The history of vegetable graters is a long one, dating back to the Edo period (1603-1867). There is even an entry for copper-made vegetable graters of the same shape and design as those see today in the Wakansansaizue illustrated encyclopedia, compiled in Shotoku 2 (1712).

Even today vegetable graters continue to be produced in the same manner as they were in antiquity: by hitting a chisel (one that resembles those used for woodworking, but are used for metalworking instead) against a copper plate, creating sharp blades one after another all by hand. The most difficult facet of their creation is to produce a grater with blades that both allow one to grate with ease while also giving off a grated product that retains all of the original ingredient’s flavor.