Home › Home & Kitchen › Kitchen & Dining › Kitchen Utensils & Gadgets › Garlic Presses How to Clean a Garlic Press Published: July 9, 2026 · Updated: July 9, 2026
Clean it right after use before the garlic dries, pushing the leftover pulp out of the holes with the built-in cleaner, a small brush, or a toothpick, then rinse from the back so bits wash out the way they came. Most presses are dishwasher-safe, but a quick immediate scrub is what stops garlic cementing in the holes.
Recommended Clean immediately, poke the holes clear from behind with a brush or toothpick, then rinse or dishwash — The only hard part of cleaning a garlic press is the grid of little holes, where pressed garlic dries into a hard plug within minutes, so the trick is to clear it straight away while the pulp is still soft. As soon as you've used it, open the press and flick or scrape the flat cake of skin and pulp off the chamber. Then clear the holes: many presses come with a plastic cleaning insert whose pegs push through each hole, but a stiff washing-up brush, an old toothbrush, or a toothpick works just as well — poke from the outside of the plate so the plugs are driven back into the chamber and rinsed out, not jammed deeper. Rinse under a strong stream of water from the back of the holes. If garlic has already dried on, soak the press in warm soapy water for a few minutes to soften it first. Most metal presses are dishwasher-safe (check yours), but running it dirty through a cycle can bake garlic into the holes, so rinse first. Dry it before storing so it doesn't spot or smell.
