Kitchen mandoline: slicing without cutting yourself, step by step

To use a mandoline without cutting yourself, three rules are enough: place the device on a stable surface, always hold the vegetable with the pusher, and leave the last piece in the pusher rather than in your fingers. The vegetable slides over a fixed or interchangeable blade and comes out as slices, julienne, or grated, with a regularity that is difficult to achieve with a knife. It is the tool for mixed salads, gratins, and homemade chips. Our models are gathered in the kitchen mandoline collection.

Current models combine several blades and a thickness adjustment. Slices of the same thickness cook the same way, which matters for a dauphinois gratin. Here is how a mandoline works, the proper technique for slicing safely, blade maintenance, and the cases where an electric chopper does the job better.

How does a kitchen mandoline work?

Unlike an electric chopper, the mandoline does not reduce food into small pieces. It is designed for slicing or stick cutting, with total control over the shape and thickness. For a family meal, this avoids having to take each slice with a knife to equalize the thickness. If you are looking for a fine mince, follow instead our method for chopping vegetables quickly.

Adjustment, blades, pusher: what makes slicing safe

Three criteria make the difference in everyday life: the cutting thickness, the number of available blades, and the safety of use.

Adjustable cutting thickness

Most mandolines offer a thickness adjustment. It covers both very thin slices for vegetable chips and thicker slices for a gratin or stir-fry. A progressive adjustment avoids changing the blade for each texture. Check that the mechanism remains accessible and easy to handle, even with wet hands after washing the vegetables.

Multiple blades for more versatility

A multifunction model generally includes:

• a slicing blade for thin or thick slices;
• a fine julienne blade for carrots, zucchini, or celery;
• a thick julienne blade for homemade fries or vegetable sticks;
• a grating blade for cheese or root vegetables;
• a waffle blade for wavy cuts.

The more blades there are and the easier they are to change, the more the device replaces utensils in your kitchen.

A safe grip

Safety remains the most important point of a mandoline, because the blades are very sharp. Choose a model delivered with a pusher or a food support, which keeps your fingers away from the blade during slicing. A stable body, with non-slip feet or a fixation system on a bowl, also limits the movements of the device during use. The other criteria, from the type of blade to the hand-held or stand-up format, are detailed in our guide for choosing a kitchen mandoline according to your cuts.

To compare the mandoline with other cutting tools, our table which vegetable chopper for which vegetable associates each vegetable with the most suitable model.

Manual mandoline or electric chopper: which tool for which preparation?

The mandoline and the electric chopper meet different needs. The table below summarizes their respective uses.

For a fine and uniform texture, like a sauce, a pesto, or a stuffing, the electric chopper is faster and requires less repetitive effort. The mandoline keeps control over the shape and thickness of each slice, an essential point for a successful gratin or crispy chips.

The two tools complement each other more than they compete. If you also prepare sauces and stuffings, the multifunction chopper collection gathers the devices that chop, mix, and mince in a single bowl.

How to use a mandoline without cutting yourself?

A mandoline is used with a few precautions. Here is the proper technique for slicing safely, then the cleaning routine to follow after each use.

The proper technique for slicing safely

Install the mandoline on a stable surface, above a large bowl or a wide board. Always hold the vegetable with the provided pusher, especially when the piece becomes small and the fingers approach the blade. Make regular back-and-forth movements, without forcing: the regularity of the gesture matters more than speed to obtain uniform slices.

Cleaning after each use

Rinse the blades just after use, before the residues dry and stick. A long-handled dish brush removes the pieces stuck between the teeth of the grater without bringing fingers close to the cutting edge.

Always follow the instructions on the product sheet. For our 16-in-1 vegetable chopper, for example, washing is done by hand, in water at 60 °C maximum. Dry the blades before storing them to avoid any trace of oxidation.

What can you do with a mandoline?

The mandoline finds its place in many everyday recipes:

• vegetable chips (potato, beet, zucchini), sliced very thinly before going into the oven;
• a dauphinois gratin with uniform slices, which cook evenly;
• a carrot or celery salad in julienne, ready in a few minutes;
• homemade fries cut into thick sticks before frying or baking in the oven;
• grated cheese for a gratin, without taking out the classic grater.

These varied uses explain why the mandoline, once adopted, becomes one of the most used accessories in the utensil drawer. For a large quantity of fries, a dedicated tool is faster: our guide for choosing a french fry cutter compares the grids and the lever models, and our method of homemade fries, from cutting to cooking gives the right size and the double cooking.

What thickness to choose for vegetable chips?

Chips are the recipe where the thickness adjustment matters the most.

For crispy chips, set the mandoline to a thin thickness, between 1 and 2 mm. A thicker slice requires a longer cooking time and gives a less crispy result. Keep the same setting for the whole batch: identical slices brown at the same time in the oven or in the fryer.