What is a Mandoline?

http://www.eatingwell.com/healthy_cooking/kitchen_product_reviews/mandoline

"Cool Tools: The Mini Mandoline,"July/August 2011

Learn how to use a mini mandoline slicer, a kitchen tool for slicing vegetables.

Origin: A Japanese take on a French kitchen classic.

What's It Do? Easily serves up perfectly sliced vegetables, from paper-thin to moderately thick. You simply glide them across its angled blade.

Special Features: Small enough to fit in a drawer, stay-sharp ceramic blade, dishwasher safe, exponentially more portable than a full-size mandoline and a fraction of the cost.

Ideal User: Weekend chefs with all the ambition of Jacques Pépin but not his knife skills.

Perfect for: Coleslaw, potatoes au gratin and Shaved Zucchini-Fennel Salad.

Pictured: Kyocera Adjustable Mandoline ($24.95 at surlatable.com)