Pulling any old knife out of your drawer to slice cheese can lead to crumbling, dragging, smooshing, or slices that are too thin or oddly shaped — not ideal. But finding the best cheese slicer takes a little bit of thought. For example, you'll want to consider what kind of cheese you plan to be slicing, and you'll also want to check out the safety features, adjustability, and material of the slicer.
Cheese Types
Cheeses can be hard, soft, or anywhere in between, and each kind requires a different types of slicing for the best results. For that reason, we've categorized our picks based on cheese types. Here's a cheat sheet of those types, with a few examples:
Soft: brie, Camembert, Roquefort, goat cheese, blue cheese
Semi-soft: Havarti, Munster, Port Salut
Medium-hard: Gouda, Jarlsberg, Emmental, Gruyère
Semi-hard: cheddar, Mahon, manchego, Colby
Hard: Parmesan, pecorino, Grana Padano
If you're a dedicated cheesemonger, you may want to get a slicer for each type of cheese — a possibility, since many slicers are under $20. But if you're looking to save storage space and money, you'll want to opt for a more versatile slicer that may not be quite as precise, but still gets the job done.
Other Features To Look Out For:
Non-slip grips and ergonomic design can help increase safety, while materials like rust-resistant zinc alloy and stainless steel will ensure durability. An adjustable blade or wire is also nice to have, since it gives you a little more versatility. And last, you'll want to choose between a handheld slicer — which has the benefit of being compact — and a board slicer — which is bigger but gives you more slicing precision.
To help you narrow down your choice, here are five of the best cheese slicers — all available on Amazon.
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