What are cabbage shredders and how to choose them?

With the arrival of winter months, it is so nice to please yourself with homemade preparations, salads and pickles can decorate any table. Sauerkraut is undoubtedly the centerpiece of the vegetable festival. In order to cut it, use a shredder.

Household kitchen appliances have long and firmly entered the life of every modern housewife. Manufacturers offer a wide range of food processors, kettles, coffee makers, microwave ovens, meat grinders, and shredders - they have greatly facilitated the work of a woman in the preparation of all kinds of dishes. If earlier, in order to ferment cabbage, you had to spend a day or even more, today the process is simplified and accelerated as much as possible. A shredder helps to significantly reduce the time and effort required.

This cabbage cutter has many advantages:

• allows you to cut a head of cabbage more thinly than with an ordinary knife, and more quickly;
• does not require special physical efforts from the hostess;
• using a shredder is considered a safer option, minimizing the risk of injury;
• unlike a food processor, the device does not take up much space in the kitchen space;
• easily cleaned of any dirt, dries quickly;
• It is a versatile multifunctional kitchen equipment that can be used to cut some other products.

Of the shortcomings, only the price of the shredder is distinguished.... Modern manufacturers offer a variety of models for every budget, but in any case, you will have to spend more than when buying a standard knife.

Various types of cabbage cutters can be found on sale. All of them are conventionally divided into two groups - electric and manual.

Electric shredders greatly facilitate the work of the hostess, they are a kind of food processor... The electric chopper slices cabbage into strips using a sharpened stainless steel disc blade. Each device provides the ability to change the parameters of the thickness of the cut - for this you just need to change the location of the blades.

Manual vegetable cutters are widespread in everyday life.

The most primitive device looks like a regular board with built-in cutters - there can be from 1 to 3 of them. More complex models have a box made of wood, it is placed on the base and is used for storing vegetables. The base board does not slide on the table and this greatly simplifies cutting. Such a device allows you to cut a lot more vegetables per unit of time.

Plastic graters are widespread. They are produced in a wide range - from cheap, almost disposable, to expensive, characterized by high quality and long service life. These models include a container for storing cabbage and interchangeable attachments for performing various types of cutting.

Mechanical devices are a separate type of shredders. They are a meat grinder attachment made of stainless steel or plastic. To achieve shredding of cabbage leaves, you only need to turn the grater around its axis and rotate the device by the handle. Usually the kit includes several floats with holes of different diameters.

Let's take a closer look at the rating of the best shredder models according to users' opinions.

• Bradex Kitchen. One of the most popular shredder models, suitable for home use. The kit includes several replacement blades. The vegetable cutter is characterized by compact dimensions, which is quite convenient for storage. The price for such devices is about 700-900 rubles.

• Alligator... These are Swedish vegetable cutters that are renowned for their exceptional quality and safety. The equipment released under this brand allows you to quickly chop any vegetables for preservation or salad. At the same time, products can be cut in several ways; such shredders are technically simple and economical. The cost of one device is 2-3 thousand rubles.

• Moulinex... The Moulinex company is known to everyone who has come across the purchase of household appliances. It is one of the market leaders with a reputation as a reliable manufacturer. Vegetable cutters of this brand allow you to cut cabbage in different ways. The set includes several types of attachments, each of which is convenient and easy to use. The bodies of the vegetable cutters are equipped with compartments in which the attachments can be placed during storage. The cost of such shredders is 2.5-3 thousand rubles.

• Borner... An excellent device for shredding cabbage heads. The body is made of safe, extra strong material. The set includes 5 attachments, each colored in certain shades, and this greatly facilitates the operation of the equipment.The cost of such a device is within 2 thousand rubles.

• "Roma"... The Roma knife has become widespread in domestic use. It is a multi-function device with a sharpened blade. In addition to cutting cabbage, the knife allows you to peel any fruits and vegetables, as well as cut them into even pieces of the same size.

• "Hostess"... Stainless steel device with plastic handle and rubberized anti-slip surface. The set includes two cutting surfaces at an angle to each other. This design allows you to cut the forks into thin, neat fibers of the same size. The thickness of the pieces can be varied if necessary. To do this, simply change the angle of inclination of the blades. Such a device is absolutely safe - as evidenced by user reviews, it is almost impossible to cut it during operation.

• Gipfel... The Gipfel vegetable cutter is made of stainless steel. It has a pair of sharpened blades, a plastic handle, non-slip. The shredder allows you to cut any vegetables, including cabbage, as well as cheese and cold meats. The cut can be made in any direction in the most convenient way for the user, the cutting will turn out perfectly smooth and beautiful in any case.

• Smile... Electric shredders for cabbage from this Chinese manufacturer are affordable and low cost. The body is made of dense white plastic, there is a special frame for replaceable cutters. The set includes a tray, container, food pushers and a puree attachment.

• Bosch... This German manufacturer has earned the trust of housewives around the world. A household vegetable cutter includes blades for slicing various products, a blender attachment, and a container. This multifunctional device allows you to whip egg whites, knead dough and more.

Modern manufacturers offer a wide variety of shredders. For a device to be practical, fast and safe, there are a number of factors to consider.

• First you need to decide what type of vegetable cutter you need. For preparing salads and shredding cabbage for the purpose of subsequent preservation, a conventional manual device is suitable. When working on an industrial scale, it is better to give preference to electric models.
• The number of nozzles matters. The more there are, the more varied the slicing will be. The optimal amount is considered to be from 3 to 7.
• Take a closer look at the blades. Make sure that the cutting surfaces can change the slope and height - this will greatly facilitate operation.
• When working with any food products, the material from which the equipment is made plays an important role.... It must be environmentally friendly. Otherwise, the taste characteristics of the finished product will deteriorate, moreover, they can harm human health.
• It is very important that the selected product is equipped with a cutting board and a drawer, this will greatly simplify the use of a shredder knife.... The board should be made of hardwood. An important aspect that must be taken into account when buying a shredder is its price, it must correspond to the quality of the product. The most primitive models, consisting of a grater with a pair of blades, can be bought in the range of 300-400 rubles. Mechanical shredders for household use cost 2.5 thousand rubles. and more.
• Products made from natural, eco-friendly materials always cost much more.... However, their purchase is more profitable, since they are distinguished by their high speed of operation and a long term of use.Electric vegetable cutters boast a fairly wide range - the simplest products are offered in stores within 5 thousand rubles. and up to 50 thousand rubles.

If you do not have a special shredder at your disposal, then you can cut the cabbage with an ordinary knife. The main thing is that it is large and sharply sharpened. In this case, an important rule should be adhered to - the cabbage head must be cut not lengthwise, but across. It is at the top that the thinnest and juiciest leaves are located, which are optimal for fermentation and pickling. The rest is best left for cooking borscht or stewing.

Of course, shredding cabbage with a special device is much easier. To do this, you need to cut the head of cabbage in any convenient way. It is best to cut the cabbage across the fibers - in this case, it will retain more juice, which is so important when salting.

When cutting, you need to properly hold the knife without lifting it off the surface of the board. The most optimal will be one of the following directions:

• the knife moves down from itself, and then back;
• the knife moves evenly forward and downward, while cutting is performed, and then returns to its original position.

You need to hold the knife so that the thumb is placed along the handle, the index finger covers it from above, and all the other fingers only lightly pressed the handle to the palm... At first, such a grip may seem uncomfortable, but they quickly get used to it.

If you wish, you can make a homemade shredder at home. This will require:

• plywood;
• shovel handle;
• timber from wood;
• 2 wooden sticks;
• furniture nails;
• self-tapping screws;
• washers;
• stationery knife.

You should also prepare a hammer, jigsaw, drill with drills, hot melt glue and a ruler.

First you need a layer of plywood. On it you need to draw a quadrangle so that its sides correspond to 18 m and 22 cm. You will need two such blanks.

Then, using a jigsaw, it is necessary to cut out both elements and form a perforation in the center.

Next, you need to prepare four racks that will connect the made blanks to each other. To make them, you need to take a wooden block and divide it with a hacksaw into four equal blocks of 15 cm. These racks are temporarily fixed with hot glue along the edges of the plywood structure.

The next step will require a stalk of medium thickness. A cylinder is sawn off from it and a hole is formed in the middle, its section must correspond to the diameter of the perforation made on the plywood blank. After that, the cylinder is installed so that its holes and the holes of the plywood quadrangle coincide, and fixed on hot melt glue.

Then you can proceed to finalizing the second plywood blank. Near the hole made, a rectangle is drawn in the direction of the far side and in the center in relation to the line of the sidewalls. Its length should be slightly less than the size of the blades, and its width should be about a centimeter.

Using a jigsaw, cut holes along the marked contour, and then mow a little on one side with a clerical knife.

This quadrilateral is fixed to the previously assembled workpieces with hot melt glue.

Next, take the cutting surface of the clerical knife and fix it as shown in the photo. It is best to fix it on self-tapping screws through metal washers.

Next, you can proceed to the manufacture of a blank on which the head of cabbage will rotate. To do this, a 14 cm segment is sawn off from a wooden block and through holes are formed along the edges. Their diameter should correspond to the outer section of the round stick.We insert this stick into one of them.

Then a circle with a diameter of 5-6 cm is formed from the plywood with a jigsaw, in the center you need to make a perforation. The size of the hole in the middle should be equal to the size of the largest stick, this element will act as a washer. It is fixed in place, as shown in the photo. In order for the washers to sit statically in the right place, they are fixed with furniture nails.

A stick 14-15 cm long is also placed in the second perforation. It will be used as a handle for which you will rotate the cabbage head around its axis.

Homemade cabbage cutter is ready. It remains only to test the device.

For an overview of the cabbage shredder, see below.