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Comment by Bud | Hacker News Reader

As an aside, if anyone is looking for an absolutely insane pepper mill, get the Männkitchen Pepper Cannon. You will never need another one. It's a big solid hunk of aluminum, stainless steel burrs, and puts out 5-10x the amount that other mills do per crank. Easier to adjust fineness of grind than any other mill out there. Evenness of grind is also superior.

It has changed my entire life in the kitchen.

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A similar pepper mill, made in the USA (not China) for a lower price:

Unicorn Mills Magnum ($59) http://www.unicornmills.org/magnum-plus.html

I have not tested either, though I have heard of the Mannkitchen Pepper Cannon and from what I know it is probably the best one you can get if you are not concerned with price. We are talking high-volume output, only one or two pumps needed per dish. Or as they say in the marketing, "Pepper your steak in 7 cranks instead of 70." Comparison video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25IO6GJ3zfg

Of course, the classic pepper mill is the Peugeot Paris, available here in every size from 3 inches to 30 inches (don't buy from Amazon, there are a bunch of counterfeits): https://us.peugeot-saveurs.com/en_us/paris-mills

I did a bunch of pepper mill research not too long ago - AMA.

I have one of those Peugeots, got it for my wedding, and thought I would love it. It's gorgeous, but sadly, it's just plain awful at doing what pepper mills are for: generating pepper. It's better as a forearm workout than as a grinder of pepper. Sad, but true.

That Unicorn can't compete either, btw. Grind rate is much slower and it's made of plastic.

Männkitchen's marketing sounds exaggerated...until you use the product. It's just unreal.

The unicorn may be slower than the cannon, but it is far faster and easier to use than every other pepper grinder I've had experience with, and it's much more affordable. Regarding the plastic exterior, it has endured across 2 continents for at least 8 years for me, so the plastic is not cheap.

Good data. Thanks!

I have had a unicorn for 5-6 years or so and am very happy with it. My only "complaint" is that you have to side load the peppercorns which can get messy. But otherwise the best I have ever used.

I was about to recommend this very mill. Have had it for just shy of 14 years, and it still makes great grinds.

That said, I just looked through the Männkitchen website, and I'm sorely tempted.

"Unfortunately, we are completely out of stock."

Mid-year at the earliest...

Wow, it's available for only $199 at https://mannkitchen.com/pages/pepper-cannon

"But, will there be too much pepper?"

"No. There will be the exact amount of pepper you want, ground more consistently, in a fraction of the time."

I use one of these, for $13:

https://www.oxo.com/pepper-mill-437.html

I've bought two more for folks whose kitchens I occasionally cook in. It puts out a massive rain of pepper with a comfortable cranking motion. I would not trade it for a $200 pepper grinder.

Yup! That’s the one I use. Best so far for price and ease of cranking. Others might take less turns, however this one I can just spin nonstop until the steak is covered in pepper if I want.

If it breaks, I will just get another one for $13.

FWIW, I've had the Cole & Mason Derwent pepper miller for 5 years and have liked it. For $50, I'm not sure I use it enough to make up for the extra $150 the Männkitchen costs. It's cool though!

If I have a lot of pepper to grind, I'd use an electric spice grinder.

How’s this better than a $15 mortar and pestle?

I mean for $200 let’s mill that bitch out of a solid block of Ti and give it tungsten carbide burrs…okay that’s probably a $1000 kitchen status symbol.

A grinder has at least two significant features missing from a mortar and pestle: you have easy control over the fineness of the grind, and you can measure rough quantity in number of turns. Plus a grinder is generally handier for a bit of pepper on this or that.

I've actually used a mortar and pestle to prepare huge quantities of pepper for evenly coating a 17-pound prime rib, so I can answer that.

First, if you use a mortar and pestle, peppercorns will randomly fly out. This is not convenient.

Second, it will take you a long-ass time. This is also not convenient.

Third, you will have basically no control over evenness of grind/crush. And that evenness helps.

I know the $200 will make many folks blanche, but I'm telling you, that all melts away once you use this thing. :)

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