Foldable manual food-slicing apparatus and corresponding method

A manual food-slicing apparatus, comprising:

• a blade-supporting base;
• a cutting blade rotatably mounted to the blade-supporting base about a rotation axis and comprising a plurality of cutting teeth disposed on an outer periphery thereof and defining a cutting plane;
• and
• a food-guiding platform comprising a food-facing surface;
• wherein the food-guiding platform is pivotably mounted to the blade-supporting base to configure the food-slicing apparatus into a cutting configuration in which the food-slicing apparatus has an operating length considered along the rotation axis, and into a storage configuration in which the food-slicing apparatus has a storage length considered along the rotation axis, the storage length being smaller than 60% of the operating length;
• wherein the food-slicing apparatus further comprises a gauge plate assembly mounted to the blade-supporting base and comprising a gauge plate extending substantially parallel to and spaced apart from the cutting plane to define therewith a slicing thickness, the food-slicing apparatus further comprising a slicing thickness adjuster to configure the gauge plate in at least two positions with respect to the cutting blade so as to define at least two different slicing thicknesses;
• the slicing thickness adjuster comprising a plurality of thickness adjusting teeth formed on one of the blade-supporting base and the gauge plate assembly, the thickness adjusting teeth being shaped and dimensioned to cooperate with a thickness-adjusting toothed wheel mounted to the other one of the blade-supporting base and the gauge plate assembly;
• wherein the blade-supporting base comprises a base member, wherein the gauge plate assembly comprises a gauge plate-supporting plate extending upwardly from the base member and supporting the gauge plate, and a gauge base mounted to the base member, the toothed wheel being rotatably mounted the gauge base;
• wherein the slicing thickness adjuster further comprises a thickness adjuster locker to configure the slicing thickness adjuster either in a locked configuration wherein the gauge plate assembly is not displaceable with respect to the blade-supporting base or in an unlocked configuration wherein the gauge plate assembly is displaceable with respect to the blade-supporting base upon rotation of the toothed wheel;
• and
• wherein the toothed wheel is formed integral with an actuating ring extending from an upper surface of the gauge base, the thickness adjuster locker comprising a rotating locking knob at least partially surrounded by the actuating ring and operatively coupled to a blocking pad, wherein, upon rotation of the rotating locking knob, the blocking pad is either abutted against at least some of the thickness adjusting teeth, or spaced apart from the thickness adjusting teeth.