my food were tiny gray flakes that tasted like- nothing. I threw the seldom-used cheap-o pepper grinder and flavorless peppercorns away. Time for a fresh start. I got to work reading reviews on Amazon, and one of the video reviews for this grinder (I forget the name of the reviewer, but thank you so much, grinder-reviewing person!)- made the filling and use of this pepper grinder look fun, and easy. It seemed kind of pricey, but as with anything, you pay more for something well-made (and really cool-looking.). This grinder is indeed very simple to use. You can easily adjust the size of the flakes, and I was relieved I didn’t have to unscrew some elaborate parts to fill the grinder, as was the case with that old pepper grinder. I decided to kill two birds, and ordered the Kuhn Rukon grinder, and also some tellicherry whole peppercorns (“Happy Belly Tellicherry Peppercorns”) which were recommended by another Amazon customer. I ordered the red one. It is actually kind of beautiful! It reminds me of the 60s. It’s like something Austin Powers or Twiggy would have in their kitchens. It’s such a bright, happy, vibrant red. And, while it is made out of plastic, it feels very sturdy. All you do is open the little aperture in the side, pour in the peppercorns (which smelled fantastic, and so deliciously pepper-y), then close the aperture, get your food, hold the thing over the plate, and pull the lever back and forth. And- there you have it! A lot- or a little- delicious, freshly ground pepper! I am an older person, and have arthritis in both hands. I have no trouble pulling the lever back and forth to grind the pepper. This grinder is very efficient at putting out pepper, and I was having too much fun probably, pulling the lever when I was trying it out. I soon found out that one or two pulls only, back and forth, puts out plenty of ground pepper. I really like that about this pepper grinder: I no longer have to stand there and grind, and grind, and grind, and barely get anything on the food. I never realized the difference in taste and quality it makes in daily cooking and eating, seasoning with fresh, flavorful just-ground pepper. I mean- it seems so obvious. But I just used whatever I could find at the grocery store. A big bag of “gourmet” peppercorns didn’t cost much- you get 16 ounces for $9.49 of the Happy Belly kind here on Amazon, as of this writing. After trying these peppercorns, I’m never going back to grocery store shelf ground pepper, or grocery store (i.e. stale) peppercorns. I think I will keep the bag of peppercorns in the fridge, as it will take even pepper-loving me quite awhile to go through 16 ounces. If you are at all on the fence about buying this pepper grinder- my gosh, go for it! It just arrived, so I can’t attest to the longevity of the product, but I will update the review over time. I was skeptical of it, as you are of anything you buy without trying it out yourself. But I was relieved to find it seems very well-made, and doesn’t have a lot of fiddly moving parts that might go wrong. And it is so fun to use. I have a friend who loves to cook, and I am getting her one of these for Christmas, along with some peppercorns. I know she will love it. I am VERY happy with my purchase! Highly recommended. Thank you.