Customer Reviews

Benriner Japanese Mandoline Slicer

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This is an excellent slicer. I've used everything in it from carrots (when making my carrot version of thai papaya salad) julienned into matchstick thickness to wide thin slices of Korean radish. Never failed me.

Two drawbacks though:

1. The safety guard is a joke. It doesn't hold the veggies very well and is a pain to use effectively...which means I usually don't use it. I've cut my fingers on this mandolin twice now, which isn't bad for two years of regular useage, but I don't like the sight of blood so I'll leave it as a major detractor. Luckily for me, I cut myself on the julienne part and not the actual wide slicer. In other words, my finger meat was left shredded but intact. Whew!

2. The metal parts rust. Yep. They rust. Hence the reason I am now shopping around for another slicer. Don't know yet if I'll get another Benriner. Might look into the Bohn.

***Update***
Apparently Benriner realized the metal parts rusted because their mandolins now come with plastic screws to hold the julienne blades in place and to adjust the thickness level.

THis is a great item which is used several times per week in my kitchen, primarily for slicing cucumbers, carrots, potatoes, and other vegetables. the basice slicing blade stays sharp and is easy to adjust. Careful! It's easy to cut yourself! I suggest getting a kevlar or other cut-resistant glove (such as the steel gloves used by fish mongers or meat packers); I find them to be more convenient and more useful than the plastic holding tool. The finest julienne blade was a problem for me; if I slammed a hard carrot through its teeth, occasionally the teeth bent; be careful that the vertical thicknes of the julienne is not more than the width of the julienne cuts. I don't care for having to keep track of the separate blades when they're not in the slicer, but it's not much different than tracking accessories for a mixer or a Cuisinart.

I have a Bron stainless steel mandoline, whcih costs well over $100 more but the Benriner is what I turn to again and again.

This little guy works great, but unless you are absolutely positive that you will never want to cut anything larger than a medium sized mushroom, do yourself a favor and get the "Super" model. It's essentially the same thing only it's wide enough to take on whole potatoes, onions and fennel bulbs, and it has metal adjustment knobs to boot.

It's my understanding that these are high carbon steel blades, and yes, that does mean that they will rust if you put them in the dishwasher or forget to dry them thoroughly. Nothing a little Barkeeper's Friend can't fix, and a light coating of vegetable oil after washing can help keep the rust at bay if you live in a particularly humid environment.

A cut resistant glove would be a wise investment whatever model you end up with.

I wanted to love this, as I bought this on the recommendation of other professional cooks for its zippiness, simplicity, and sharp blades. I am pretty adept in the kitchen, but this tool is unsafe if you decide to use the flimsy finger guard. Also, the blades were not sharp enough to handle hard veggies, such as carrots, gracefully, so I was left struggling trying to jam them across the blade, the finger guard trying its best to go off track each time. The finger guard should be higher and somehow secure better to the track. Worker's comp not worth the risk--I'll stick w/ Bron!

If you are a good cook this is a great tool. I've worked in many a kitchen that depend on this very slicer. It is lighter and cheaper than a french mandoline. You can simply hold it over a bowl and slice away, no setting up and easy to clean. If you are good with a knife you'll have no problem. This tool, however, is not for the clumsy or the inexperienced. The finger guard is useless so you had better know what you're doing. Tip: use to slice as much of the food item as you feel safe and finish the rest with a sharp knife.

One star because I don't trade safety for a few bucks. I was a professional chef for 20 years... as soon as I held the safety guard in my hand, my hand knew something was wrong. The guard itself puts your fingertips one little slip away from pain! Not only that, but because there are no rubber feet anywhere, you have to hold the mandoline up with one hand and try to keep it stable while slicing...maybe a wet towel under the front edge would help, but not worth it. The "guard" has a few plastic teeth that are inadequate for holding most items for julienne. It's sharp, and is wonderful for making micro-thin slices of whole carrots and cukes. BUT the julienne function requires so much force (try doing 1/4" potato sticks) that any accident is going to be serious.

The French Laundry Cookbook says this is what they use. I'm a banquet cook and this is what we use. They are a great buy and will fit in a roomy knife case. Those little safety handles don't work on any of the plastic mandolines from any maker, and we have a classic expensive stainless steel mandoline that NO ONE at work is willing to use, because it doesn't have a safety handle either, but grave bodily damage promises to be far greater in severity. There is a Shun mandoline (retail 500$) that actually has a handle connected to a sliding rail that looks like it will work in theory, but Cook's Illustrated rated it at the bottom. Watch your fingers, hold veggies with a towel and use the leftover scrap for a stockpot instead of trying to get the last chip from a potato or shred from a carrot.

I have had this mandolin for over two years now. I use it regularly for cucumber, apple, carrot, potato, cabbage... The blade is sharp, and I agree with other reviews, the safty guard is not very effective. However, I have never cut myself using the mandolin. I wash and dry it after each use, and have no problem with rusting. In fact, I just bought one for my parents because they were impressed with it. My Japanese friend also has one. It's practically in every home in Japan. Don't think you can find another good mandolin at this price. Giving it 4-star review because the safty guard can be improved.

This is the only piece of kitchen equipment my husband has ever insisted that I throw away. No matter how careful I was, I kept cutting myself -- and you can cut yourself pretty badly with one of these slicers.

At the same time, I have to say that I've missed it ever since. It's tremendously fast and effective. You save a lot of prep time, and the finely sliced/shredded results are a pleasure to cook with. Also, you can't beat the price.

It's up to you. If you buy one, do please be careful.

I've hand this slicer for 10-11 years now and still LOVE it! The design is simple yet so versatile and easy to clean. One main blade is secured onto the product (the one at a diagonal) by two screws. It can be removed to be sharpened (as all blades get dull over time). There are then 3 other blades with protruding teeths of varying gap widths that are secured through the two side screws. This allows for the shreds of vegetables. The thickness is controlled by a metal screw under the plastic plate. Together, you can make many cuts with various thicknesses. One drawback is that the gap is slightly thicker on one side than the other on mine (It's really slight though). Cleanup is a breeze. I've always hand washed it because it's so easy. I just push the plastic plate up (so not to get cut by the diagonal blade), wash that, and then wash the bottom plate and blades. Storage is great as it's so slim and easy to store (I still store it in the original box). Of course, as other customers mentioned the hand guard is not that great. I've actually have shaved off some skin and nail in the past, so this product is meant for those who are accustomed with sharp blades. In the 10+ years I've had it, i've never sharpened the blade and it's still sharp. I haven't had much luck with shredding soft stuff. Tried to shred a ripe mango yesterday and it mushed it. Also tried to slice coldcuts, did't work well either. It's really great with more firm stuff (carrots, applies, daikon, radishes, cabbage). Finally, I must say that after using a really cheap chinese made one at a friend's place, I like the quality/price of this item very much. This product has no sharp edges (other than the blades of course) or unwanted plastic remnants from the manufacturer. I guess the reason I gave it a 4 star is because it can't cut softer products as well and because the gap is not perfect across the blade.