mandolin, kitchen, not music, thoughts

[masraum]

My mother got us a OXO mandolin a few years back for the kitchen. I've seen folks use them in videos and they look pretty cool. We don't use this one much, and when I have, it seems like it would be as quick and easy to just do the work with a knife. Maybe I'm just doing it wrong.

the one thing that they do seem to get you is consistency. slices are of a very consistent thickness.

So, do you have one or have you had one and what are your thoughts?

[VincentVega]

I dont use it a ton but for scalloped potatoes, fries, slicing a ton of veg for a party... it is excellent. Too much hassle for regular simple prep.

[javadog]

I use one a lot.

JR

[jyl]

I have a really nice French steel one. Gets used for certain cuts (thin slices, sticks) if I need a largish amount.

[greglepore]

Super, but get a kevlar glove.

[TimT]

I have an inexpensive Japanese mandolin that I use a lot. It is incredibly sharp...I've successfully removed the fingerprints on two of my fingers using it

Scalloped potatoes, sliced cukes and carrots for picking, add the "teeth" and shred daikon, papaya, mango etc, for "Som tum" salads.... Just watch your fingers...

Its a "Benriner" brand.... a whopping $25

[mjohnson]

We have the Benriner one that lots of restaurants use. It was at most $40 online.

For normal slicing I just grab a sharp knife. For making a big bowl of "slaw" from paper thin slices of celery/daikon/carrots/whatever I hit the mandolin. It's magic.

Buy two kevlar gloves, btw. And please note that they aren't idiot proof. I have one with good sized holes in the knuckles - only by dumb luck do I not have holes in _my_ knuckles.

[masraum]

Thanks all. It works ok, but I have probably been using it for the wrong sort of slicing. I can't remember what I've used it for in the past that I was disappointed with. I think I tried French fries once and felt they were a bit too thin. I think it only goes to 1/4" thick. Tonight, I used it to slice purple cabbage for a salad that needed something like a slaw cut. It worked pretty well, but towards the end, it fell apart. Maybe I'm just expecting too much when it gets really thin.

I can see how it would work better for things like potatos, carrots, etc....

[VincentVega]

Most of my food is rustic but when I need a quantity to be exact I use the mandolin. It seems minor but sometimes it really matters that everything is the same size so it looks and cooks the same.

[intakexhaust]

We have an Ultrex. Happened to use it last night for scalloped potatoes and just read the model as 14184. Wife really wanted one and did her online homework. Thinking we've owned it for 8 or 9 years. I don't buy into many kitchen gadgets but this one is outstanding. The safety grip with prongs works most well.

[red-beard]

Wife put ours in a drawer, left the blade in, then covered it with beer glass Koozies. I went to grab the Koozies and got a surprise. I nearly took the top off my finger. This was followed by some blood loss and a LOT of swearing. 2 weeks later, the finger is almost healed.

[Hugh R]

BTDT with slicing the tip of a finger, ONCE!

[PetrolBlueSC]

I have one but rarely use it, except for the times I need uniformly cut items. I have never been cut, but it scares me.

[KevinTodd]

I have a stainless steel pro-v mandoline that I use for huge jobs--it's commercial and can do almost anything to perfect spec, but it takes a few minutes to set up and load, so I typically use my little hand-held jobber I got at Bed, Bath & Beyond. It has a pusher so not too much issue with sliced knuckles.

Love the ease and consistency of a good blade, though.