Choosing the best mandoline slicer can be extremely challenging. You first need to consider what ingredients you will be cutting. Then you need to think about how much you will be using it and the type of cuts you’re going to want to make with it.
In addition to all the above, you need to choose which style of mandoline you want and whether you want a plastic or a stainless steel model. To help you, we’ve created this buying guide which will tell you why you should own a mandoline as well as the features to look out for when choosing one.
Lastly, we’ll run you through some of the best mandoline slicers on the market today before giving you our final opinion on the subject.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
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Why Buy A Mandoline Slicer
Mandoline slicers are awesome. They’re not only easy to use but also extremely affordable and very handy to have around. If that’s not enough, here are some of the main benefits of purchasing a mandoline slicer for your kitchen:
Ease Of Use
As we mentioned above, the main benefit of using a mandoline slicer is the ease which they slice ingredients.
Instead of slowly cutting all your individual fruits, vegetables, meats, cheeses, and other ingredients, you can just slide them up and down your mandoline seamlessly.
The best part is, you can slice your foods in various sizes and styles. You’ll no longer need to feel limited to straight lines, and with the right safety precautions you can slice away without risking your fingers getting in the way.
Speed
If you have a large household or like cooking for larger groups, then a mandoline slicer will help you get the job done quickly. You won’t have to spend time balancing your ingredients on a board and spending hours cutting them uniformly.
With a mandoline slicer, you can chop through even the toughest vegetables, quickly, efficiently, with minimal effort. A mandoline slicer allows you to cut down your kitchen preparation time by half without sacrificing quality or your fingertips.
Consistency Of Cutting
Sometimes it can be very difficult to achieve a consistent cut when chopping ingredients and there is nothing more frustrating than uneven Juliennes.
A mandoline slicer not only cuts down your prep time, it also makes sure that every cut is virtually the same as the last.
This consistency is great for baking vegetables and cheese in a gratin. It’s also perfect to avoid ending up with mushy veggies instead of professional looking dishes.
Food Presentation
If your goal is to provide your family or guests with professional looking dishes than there is no better tool than a mandoline slicer. All your ingredients will be equal and you can choose between a variety of blades styles, all of which offer their own set of unique aesthetic benefits.
Versatility
That brings us to versatility. With a mandoline slicer, you can choose between slices, crinkle, waffle, Julienne, and matchstick cuts. All these are purely useful for aesthetic reasons, but they can make a disk look truly amazing.
Mandoline slicers are perfect for preparing a huge variety of dishes. Whether you’re vegetarian, are serving up cold cuts, or even a cheese platter, a mandoline can do it all.
Sharp Blade
It’s worth noting that the best mandoline slicers have as sharp, if not sharper blades than regular knives.
There is a common misconception that mandoline slicers do not cut through ingredients as efficiently as other cutting tools. They’re wrong! A lot of mandoline slicers even cut through food more efficiently.
Source: hsn.com
Safe Slicing
If used correctly, mandoline slicers can be extremely safe alternatives to traditional chopping. While many are scared of using them in fear of slicing their fingers, these devices come with specific holders meaning your fingers never need to be at risk.
You can also purchase special gloves, specifically designed for slicing with a mandoline. Just make sure that you slice more slowly if you have nearly finished slicing your ingredients.
Features To Pay Attention To When Choosing The Best Mandoline Slicer
If you’ve decided that you’re in the market for a new mandoline slicer but don’t know where to start, we’ve created this list of features you should pay attention to when choosing the best one for your kitchen.
Style Of Mandoline Slicer
You first need to consider what style you want. There are three different types and these are adjustable platform mandolines, platform insert mandolines, and flat board mandolines. The style of mandoline slicer you choose will hugely depend on what you want to slice and how versatile you want your slicer to be.
As the name suggests, adjustable mandoline slicers have an adjustable platform that can be manually adjusted in order for you to decide on the thickness of the cut you want to make.
Platform insert models are very much the same but with a slightly more limited variety of cutting thicknesses. Lastly, flat board mandoline slicers do not offer any versatility when it comes to the thickness of the cut you can make with them.
Materials It Is Made Of
Once you’ve chosen the style you want, you need to think about the material you want it to be made of. Typically, there are two materials to choose from, plastic and stainless steel.
Some people choose plastic because it is easier to clean, often dishwasher friendly, and is lighter. That said, plastic is less durable and sturdy. Also, plastic models often come in white and therefore get discolored with time.
On the other hand, stainless steel is extremely durable and sturdy, but more difficult to maintain. Some models are dishwasher friendly, but others are too big and therefore need hand cleaning. Also, if not cleaned and dried properly, stainless steel models can rust.1
Lastly, if you’re on a budget, you may find that plastic mandoline slicers are often cheaper than their stainless steel counterparts.
Blades
Mandoline slicers can come with a huge variety of blades allowing you to make specific cuts suitable for numerous different types of dishes. The three most traditional types of blades include the straight blade, the diagonal blade, and the V-shaped blade.
The straight blade lies straight across the platform. This type of blade is awesome for slicing sturdier vegetables like potatoes as well as meats. On the other hand, it’s not great for delicate foods like tomatoes.
If you want to chop up fruits and veggies that have a delicate skin like peppers and tomatoes then you may want to consider using a diagonal blade. The V-shaped blade is great for virtually any ingredients and because of its shape is perfect for awkwardly shaped vegetables.
Attachments
In addition to offering a variety of blades, the best mandoline slicers often come with various attachments that allow you to create cuts that make food preparation easy and aesthetic.
These mandoline slicer attachments enable you to cut, slice, grate, Julienne, waffle, and even sometimes puree or shave ice. Please note that when choosing your attachments you must buy the ones that correspond to your mandoline slicer model.
Safety Features
Despite being easy, quick, and fun to use, mandoline slicers still come with extremely sharp blades, so operating them with a level of caution is essential. When shopping for the best mandoline slicer for your kitchen, be sure to choose a model that comes with a food holder. This will help prevent any nicks to your fingertips.
You must also take into consideration how easy it is to change the blades. Choose a model for which the blades just clip in and out without having to touch sharp edges. You must also always be careful when cleaning and storing your mandoline to avoid any injuries.
Lastly, some mandoline slicer models come with caddies. This means you can store your slicer, blades, and all other attachments and parts inside a bag, well away from children and other loved ones.
Our Recommendations For The Best Mandoline Slicers This Year
Now that we’ve gone through everything you need to know about mandoline slicers, let us run you through some of our top picks for 2017:
Swissmar Borner V-1001 V-Slicer Plus Mandoline 5 Piece Set
If you are in the market for a new mandoline slicer but need to stick to a budget then we can’t recommend the Swissmar Borner V-1001 V-Slicer Plus Mandoline 5 Piece Set enough.
This inexpensive alternative to a professional mandoline slicer is packed with features at only a fraction of the price of others of its kind. The slicer comes in tough ABS plastic frame, making it possible to slice through even the toughest vegetables such as potatoes and squash.
But that’s not all. You’ll also benefit from three blade inserts, a 7mm blade, a 3.5mm blade, as well as a thick and thin reversible slicing blade, giving you the versatility you need to prepare a huge variety of ingredients depending on your dish.
Best of all, all blades are German quality and made of the sturdiest surgical-grade stainless steel, meaning they are extremely sharp. With this model and its variety of blades, you can slice neatly through tomatoes, chop through the toughest vegetables, shred ingredients such as cabbage, and even dice the likes of onions.
Source: simplygoodstuff.com
Our Rating
If you want, you can even Julienne your ingredients to make sure your dinner table looks nice and orderly. While Borner seems to have invested much of its energy creating a product that is sturdy and versatile, the company did not skimp on safety features either.
The V-1001 V-Slicer Plus Mandoline comes with a food holder equipped with stainless steel prongs meaning your fingers never need to come in contact with the blade. And, if that’s not enough, the device comes with three inserts that lock it into position to avoid any sliding.
Measuring 15 inches long and 6 inches wide, this mandoline slicer comes with a caddy that allows you to store it neatly and safely when not in use.
Lastly, coming in at just under $55, you can buy the V-1001 V-Slicer Plus Mandoline from Amazon as either a 5-piece or 7-piece set. And, if you don’t believe us, you can check out the more than 2,800 amazing reviews it has received, giving it an overall rating of 4.3 out of 5-stars.
OXO Good Grips Mandoline Slicer
Another huge contender in the mandoline slicer realm is the OXO Good Grips Mandoline Slicer.
Although slightly more expensive than its above counterpart, this OXO model has some of the most amazing features and it comes in a stylish matte black finish, making it perfect for virtually any kitchen. This adjustable mandoline slicer comes with a soft, easy to turn dial that allows you to choose the thickness of your slice with ease.
With it, you can Julienne, crinkle cut, waffle in a huge variety of thicknesses depending on the meal you choose to prepare. It is perfect for all ingredients, from potatoes to carrots, tomatoes, cheeses and many more.
Source: cutleryandmore.com
Our Rating
But, what is most impressive about this model is the amount of care and attention that has gone into making it so safe and user-friendly. Firstly, it comes with a large safety guard which means your fingertips never need to come in contact with the blade. And, best of all, the safety guard comes with a soft top making it extremely comfortable to use.
With it, you’ll be in complete control of your slicing. It is designed with the unused part of the blade concealed for safety and has a safety cover for the Julienne blade when not in use.
All blades are made of hardened stainless steel to ensure you never have to struggle with your slicing, but they can also be stored on board making this model extremely compact and once again, safe.
The blades are all removable and made of textured stainless steel, thus making them easy to clean. Lastly, the legs are designed for added stability and also fold inside the body for a more compact storage.
Priced at less than $70, the OXO Good Grips Mandoline Slicer is certainly one of the best models on the market today and we’re not the only ones that think so with customers on Amazon giving it an overall 4.1 out of 5-star rating.
Progressive International PL8 Mandoline Slicer
Third on our list of best mandoline slicers is the Progressive International PL8 model. Available in a choice of red, black, or white, this mandoline slicer is one of the most stylish on the market, and that doesn’t mean that Progressive International has skimped on quality either.
This Progressive International mandoline slicer comes with a choice of four adjustable slicing thicknesses as well as two different Julienne styles, one thin and one French fry, and one waffle cutting option that is perfect for making stylish potato chips.
The adjustable knob makes it extremely easy for you to switch between thicknesses and blades without having to worry about removing and replacing parts. Designed with an extra wide stainless steel slicing deck, you’ll be able to glide your ingredients up and down it safely and with ease.
Source: hsn.com
Our Rating
The PL8 mandoline is able to cut through the toughest vegetables to make beautiful gratins while also being sharp enough to cut through delicate fruits such as tomatoes, making it a must have for every kitchen.
Best of all, Progressive International has designed the PL8 mandoline with the goal of keeping users safe. It comes with non-skid feet to ensure it maintains its stability while in use and is foldable for compact storage away from little fingers.
A lot of care and attention has gone into creating this original, patented product. It weighs a mere 3.9 pounds and has received 4-star reviews or higher more than 86% of the time.
And if that’s not enough, it comes in at the amazing price of less than $60, making it one of the best value mandoline slicers on the market today. Plus, by buying it on Amazon, you’ll be able to purchase an additional 2 or 3 years of protection for less than $8 and $12 respectively.
Bron Original Stainless Steel Mandolin Slicer
Although not as stylish as other models on the market today, Bron Original Stainless Steel Mandolin Slicer is a no thrills product that does exactly what the label says without cutting any corners.
Made of stainless steel and designed to look classically French, this mandoline slicer comes with three adjustable blades and adjustable lever settings that are extremely easy to use and allow you to choose the thickness of your cut depending on the dish you choose to prepare.
With it, you can slice, Julienne, chip, waffle, and crinkle cut as thick or as thin as you like. It’s perfect for preparing dishes for family and friends, canapes for events and even snacks for your household.
Our Rating
Designed by Ambrunn Bron, this mandoline slicer is ideal for cutting cheese, meats, vegetables, and fruits of all varieties, whether you’re looking to grate a courgette or slice cheese for your children's’ lunchbox sandwiches.
Ergonomically designed, the Bron Original Stainless Steel Mandolin Slicer was built with comfort and safety in mind. Aside from allowing you to make a huge variety of cuts, it comes with a safety guard that will help you get the job done quickly without cutting your fingers and hands.
This Bron model folds completely flat and comes with a casing for extra safety. While there is no specification as to whether or not the mandoline slicer is dishwasher friendly or not, the manufacturer does recommend cleaning the slicer by hand for best results.
Measuring a mere 12 by 5 by 2 inches and weighing in at approximately 5 pounds, Bron has created a simple yet sturdy and effective product.
To top it off, the manufacturer has put its money where its mouth is, offering customers a one-year limited warranty with its mandoline slicer.
Although slightly more expensive at just over $88, the Bron Original Stainless Steel Mandolin Slicer has received an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars, as well as our seal of approval as one of the best mandoline slicers on the market today.
MIU France Stainless Steel Professional Mandoline Slicer
If you’re looking to make your food preparation that little bit easier, safer, and looking more professional then you may want to consider investing in the MIU France Stainless Steel Professional Mandoline Slicer.
Featuring a Julienne, serrated, straight slicing, and piranha micro serrated edge blade, you’ll be able to choose exactly the cut you want depending on your chosen meal. All four blades are built into the mandoline meaning you won’t have to worry about interchanging parts to get the results you want.
Plus, thanks to its rotary dial, you can generate the exact thickness of cut you want with just a simple twist in either direction. From potato chips, to Julienne carrots, to onion rings, the opportunities are endless.
The piranha, micro serrated edge blade is exclusive to the MIU France Stainless Steel Professional Mandoline Slicer and allows you to slice with incredible ease.
Source: sportsmansguide.com
Our Rating
This MIU model comes with a food holder that not only grips food in place leaving you with better results but also keeps your fingers and hands safe from any nicks.
But, the food holder is not the only safety feature available. The model’s legs are not only foldable making it extremely compact, but also non slip meaning your mandoline will remain stable on your countertop when in use.
Made of a professional, high-quality, stainless steel construction, the MIU France Stainless Steel Professional Mandoline Slicer is dishwasher safe and costs little over $70. Plus, if you want an added level of security you can purchase an additional 2 or 3 years of protection for less than $5 and less than $12 respectively.
Lastly, with more than 70% of customers giving it a 4-star review or more, the MIU France Stainless Steel Professional Mandoline Slicer certainly gets our seal of approval as one of the best mandoline slicers on the market today.
The Best Mandoline Slicer- Our Verdict
As you can see, choosing the best mandoline slicer for your kitchen needs can be very challenging. There are so many different types to choose from, let alone the huge variety of feature packed models on the market today.
When making your final choice, be sure to consider what you are going to be using it for, whether or not you need it to be dishwasher friendly, and the types of cuts you want to make with it.
And, if you’re new to the mandoline world, always consider the various safety features available. With that in mind, the five products mentioned above are some of the best on the market.
The one you choose will have to depend on your personal preference. We highly recommend the Swissmar Borner or OXO models for their amazing price, versatility, and awesome safety features. That said if you’re looking for something particularly sturdy the Bron and MIU models are made of tough stainless steel and the Bron even comes with a 1-year limited warranty.