Kate, Elery has this one. It works well and is half the price of the WS mandoline. The only problem I have is that the folding legs tend to fold up when I'm using it and I can't get the food to stay on the blasted plastic safety thingie, so I have to be very careful not to cut my fingers off.

Of course, Elery uses it and neither of those things happen, so I think it may be a very good portion of operator error on my part.

Annie

I have the Pampered Chef mandoline and it works very well. Just remember to watch your fingers when you get to the end of what you are slicing.

I have the Pampered Chef mandoline and it works very well. Just remember to watch your fingers when you get to the end of what you are slicing.

I got the Lee Valley one for Christmas. I'm sure it was cheaper than that! It's all metal, and very sturdy. I can julienne my fingers in four different sizes!

A cheap plastic mandoline will work fine for basic thin slices if the quantity isn't large. Slightly less cheap gets you feet and inserts for julienne cuts. We're still talking $25 or less. That's what I used for years.

Eventually SWMBO stumbled across al French mandoline, one of the fancy $170 ones, for $20 at a thrift store. It is nice, but the $25 cheapie worked nearly as well.

I have a fiberglass Matfer Professional Mandoline with a number of blades for it, and it's priced around $180, but I got it for much less on an after-Christmas clearance table many years ago. I mainly use it for slicing foods for the dehydrator, but it's given me great service and is used a lot - especially during zucchini and apple season when my dehydrator goes nearly non-stop. I also have one from Aldi that was under $20 and it does a fine job. It's not as well-made and sturdy, but the price was "right".

I would also suggest you purchase cut-resistant gloves to go along with the purchase of a mandoline. I think they are even more important than which mandoline or how much it costs. Choose a pair that fit well and aren't bulky. You'll still need good tactile sense of the ingredients you are cutting. Check a restaurant supply store for both mandolines and cut-resistant gloves.

-Grainlady

"--- I can julienne my fingers in four different sizes!--"

LOLOL! Finger food.

I find it not much use, unless you use it for very large quantities often.

The taking it out, installing the blades, working it, -----cleaning is a pain, waiting for the parts to dry out, puting everything back into the box, into the cabinet ----. Still you have to take out your knife to cut the last small pieces.

dcarch

I have a v- slicer and find it works just fine. It's $36 on Amazon.

I use a Feemster vegetable slicer ($10-$15), which I would not trade for any other kind. It makes any thickness of sliced vegetables like potatoes, cucumbers, carrots, onion, etc. with ease and has never needed sharpening.

I admit it's not the safest design out there but I always use a slicing guard and don't combine its use with alcohol consumption.

Ruthanna, I had one of those way back when,
in the 60's, I think.
I loved it!
Not sure what happened to it,
It probably got lost in a move.
I didn't know they still made them.

I have a cheapy plastic mandoline,
Think I got the first one in Walmart,
For around $9.95,
But that was some time ago.
Don't know how much they are now.

It works fine for me,
I use it maybe 3 or 4 times a week.
Just because it makes uniform slices.

It has 3 different thickness inserts for slices.
Also supposedly does julienne,
But its idea of 'Julienne' is much different than mine,
So I don't use those inserts.
It also has a grater insert that I don't use.

I try to remember to always use the safety guard,
Especially for the last bit of slicing.
I have not cut myself on it.
Yet.

It is small, light weight,
Easy to grab off a shelf,
and snap the thickness insert into place.
Just as easy to snap apart when finished
and swish in some soapy water to clean.

I don't know how it would stand up under heavy duty use,
But for average, everyday sort of food prep,
It is more than adequate.

Especially for someone like me,
With limited knife skills.

Rusty

I also have the very cheap one from Aldi. All the different blades work remarkably well, but then I have never used a more expensive one, so I cannot compare.

Rusty, our local community college offers a basic knife skills class for about $20. I took it a few years ago and found it to be very helpful. You could check if there's a similar one in your area.

I have a handheld mandoline that I use far more often than my big mandoline slicer. I don't know what you would use for most often, but for us the handheld model is super-convenient.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kuhn Rikon Handheld Mandoline

Ok, so I was tired, here's the link to Elery's.

I also note that America's Test Kitchen likes the OXO version, it's somewhere around $28.00.

Annie

Here is a link that might be useful: mandoline

"I got the Lee Valley one for Christmas. I'm sure it was cheaper than that! It's all metal, and very sturdy. I can julienne my fingers in four different sizes!"
That comment by Cooknsews made my day!! LOL!

I've seen some nice looking stainless steel ones at Tuesday Morning from time to time.

I have used mandolines since the 80s in a home and catering environment. Mainly used the Boerner V-Slicer for many, many years and still have it and loved it. Two years ago I got the little hand-held OXO version and it is perfect for home use. As always mentioned, just be careful when getting close to the end of the vegetable for slicing. The advantage of the OXO is that it is very small, has 3 slicing thicknesses, you just lean the rubber feet on the counter or over a plate or cutting board and it's fast. Takes up so little room & a snap to wash. When I bought it at Bed, Bath & Beyond, it was something like $15. I would buy it again.

I have a Japanese Benriner mandoline that I like very much. It is recommended that you wear Kevlar gloves when using it. I use it whenever I want to make julienne carrots, but I have found that for soups, grating the carrot works just as well. I also have an electric meat slicer that works well when I want uniform slices of something, and I tend to use that for slicing instead of the mandoline.

The Benriner Mandoline can be adjusted to whatever thickness you want - not just preset thicknesses, and this is what I like about it. I also like the julienne blades.

Lars

Here is a link that might be useful: small size Benriner

Thanks for the suggestion, Ruthanna.
I just might check that out.

But I have to admit,
"Knife Skills" (or lack there of)
Never entered my mind
Before I started reading this forum!

:>)

Rusty

I have the OXO V-blade recommended by Cooks Illustrated. I got it at Bed, Bath, and Beyond using one of their coupons.

My local Tuesday Morning had the deBuyer mandolines at a very reasonable price, but I chose the OXO because of the CI recommendation.

Here is what happens when you think you are too smart to use the guard:

Although it took some serious self-pep-talking to get it back out, I have used it since I hurt myself. I am very satisfied with the product.

I wish I had better knife skills. I have improved somewhat by watching a video on YouTube, but I still cannot do the technique where you move your curled fingers while slicing.

Here is a link that might be useful: OXO at BBB

Hello. Oh my goodness you are all so kind and helpful. I was out of town for a couple of days and am just checking back. I can't wait to go through and read all of your suggestions. Thank you for taking the time.

Kate

If you want a larger mandoline, check Craigslist and Ebay. I got my Dubuyer ProV on Craigslist for less than $100. People get them, then don't use them or feel intimidated by them--and then sell them. I also bought a good quality cut glove, because I am a klutz. :0) I have been glad I was wearing it on more than one occasion. Honestly, I don't use the mandoline unless I'm making huge amounts of something. I have a couple of good knives and I enjoy using them. But when I need to do a lot, fast...then the mandoline is a good tool to have.

I also have a small, cheapie for when I want a lot of paper thin slices of radish for a salad.

Cj

I have the Borner V Slicer Pro. It is plastic but has adjustable slicing. I learned the hard way and also bought the cut resistant Blade X 5 gloves. They have saved my fingers.

I have the "Swissmar Borner V-1001 V-Slicer Plus Mandoline 6 Piece Set" and it is great. It has 4 1/2 stars out of more that 450 reviews on Amazon and is under $40. With all of the money you save consider buying a cut resistant glove.

Another Borner V-slicer owner. I bought a very slightly used one off eBay for a good savings and then, about a year later, found one at a garage sale for a couple of bucks, so I bought that one also. Backup in case anything breaks.

What I don't like about the V-slicer is that slicing is confined to predetermined thicknesses (controlled by inserts.) There is no fine-tuning, dial adjustablility. To be truthful, I've only owned one for a couple of years & have only attempted slicing. Haven't explored julienning, etc. As far as slicing, I have problems keeping the veggies situated to get perfect 90 degree cuts. About halfway thru a cuke, I'm getting angled cuts. Also, I've not used it nearly as much as I thought I would...but have found that it earns its keep during harvest season just for making cucumber slices for hamburger dills. Another thing is that my kitchen is dreadful so I have mostly avoided any cooking with much degree of complication. Once I have a somewhat functional kitchen, I'll no doubt have more creativity but suspect that I'll want to upgrade to a mandoline that has more user control.

Attaching a link w/ some reviews of various inexpensive mandolines...

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Audition (Inexpensive)Mandoline Reviews