Mandolines

[cookman]

The Benriner Mandoline is well-made and very inexpensive. It is available in two sizes.

Here's a link to one source for it:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CEVL...glance&n=284507

[Jason Perlow]

I've owned three "less expensive" models, and I love my Oxo.  If you really want to spring for something more expensive, there may well be merits in doing so.  But the Oxo has met my needs well.  There aren't a bunch of blades to switch out and keep track of.  It's pretty much a self-contained unit, and for everyday slicing needs, it's an excellent value for the price.

←

I concur, we recently purchased an Oxo, and it makes amazing gauffretes and does a great slicing job.

[snowangel]

A quick title search for Mandolines reveals several topics.

I have a cheapie. It's OK, but I'm happier with my knife. Perhaps I would notice a difference if I had a great one.

[BryanZ]

I also use an OXO and find it to be merely okay. It's certainly functional, but I wish the blades were sharper.

[dougery]

The Benriner Mandoline is well-made and very inexpensive. It is available in two sizes.

Here's a link to one source for it:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000CEVL...glance&n=284507

←

Benriner is definitely the way to go!

[MarketStEl]

I'm not sure this is the same thing, but it certainly looks like it's in the general category:

I just went out and bought one of those Kyocera ceramic julienne slicers. I haven't tested it yet, but you use it as you would a mandoline, except that this is a handheld item--one hand holds the slicer and the other presses on the hand guard over the food.

There's a regular slicer too that I intend to go back to get. ($25 each at Williams-Sonoma; haven't seen them at Fante's yet.) The advantage of the ceramic blade is that it holds its edge much, much longer than steel.

(It came with a leaflet touting Kyocera's ceramic kitchen knives, which I have yet to see around these parts.)

[lperry]

Another vote for the Benriner. I've had mine about three years and it's still going strong!

[slkinsey]

I've had an all-stainless Matfer professional model for around 8 years that I'm very happy with (I've seen "Matfer Professional" sold online made of composite fiberglass -- not the same as mine). One advantage I think it has over the more popular Bron professional is that the blades are all completely removable. I can, for example, easily sharpen the blade on my mandoline.

[andiesenji]

I have had a Bron for more than 30 years - have replaced the blades on it twice and although I have tried the smaller, "handier" and cheaper ones, I keep going back to the Bron when I need to do stuff like piles of onions for confit, potatoes, particularly waffle ones, cucumbers for pickles, julienne vegetables, etc. You can do more things with this mandoline than with any other, and I have tried them all.

The blades pivot up and down for thicker/thinner, the machine is placed on one end or the other to choose the type of blades.

Fantes has the best price.

Scroll down to where it says $109.00 They also have the instructions which sometimes do not come with the machine from some vendors.

Replacement blades are here

Edited January 17, 2006 by andiesenji (log)

[rxrfrx]

I have a plastic (with stainless blade) model that I got at at Kitchen Etc. for $30 about 3 years ago. I've never had a problem with it, the thin setting is always thin enough, the thick setting is useful sometimes, and it's always sufficiently sharp. I don't really understand why people pay more.

[scubadoo97]

I have both the Bron and the Benriner. The Bron is a little wider and allows for cross cuts that the Benriner won't do. The Benriner is lighter, smaller and easier to clean. I more often use a chef knife and board but there are times a mandoline works very well for even slices.

[andiesenji]

I paid more because at the time I got mine, there were no others available with a holding guard and I had just taken the tip off my right middle finger with one of the cheapies. I paid $69.00 for it in 1972, which was a lot of money at the time.

I place it in a bus tub (looks like a shallow plastic dishpan but much sturdier) and go to work with the thing on a low stool while I sit. I can go through ten pounds or more of potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, onions and just keep raking them out from under the mandoline into the corners of the tub. This would not work with one of the smaller ones unless I could find a tall, narrow container on which it could rest.

I personally think it is extremely versatile and I like it.

However each person has to choose what is right for them. Unless you are using it often for fairly large batches of stuff, it is rather pricey. However I feel it has saved me a lot of time and a lot of grief over the years.

My philosophy has always been the best tool and the right tool for the job and when I got this it was and it has held up well.

If I am slicing one onion or three potatoes, etc., I use a knife.Bus tub

I bought mine at Smart & Final for less.

Edited January 17, 2006 by andiesenji (log)

[MarketStEl]

I have had a Bron for more than 30 years - have replaced the blades on it twice and although I have tried the smaller, "handier" and cheaper ones, I keep going back to the Bron when I need to do stuff like piles of onions for confit, potatoes, particularly waffle ones, cucumbers for pickles, julienne vegetables, etc.  You can do more things with this mandoline than with any other, and I have tried them all. 

The blades pivot up and down for thicker/thinner, the machine is placed on one end or the other to choose the type of blades. 

Fantes has the best price.

←

And I wouldn't even have to have it shipped...I could just go there and pick one up.

I do note that Fante's charges the same price (OK, $0.01 less) for the Kyocera slicer as Williams-Sonoma. I don't know if this is true across the board, but it suggests to me that W-S may not be as outrageous as I thought it was. At least not on widely available or relatively inexpensive items. Their exclusives are probably another story.

[rlibkind]

It's no heavy duty restaurant model, mostly plastic, but my Zyliss works well.

[emilyr]

I sold Pampered Chef a couple of years ago (mostly just to get the free stuff) and got their mandoline as a prize one month (but it runs at $45). I think it's pretty good. I like that it has little grippy feet as well as notches on the bottom so that it'll sit across different sized bowls. It has 4 different blades (a grater, a julienne blade, a v-shaped blade, and an adjustable width straight blade), but I mostly just use the straight blade. It's stayed pretty sharp and the holder isn't too cumbersome. My family's on a scalloped potatoes kick right now and we try a different kind about twice a week, so it's come in handy a lot lately.

Oh, yeah...they don't call it a mandoline. I just checked the website, and they call it the Ultimate Slice & Grate.

[castironchef]

I've had an all-stainless Matfer professional model for around 8 years that I'm very happy with (I've seen "Matfer Professional" sold online made of composite fiberglass -- not the same as mine).  One advantage I think it has over the more popular Bron professional is that the blades are all completely removable.  I can, for example, easily sharpen the blade on my mandoline.

←

I have the same one (as best I can tell) and love it.

[tippingvelvet]

I'd like to purchase my first mandoline slicer but don't know where to start. Does it need to be stainless steel?? How many blades are really necessary?? Is there one particular brand or model that stands out. Do I have have to spend over $100 to get something good?

[moosnsqrl]

I've only had one so no comparison available, but I've been quite happy with my Bron. The blades are built-in and you just re-arrange or adjust them for thickness and style of cut, so it's efficient and I don't have to keep track of loose parts. I think they sell for around $125 but I can't imagine ever having to replace it, so I didn't think that was too high of price to pay for a liftetime of perfect, effortless gaufrettes, julienne and crinkle-cut vegetables.

[andrewB]

Bang for the buck, its gotta be a Benriner. They rock!! For commercial use, something which has a built in blade needs to be 'semi disposable,' and at about $35 a pop, you can do that with a Benriner. Also seems to hold a blade for quite some time. Never seen the point of buying an expensive one because the blades aren't near as good, and the construction not worth the extra cost. Some do have removable blades but are freaking a pain to get sharpened properly and are more thickly made and not as fine as the Benriner... Thats my 2 cents anyway...

[lamingtongirl]

I'd like to purchase my first mandoline slicer but don't know where to start.  Does it need to be stainless steel??  How many blades are really necessary??  Is there one particular brand or model that stands out.  Do I have have to spend over $100 to get something good?

←

I have a Japanese one that cost $25. There is a new one on the market that has a ceramic blade made by Kyocera. Both of these mandoline slicers only have one type of slice but you can adjust the thickness of the slice.

[Gifted Gourmet]

No, you need not spend over $100 to get something good ... I have the OXO Good Grips which is just fine for my needs ...

comparison grid for mandolines

discussion here on mandolines

yet more discussion

[stef_foodie]

I have the OXO Good Grips as well and am very happy with it! I looked at the Bron and was drooling over it for a long time, but to be honest I was intimidated by it. Decided to get the OXO because of the great reviews, and because I've been a long-time OXO user. So far I haven't regretted it yet. The price of course is a bonus!

[jgm]

I'll chime in as a happy Oxo Good Grips owner. However, I use it only occasionally, such as when making scalloped potatoes and other dishes where it's important to have uniform slices. If I do a vegetable stir-fry, it's helpful then, too, to reduce substantial volumes of vegetables to slices --sometimes really thin slices. Otherwise, I just get out a knife and work on my knife skills.

However, there are eG members who've indicated they've been happy only with the more expensive models, but these members do lots of cooking and preserving. If that's how you'll use it, you may want to consider getting the best you can find.

If you're doing "normal" volume cooking, such as for a small to medium family, I would think the Oxo would meet your needs well. It cleans up easily, and has only a couple of parts that are removed for cleaning.

I will tell you that I've spent around $100 for another other slicer, which have had multiple blades that have to be assembled into the frame for use. The blades are extremely sharp, must be handled with caution and installed carefully, and storing them is often a pain in the butt. They were all supposed to fit into a holder that came with it, but assembling the blades and the frame in the holder took more concentration than a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle, and was not nearly as enjoyable. I think I used that slicer about three times before throwing it out and getting the Oxo.

[moosnsqrl]

I'll chime in as a happy Oxo Good Grips owner.  However, I use it only occasionally, such as when making scalloped potatoes and other dishes where it's important to have uniform slices.  If I do a vegetable stir-fry, it's helpful then, too, to reduce substantial volumes of vegetables to slices --sometimes really thin slices.  Otherwise, I just get out a knife and work on my knife skills. 

However, there are eG members who've indicated they've been happy only with the more expensive models, but these members do lots of cooking and preserving.  If that's how you'll use it, you may want to consider getting the best you can find.

If you're doing "normal" volume cooking, such as for a small to medium family, I would think the Oxo would meet your needs well.  It cleans up easily, and has only a couple of parts that are removed for cleaning.

I will tell you that I've spent around $100 for another other slicer, which have had multiple blades that have to be assembled into the frame for use.  The blades are extremely sharp, must be handled with caution and installed carefully, and storing them is often a pain in the butt.  They were all supposed to fit into a holder that came with it, but assembling the blades and the frame in the holder took more concentration than a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle, and was not nearly as enjoyable.  I think I used that slicer about three times before throwing it out and getting the Oxo.

←

Most of my cooking is "normal volume" but several times a year we feed 150-200 neighbors and that's when all of the heavy artillery comes in handy. If I'm just doing routine slicing and dicing I prefer the more zen approach of knives. But I've never managed to make gaufrettes with a knife.

And your last paragraph made me laugh out loud. That's exactly what I was thinking when I mentioned that the Bron is all self-contained. Where DO all of those things go? At our house "Slow Food" simply means that I am tearing the kitchen and pantry apart, looking for some integral part or piece. I'm glad I'm not alone.

[ojisan]

I wrote a review of mandolines on Amazon (username: santacruztacean) that you might find useful:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006ABV5...glance&n=284507

Your choice should be based on what you'll be slicing, and the volume.

Phil