A mandoline used for slicing a carrot
A mandoline (US, ) or mandolin (British, /ˌmandəˈlɪn/, /ˈmandəlɪn/, /ˈmandl̩ɪn/), is a culinary utensil used for slicing and for cutting
juliennes; with suitable attachments, it can make
crinkle-cuts.
Design
A mandoline consists of two parallel working surfaces, one of which can be adjusted in height. A food item is slid along the adjustable surface until it reaches a blade mounted on the fixed surface, slicing it and letting it fall.
Other blades perpendicular to the main blade are often mounted so that the slice is cut into strips. The mandoline juliennes in several widths and thicknesses. It also makes slices, waffle cuts and crinkle cuts, and dices firm vegetables and fruits.
With a mandoline, slices are uniform in thickness,
which is important with foods that are deep-fried or baked (e.g.
potato chips
Potato chips (North American English and Australian English; often just chip) or crisp (British English and Hiberno-English) are thin slices of potato (or a thin deposit of potato paste) that has been deep frying, deep fried, baking, baked, ...
), as well as for presentation. Slices can be very thin, and be made very quickly, with significantly less skill and effort than would be required if cutting with a
knife
A knife (: knives; from Old Norse 'knife, dirk') is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least Stone Age, 2.5 million years ago, as e ...
or other blade.
Operation
A mandoline is used by running a piece of food (with some protection for fingers) along an adjustable inclined plane into one or more blades. On some models vertical blades cut to produce julienne, or a wavy blade is used that produces crinkle cuts. In these models a quarter turn to the food between passes produces dice and waffle cuts.
A mandoline can cause serious injury if not used correctly.
See also
*
Food processor
A food processor is a kitchen appliance used to facilitate repetitive tasks in the preparation of food. Today, the term almost always refers to an electric-motor-driven appliance, although there are some manual devices also referred to as "food ...
– chops food using motorisation in multiple ways.
*
Grater
A grater, also known as a shredder, is a kitchen utensil used to grate foods into fine pieces. They come in several shapes and sizes, with box graters being the most common. Other styles include paddles, microplane/rasp graters, and rotary drum ...
– produces smaller pieces rather than thin sheets.
* – Japanese version, used to shave , dried blocks of skipjack tuna.
*
Meat slicer – a tool used to slice meats and other deli products.
*
Microplane – used for the grating of various food items.
*
Microtome
A microtome (from the Greek ''mikros'', meaning "small", and ''temnein'', meaning "to cut") is a cutting tool used to produce extremely thin slices of material known as ''sections'', with the process being termed microsectioning. Important in sc ...
– the laboratory-grade equivalent, for much finer slicing thicknesses.
* – graters used in Japanese cooking.
References
External links
Mandoline parts overview
{{Authority control
Food preparation utensils