According to an article published in the British newspaper The Telegraph, the pepper grinder was invented in France back in 1842 by Peugeot, the company now more famous for making compact European cars (See Reference 1). The pepper grinder takes whole peppercorns and, as its name implies, grinds them into small pieces like a powder, turning it into the pepper sprinkled onto food for a spicy kick.
Origin
Pepper comes from a plant originating in southeast Asia. Whole dried peppercorns from this plant are small and round. They need to be crushed into flakes or powder to sprinkle onto food. A spice like pepper tastes better when freshly ground. This way, the pepper keeps its flavor and aroma. Before the invention of the pepper grinder, cooks used a mortar and pestle to grind up the spice.
Function
A pepper grinder does what its name says. It takes whole peppercorns and grinds them into fresh pepper to flavor a dish. Pepper grinders can be made from wood, metal, plastic, or really any other material and they come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
Features
A pepper grinder looks like a cylinder. The top can be removed to load peppercorns "into a central chamber, through which runs a metal shaft." This metal shaft or rod connects to a grinding mechanism at the bottom of the cylinder. This grinding mechanism has a few levels of moving pieces, like teeth, that cut the peppercorns into smaller and smaller pieces as a person twists the top of the cylinder.
To sum it up, a person turns the top of the grinder. The top is connected to a rod attached to several sharp blades at the bottom. Turning the top turns the rod that moves the blades to grind the pepper.
Versatility
Many pepper mills also allow a person to adjust the size of the pepper flakes coming out of the grinder: large or coarse to small or fine. An adjuster that must be turned is usually found at the top of the grinder or down at the bottom near the blades. The Cooks Illustrated website, in their comparison of different grinders, preferred pepper grinders that adjust the fineness at the bottom.
Considerations
Since pepper grinders come in a variety of forms, although function is most important, perhaps form takes precedence. The first thing most people may want to consider is choosing a design that works for their kitchen: size, shape, overall aesthetic.
The grinder should be durable, with sharp blades that can grind the pepper finely. All the pieces, like the top and rod and blades of the pepper grinder should fit well together, and it should be easy to turn. The top should be wide so that peppercorns are easy to pour into the grinder without spilling, and the cylinder should seal tightly so that the peppercorns remain fresh until they are ground.
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