Up until recently there have been two mandolines (a device used to cut food that is a cross between a cheese grater and a razor blade that, while very effective, it might be intimidating and/or dangerous without the right amount of experience and concentration):

• OXO Hand Slicer (around $15)
• OXO Good Grips Mandoline (around $100)

Despite the limitations of the much more affordable hand slicer, it is a tool that I use 5-10 times a week.  I tend to use the Mandoline around 5 times a year (typically when preparing a large batch of preserves).

A few months ago I decided to buy this modified mandoline which cuts matchstick/ julienne style cuts:

Despite looking (and sometimes feeling like) a cruel trap for ones fingers, I’ve found it extremely useful although there are a few significant negatives that one should account for.

The Good

• It’s very efficient.  You can knock a carrot into matchsticks in seconds.
• It’s relatively small.
• It eliminates the need to pull my large mandoline out if I want matchsticks (the hand-slicer won’t do that).
• It’s extremely sharp.
• It’s affordable (around $12).
• It sits on top of a bowl fairly well and stable.

The Bad

• Despite being small, it still takes up room in our very limited cupboard.
• It’s another piece of plastic in our kitchen.
• It’s a single use tool that could be replaced with a knife and some time.
• It takes more pressure to cut than the straight mandoline which makes errors easier.
• The more pressure can add to the mess when shredding.
• It looks scary (imagine wrapping your knuckles across its surface when a carrot slips!)
• It’s difficult to use a guard as much of the cutting is vertical (i..e. a carrot would be held vertically, not horizontally).  I tend to cut half a carrot with it and use the rest for something else.

The Interesting

• It’s not horrible to clean but it’s more difficult that a straight edge as small pieces of vegetables can get stuck in it.
• This one didn’t come with a guard.
• Quartering a carrot (to make long sticks) makes this incrementally easier to use – but it also makes the matchsticks much shorter.
• It’s not adjustable – this is a negative because it’s not flexible but a positive because it is very stable.
• At times the force needed to make a cut appears to tear tougher vegetables (like carrots) and softer fruit wouldn’t stand a chance (it would be turned to pulp).  A knife would create consistently prettier result (but add considerable time).

Summary: there is nothing this device can do that you can’t accomplish with a knife or a more expensive mandoline if you already have one.  It’s not an ideal device if you aren’t already comfortable using a mandoline and, even then, it’s a little scary!  Having said that, it is a decent luxury product that can drastically speed up this specialized cut while being easy to use and clean and I’ve found myself using far more julienne cuts than I would if I were cutting them with a knife..

Do you (or would you) us this?