Tools · buyer's guide
Best Mandoline Slicers for Canning and Pickling Prep (2026)
Pickle and relish day is a lot of slicing. Ten pounds of cucumbers by hand is about 30 minutes of knife work, and your rounds still come out uneven, so some brine-soak fast and some stay crunchy. A mandoline slices the same pile in about 8 minutes at one exact thickness, which is why the jars pickle evenly. Here are two picks, plus the one safety item you should buy with it.
Photo: David Davies (CC BY-SA 2.0)
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How we picked
We looked for adjustable thickness, a wide stainless blade that stays sharp through pounds of produce, and a hand guard that actually holds the food. That is all a preserving mandoline needs.
The one rule: uniform thickness is not about looks, it is about safety and quality. Even slices pickle at the same rate and pack tighter in the jar, so you fit more and get a consistent crunch.
Why a mandoline earns its keep at preserving time
A garden glut arrives all at once. When 15 cucumbers ripen the same week, hand-slicing them for bread-and-butter pickles is the slow step that makes people quit and let the harvest rot.
A mandoline set to one eighth inch turns that pile into even rounds in a few minutes. Set thicker for zucchini chips or beet slices. The even cut means the brine reaches the center of every piece at the same time, so the batch is done together instead of half-soft and half-raw.
Buy the glove with it, not after
A mandoline blade is far sharper than a kitchen knife and it does not stop for skin. The most common ER cut in a home kitchen comes from the last few slices, when the food gets small and the hand gets close. A cut-resistant glove costs a few dollars and removes that risk. Buy it in the same order.
Our picks
- best for canning and pickling prep
Adjustable Stainless Mandoline Slicer
Best overall
- Dials from about one sixteenth to one quarter inch, so one tool covers pickle rounds, zucchini chips, and relish prep.
- A wide stainless blade holds an edge through pounds of produce and rinses clean.
- Downside: the blade is dangerously sharp and the hand guard feels clumsy at first. Always use the guard, and stop before the food gets too small to hold safely.
- best for protecting your slicing hand
Cut-Resistant Kitchen Glove
Safety add-on
- Level 5 cut resistance for a few dollars, the cheapest insurance in the kitchen.
- Wear it on the hand that holds the food and you can finish the pile without the usual near-miss.
- Downside: it resists slices, not stabs, so keep your fingers behind the guard even with the glove on.
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Keep going
Questions, answered straight
Not for small batches. But once you are slicing 10 lb or more of cucumbers, zucchini, or beets for pickles and relish, a mandoline cuts the prep time by about two thirds and gives even slices that pickle at the same rate. That even cut is the real win, not just the speed.
About one eighth inch for bread-and-butter and chip-style pickles, which is why an adjustable model matters. Even thickness lets the brine reach the center of every slice at the same time, so the whole jar sets up together.
The blade is sharper than a knife and does not stop for skin, so yes if you skip the guard. Always use the hand guard, buy a cut-resistant glove, and stop slicing before the food gets too small to hold. Do that and it is safer than rushing with a knife.
Most stainless mandolines are top-rack safe, but hand-washing keeps the blade sharper longer and lets you clean it carefully. Never reach into the blade with a bare hand, wash it with a brush.