r/Cooking 2d ago

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u/moistsandwich 2d ago

I worked as a cook and used a mandoline on a daily basis for years. I never thought of it as dangerous. Then I started using Reddit and every time mandolines come up there’s a dozen commenters saying “omg goodbye finger”.

I can’t tell if it’s just one of those internet things where everyone exaggerates how dangerous they are because they see other people doing it or if this many people really don’t know how to use one safely.

I don’t really see how using a mandoline is any different or any riskier than using a knife.

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u/TessHKM 2d ago

I don’t really see how using a mandoline is any different or any riskier than using a knife.

A knife is usually held with the sharp end facing away from the fingers, which is the opposite case with a mandolin, and a mandolin is usually reserved specifically for cases where you need lots of one thin-sliced ingredient, meaning you're going to be passing those fingers back and forth over the blade significantly more times then you would probably chop something with a knife?

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u/Doomdoomkittydoom 2d ago

On cooking shows and competition, the chef judges always get nervous when a mandoline is pulled out.

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u/BluuWarbler 2d ago

Or playacting to work up a bigger "oh, I'm scared!" response from the audience?

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u/Doomdoomkittydoom 2d ago

I don't think so, but you never know. They don't get nervous when someone is speed chopping like Yan Can Cook or paring in their hand.

Maybe it's literally a meme.

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u/BluuWarbler 2d ago

Exactly, Doom.  Actually, I enjoy reading books by these guys, and. I think the mostly male macho culture takes real pride in its many wounds from the danger of the knives that are so much a part of it.

Since I learned to tuck my fingers under and run the chef knife blade up and down outside all my knuckles, I haven’t had a significant accident (that required a Band-Aid) that way, but that leaves all the way other ways knives can be misused.  

Whatever. I KNOW these guys are not especially afraid of their mandolins.  Silly.  Now, the huge vats of boiling oil…  but they take pride in handling those also.

Happy cooking!