I value my fingertips too much to use a mandoline.
Do you have a cuisin art? No?? Why not??
It will slice, dice and make julienne fries....as well as knead bread, make pie crust and puree soups and make smooth dips.
AND...it won't turn on unless your fingera are out of the way!
Buy a high end food processor. It costs about what you would have spent on all the other doo-dads....AND it's easier on your fingers
Linda C

Nope. My mom gave me one for X-mas sevderal years ago and I played with it, but I am too short when it is on the counter and raised for slicing. The leverage was off for me. And I like my fingers! Give me a good knife any day.

I have a wonderful antique Moulinex La Machine 2 food processor that my grandmother gave me. But, it only has the S blade and the slicing/shredding disc. It doesn't do fries and the width isn't adjustable. I don't think different blades are available for such an old food processor... and I'd hate to replace it since it still works and I love it so.

I am very clumsy... I hurt myself on the box grater, so the thought of me with a mandoline is pretty scary. Yet the gadgetress in me still yearns for it! I want more, more, more!

I've used a good industrial/restaurant one and I've used several "home" models.

If I had my own industrial one, I am positive that I would be using it regularly -- so much easier all around than a food processor.

I would never again buy or use the "home" models. And I have lots of friends who have them in the way-back of the bottom cabinets, getting dusty.

If you're not up to getting the best type, just go to your food processor when you want to play around occasionally.

Joe

I have a Pampered Chef one I use all the time.
It came with a guard that you slip the food on so you don't cut your fingers. I love it!!! It slices, dices, grates and will julienne just fine.

Linda

I got a cheap one (like $12) at Ace Hardware years ago. It might be called a beriner, but same idea. Adjustable blades. I use it pretty often, whenever I need thin, even slices. Especially good for apple galettes. My KitchenAid food processor doesn't slice things nearly as evenly.

I've seen them for over $100 and I would never pay that much though.

The appeal of a mandoline is that it looks like a versatile, general purpose device. But it's not. It works well on certain vegetables for certain tasks. For others it fails.

I suggest getting a few specialized devices if there are cutting tasks you do often and in large quantity. Maybe a french fry cutter, egg slicer, tomato slicer, onion chopper, kraut cutter or other such gadgets designed to do a specific task and do it well. You probably need no more than a couple of those sorts of tools. For everything else, use a knife or food processor. Nothing is more versatile or easier to clean than a good chef's knife.

Jim

I have used my Feemster adjustable slicer at least twice a week for decades and can slice a carrot for soup or a cucumber for salad faster than I can set up my food processor. I do use the processor if I'm making something requiring large quantities of sliced foods, like French onion soup.

I have a Börner V-Wave Waffle Slicer, but I had to buy the finger guard separately, but Benriner Mandoline is good too, and it already comes with a finger guard. It's a lot easier to clean than a food processor, but I use mine only when I want to make waffle cuts. I tend to use a knife most of the time, since it is even easier to clean. I seldom slice large quantities, and so you have to consider what volume you are doing. I personally do not like using a food processor for slicing because I get uneven results and something often gets trapped where it shouldn't.

Lars

Here is a link that might be useful: Waffle slicer

Nope. I had one once, then it tasted blood (mine!) and I thought it was unsafe because you know what they say...once it tastes blood, it wants more!!!!

Sooz

Yes I have an inexpensive home model of plastic and metal and I have been using it for years when I want thin sliced potato rounds for scalloped potatoes as well as onions in fine slices. It has adjustable blades and a round thing which has needle like probes for holding the potato or whatever so your fingers never get near the blades. It folds up back into its box and takes up little room when put away. I love this thing. It's actually called a universal cutter. A friend bought it for me in Germany. Here it is:

SharonCb

I find my mandoline invaluable for preparing food for dehydrating. When you can slice food to the same thickness, it dries better, more evenly, and you don't chance having under- or over-dried food in the same load. Under-dried food often leads to mold. Most people can't wield a knife as accurately as a mandoline when it comes to thickness of slices. If you have a problem with potatoes molding after dehydrating, which they are nortoroius for, it may be the uneven thickness from hand-slicing. A mandoline is the only way I can get thin slices of zucchini to dehydrate - which we use as a fat-free potato chip substitute.

Many years ago I found a Matfer Professional Mandoline on a sale table at a kitchen supply store and never regretted the purchase.

I'm careful to use the vegetable pusher AND wear a cut-resistant glove for added protection.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Cut-Resistant Glove

I have one just like Sharon's. I use it mostly when I need to prepare a lot of sliced or julienned veggies. I have an alligator I prefer to use for dicing.

Here is a link that might be useful: The alligator

I also have one similar to Sharon's. It is used regularly. So much easier to get it out than setting up the food processor.
Linda

Yep, we use ours regularly. Ours has an adjustable width and multiple blades. Potatoes, apples, and squash for Pommes Anna- making potato chips, cukes for tea sandwiches, etc. I don't use my food processor for thin slice fruits or veggies. It is used more for chopping (chunks) and mixing and purees. You will find you will use your mandolin frequently if kept readily available and not stuck some place that you have to go searching for it. NancyLouise

I have one like Sharon's that I got from my mom when she downsized her kitchen. I love it, especially for thin slices.

Just remember to use the finger guard!!

I've never used a high-end mandoline, but of the more reasonably priced ones I've used I've found the V-slicers work better. I own the Boerner V-slicer and it works well except that I find the thickness settings limiting. If I were to do it again I'd look for something that has more options, preferably infinitely adjustable. But I use it so seldom that I'm not about to invest in a new one.

I haven't bought any food processor disks other than what came with my Cuisinart mainly because I find the slicing blade pretty much makes a mess of things. It's fine for something like scalloped potatoes, but for something where presentation matters like slicing veggies for a platter, I'd turn to a knife or my Boerner. Lars' last sentence summed it up perfectly.

Kind of OT but talking about FP's, here's a tip: The bowl on mine is used to thaw shrimp probably more than for any intended purpose. It's perfect for that.

I have two, a cheap one and an expensive one. But one evening I was using one, don't remember which, and I cut off a small part of the side tip of my thumb. I almost fainted, but my daughter-in-law was here, so she bandaged me up. I don't use them anymore.

I have one but it's not adjustable, I bought it brand new at a yard sale for $3. I've gotten my money's worth out of it, although I don't use it a lot.

Like Grainlady, I use it when slicing foods for dehydrating, it keeps them nice and even so they dry uniformly. I use it for scalloped potatoes and to make sweet potato chips, although I do those infrequently due to the caloric content.

Mine won't make french fries, I have an old metal hand operated french fry cutter for that because I've been known to take 50 pounds of potatoes, cut them into fries, par fry them and then freeze for the girls for snacks.

My Kitchen Aid is used for prepping cabbage for kraut and for other "big" jobs, but the tube is too small for slicing those scalloped potatoes.

I like both the mandoline and the french fry cutter, but both are kept in the basement because I just don't use them that often. The KitchenAid gets counterspace because I make hummus in it regularly and Elery just loves to play with it, he made salmon burgers in it on Saturday.

Annie

I have had numerous mandolines over the years. My most recent acquisition several months ago was a Microplane and it is by far the most efficient. It's even fantastic for making thin slices of tomatoes. And for dicing, I can't do without my Nicer Dicer (like Netla's Alligator) to the pointt of packing it when traveling.

Here is a link that might be useful: Microplane Mandoline

I have one like Canarybird's and I love it. I think it cost no more than $30 and does what it is suppose to do. I use it every Friday for thin cut french fries. I also use it for scalloped potatoes, cucumber slices for cucumber salad, tomatoes, julienne carrots. It will slice your fingers into very neat pieces too which is why I ALWAYS use the finger guard that came with it. Those blades never ever get dull! I've seen the more $$$ ones but it is not necessary to spend that much.

I have the Börner V Slicer Plus (similar to Lars) which includes all the attachements (including the finger guard) and though I don't use it often, when I am making large quantities of evenly sliced stuff it is great. I love it for potatoes (both flat sliced and waffle) and any other veggie that I want nice even thin slices. If I am grating/shredding stuff, I use either the food processor or I have a small hand held Salad Shooter that I love for grating carrots.

If something happened to the Börner V Slicer I would definitely replace it!

Alexa

Here is a link that might be useful: V slicer plus attachments

My sister gave me hers because she was afraid to use it. It is pretty big and complicated. I think it has sat on the top shelf of the pantry long enough to be passed on to the next sister.

alexa, I have one of those old hand held Salad Shooters too, I only used it to grate zucchini for the freezer or to grate cucumbers for relish. Now I have the food processor for that, but I've held onto the old salad shooter, I'm not quite sure why...

Annie

I recently fell in love with mine all over again. I bought an inexpensive one and hated it because the blade was dull, and I almost threw it through the window after trying to get it to make sweet potato medallions for me... so the other week I dragged it into my favorite knife sharpening/kitchen gadget store (even though I hadn't bought it there), set the mandoline and a cucumber on the counter at the owner's sharpening station, and asked the owner (who has earned a stupid amount of my money by enabling my kitchen gadget addiction, and has seen me enough that he knows me by name) to either "make this one work, or sell me one that does."

He unscrewed the blade to examine it, pointed out that it was full of burrs in addition to being ridiculously dull, sharpened it to a razor point, and refused to charge me for it. I asked "How are you supposed to stay in business if you don't charge me?" and he shot back a knowing smile and said as long as he keeps people with addictions like mine coming to his store regularly, that won't be an issue. So true!

I'm a kitchen accident waiting to happen, so I would never, never, never use it without the hand guard, no matter what... especially the way the blade works now!

"I recently fell in love with mine all over again."

Maybe I should give mine another chance. There seems to be many who like their mandolines.

Jim

I have the Oxo mandoline and use it when doing bulk tasks. I like that you can adjust the slice by the measurements on the dial. The holder is a bit bulky but I use it to make sure I don't lose bits of my hand. It is very simple to adjust for the different slicing styles. I store it in the original box in my pantry.

I used to have one like canarybird posted and it worked just fine. I got the Oxo as a gift. I probably would not have purchased it for myself because I don't like to spend $$$ on myself.

I have a V type mandoline and love it. I had a cheap one a long time ago and rarely used it.
The one I have now is so handy and so easy to clean and so fast.
I use the hand guard every time.

I received a mandoline as a wedding gift, a Cuisinart. I tried to use it two or three times, but the sheet metal base wasn't nearly stout enough. The thing kept buckling as the food hit the blade, causing it to nearly double the thickness of the slice (that is, when it managed to complete the slice). I kept trying to love it, but it just never quite worked and I was always afraid that because it was so flaky I'd end up slicing a finger off. My knife does just fine for now, until I run up against a huge prep task. Then maybe I'll consider getting a plastic slicer like Sharon!

Bri

I use one of the V-slicer types. We got it about 25 years ago and have used it every since. It has a protector that fits against the palm. Couldn't do without it. Makes sliced cukes and etc. in a flash.

Just bought a hand held mandolin and made great potato chips. Heated the oil in the fryer, held the mandolin over the oil and sliced the potatoes and let them drop into the oil. Used tongs to turn and separate the chips and salted when I took them out. Best fries I've ever had. Just don't over-cook.

Bri - I've got the Cuisinart, too. They should be ashamed of themselves. The cheaper plastic V-slicers blow it away.

I have the Borner V-slicer too. I use it most for thin julianne vegetables, mostly carrots and zucchini. As Lars said, it's better than a food processor.
I see them being sold new at big flea markets sometimes.

Bobby, I have/had a Borner V-slicer like Sharon's, if I still have it I'll send it to you. If nothing else, you can give it a test drive to see if a mandoline is something you want to add to your kitchen tools.

Cathy

I also have the Borner V-slicer and I use it at least 3-4 times a week. Nothing beat is for slicing thin potatoes, carrots, etc....
I have two julienne attachments, for different sizes julienne. One makes perfect fries and the other makes perfect julienne for salads, stir fries, etc...
They cost 20 Euros here at the markets and I bought the food holder extra.
Lisa

Canarybird, I have a mandolin just like yours, and I love it. It gets used weekly, more often in the spring/summer with all the fresh vegetables. Don't know what I did before I got it--probably had some badly sliced food! For huge amounts, like slicing cucumbers for pickling, I still use my food processor, but for everyday use and food prep I adore my mandolin!

Yes, I use mine several times a month, normally.

Main use is cutting onions and shredding cabbage or doing carrots.

Now that I have a fryer, I may well start making French Fries with it.

You won't lose your fingertips as long as you obey the one main safety rule...

USE THE FOOD GUIDE.

I've read some mixed reviews about the Oxo, but I still may try it anyway. Thanks for the feedback. I know that you can't use the food guide for every kind of food... it won't hold a carrot, so those gloves Grainlady linked to might be a good thing too.

Try the Boerner V slicer. It's the one I have. It's inexpensive and very easy to use.

I love mine and use it regularly BUT learned several years ago never to use it after having a glass or two of wine.

YEP, NEVER. That bad ole' wine will cut the tip of your finger off and you won't even realize it until the cukes turn red.