6 min read · 1 small stepSkip to today’s step →

Try the deli slicer before you buy your own

Before buying a meat slicer, ask if the deli will slice a whole ham or turkey. Pregnant, 65 or older, or immune-weak: read the safety box.

From people’s advice and experience shared online, including people who slice their own meat and people who say it is not worth it, with the food-safety and slicer-safety lines checked against CDC, NHS, USDA and OSHA pages in October 2026.

Read this first

Sliced deli meat can carry Listeria, a germ that refrigeration does not kill, and it is the reason some readers should not use this page as it stands. The CDC lists people who are pregnant, newborns, people 65 or older and people with a weakened immune system as at higher risk, and the NHS lists the same groups and says older people’s risk rises with age. For those groups the CDC says to avoid unheated deli meat and cold cuts, and to eat them only when reheated to 165°F (74°C) or until steaming hot. The NHS, for pregnancy in the UK, says processed cold pre-cooked meats such as ham or chicken should be kept chilled and eaten before the use-by date, and cold cured meats such as salami, pepperoni, chorizo and prosciutto should be cooked until steaming hot first. The two bodies differ, so if you are pregnant, ask your doctor or midwife which applies to you; heating the meat until steaming hot costs nothing and is the stricter answer. These lines are about shop-bought deli meat; this page did not find an authority that speaks to meat you cook and slice at home, so if you are in a higher-risk group, ask your doctor, midwife or pharmacist before you rely on it. If you think you have been made ill: in the US, the CDC says to contact a healthcare provider if you ate food that was recalled or linked to an outbreak and you have a fever with fatigue and muscle aches, and to say what you ate, especially if you are pregnant, 65 or older or have a weakened immune system; the serious form usually starts within 2 weeks of eating the food, and in people who are not pregnant it can bring headache, stiff neck, confusion, loss of balance and seizures. In the UK, the NHS says to ask for an urgent GP appointment or call NHS 111 if you are pregnant, or have a condition or a treatment that weakens your immune system, and think you have listeriosis, or if you think your baby might have it; if you are pregnant and your baby is moving less than usual, call your midwife or maternity unit; and to call 999 or go to A&E for a severe headache and stiff neck, discomfort looking at bright lights, a fit, sudden confusion, being very sleepy or hard to wake, or a rash that does not fade when a glass is rolled over it, and not to drive yourself. In the US, treat those same signs as an emergency and call 911. Separately, a slicer blade can cause deep cuts and amputations: if you buy one, read the maker’s manual and the slicer lines below before the first slice.

Pre-sliced deli meat can cost a good deal more per pound than the same meat in one piece. A whole ham or turkey breast costs less, but then it needs slicing, and the machine that does that is a purchase of its own.

Before you buy a meat slicer, buy a whole cooked ham or turkey breast (ready to eat, not raw) and ask a store with a deli counter whether it will slice it for you; if it will, you may not need the machine.

If you are pregnant, 65 or older, have a weakened immune system or are buying for someone who is, read the safety box first: deli meat carries a risk for you that a cheaper price does not remove.

Why the machine may not be needed

The reason to buy a whole piece is the price gap. One person lays out a steep gradient: deli-counter turkey costs roughly double the packaged kind, which costs roughly double a deboned whole turkey. Some people say that buying whole hams and turkeys when they are on sale, cooking them, slicing them and freezing small packs costs much less than store-bought slices.

The step people reach for next is a home slicer. Some people say there is a cheaper step before it: a grocery store’s deli or meat department will slice a whole ham or other meat for you at no charge if you ask. If that is true where you shop, the machine, the counter space, the cleaning and the blade all go. There are limits: some people say a warehouse club will sell you the whole loaf but will not slice it, and one person corrected a claim that one such club will, saying it has no deli. And some people argue that a counter’s sliced meat costs more per pound than the whole piece because the price covers the labour, so what matters is what you pay for the whole piece, not for the slices.

When a slicer does pay

Many people say a home slicer lets you buy whole blocks far cheaper per pound than the packs, and can pay for itself quickly. Others say it is a one-purpose machine that ends up in a cupboard. People split on it, and it depends on how much sliced meat you eat, how much space you have, and whether you will slice other things with it too: roasts, cheese, vegetables. The number to compare is the one you can check yourself: the price of the whole piece, plus a share of the machine, against the price of the packs you buy now. One person says that if you eat sandwiches rarely, you should not buy one.

If you do buy one

The slicer is the part of this that can hurt you. One person warns that home slicers are an injury risk and can lack the guards and grabbing devices of commercial ones; some people warn about serrated blades, which they call unusual and hazardous on a meat slicer; one person warns never to bypass the safety feature to get the last slice; and one person’s account includes a scar from the blade while cleaning it.

The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration says, in a fact sheet written for workplaces, that rotary slicers must be used with guards that cover the unused part of the blade, and that people should never put a hand behind the food chute guard, never feed the food in by hand, use the pusher or plunger, keep their hands away from the back of the blade where the slices come out, and turn off and unplug the slicer when it is not in use or left unattended. For cleaning it says to retract the blade fully, wipe the blade from the centre outward and never wipe toward the blade when cleaning the table, use a cleaning tool with a handle, and unplug the machine before taking off guards. Some people say to push the meat through with a tool and not a hand, which fits that. If you are buying second-hand, check that the guard and the pusher are there; OSHA’s list tells workers what to do when a safeguard is damaged or missing, which is a reminder that the guards are the point.

After you slice

Sliced meat keeps for days, not weeks, which is why the freezer matters. The USDA’s figure is 3 to 5 days in the fridge for opened or deli-sliced luncheon meat, and 1 to 2 months in the freezer for quality. Some people say that portioning into small packs before freezing avoids waste. The CDC says Listeria spreads easily among deli equipment, surfaces, hands and food, and that refrigeration does not kill it. The NHS’s advice for avoiding it includes keeping ready-to-eat food cold, in a fridge at 5°C or below, eating it within 4 hours of taking it out, and washing your hands regularly. One person says commercial slicers need thorough cleaning after every use; this page did not check a standard for home machines, so follow the maker’s manual.

Other cheaper pieces

Some people say a rotisserie chicken or a whole chicken, with the breast sliced, is a cheaper and often tastier sandwich meat than deli turkey or ham. Some people say bacon ends, the trimmings from the butcher counter, cost much less than strips and suit cooking where the shape does not matter, and some people note they carry more fat. Some people name plain fillings such as egg salad, chickpea salad or peanut butter as cheaper still. One person says that slicing a plain roast yourself lets you control the salt and seasoning; that applies to a roast you cook, not to a cured ham.

Who this page is not for

If you are pregnant, are 65 or older or have a weakened immune system, the safety box comes before any money-saving trick on this page, and so it does if you are buying for someone who is. If you are shopping for an older parent, the CDC and NHS both put older people at higher risk; one person says an older parent’s enjoyment should not be overridden by thrift, and another that the cost is worth managing, and this page does not settle that. One person adds that a roast you slice at home will not match the thinness and texture of deli slices, which an older person may prefer. If you eat sandwiches rarely, have no freezer room or no space for a machine, a slicer is not for you. And if you cannot afford food today, buying a machine is the wrong end of the problem; the food pantry and benefits links below are the faster door.

Try this today

about 10 minutes

If you are pregnant, 65 or older, or have a weakened immune system, or you are buying for someone who is, read the safety box first and skip this. Otherwise, at your next shop, find a store with a deli or meat counter, ask whether it will slice a whole boneless ham or turkey breast that you buy there, and ask what that costs. Note the price per pound of the whole piece, of the counter-sliced meat, and of the pre-sliced packs. Do not buy a machine until you have those three numbers. Whatever you bring home, keep it at 40°F (4°C) or below and use sliced meat within 3 to 4 days (3 to 5 for deli-sliced luncheon meat; the NHS says 2 days for opened food), or freeze it in small packs.

Know someone carrying this? Send it to them.

Common questions

Will every shop slice it for me?

No. Some people say a grocery deli or meat department will slice a whole ham or other meat at no charge if you ask. One person points out that one big warehouse club does not: it sells whole loaves of turkey and boneless ham, but it has no deli and will not slice them, and some people say these stores typically offer no slicing. One person adds that not every location of one national warehouse chain offers free slicing. Ask the store you actually use, at the counter, before you pay for the whole piece. Some people also say waiting for a counter to slice can be slow or uneven, and one person’s reasons for owning a slicer include control over the thickness.

How long does sliced meat keep, and can I freeze it?

The US food safety site run by the USDA and other agencies gives 3 to 5 days in the fridge for opened or deli-sliced luncheon meat, with the fridge at 40°F (4°C) or below, and 1 to 2 months in the freezer, a freezer figure that is about quality, not safety. For meat you roast yourself, the USDA says leftovers keep 3 to 4 days in the fridge or 3 to 4 months frozen. The NHS says to keep the fridge at 5°C or below and to use opened food within 2 days unless the packaging says otherwise. Some people say sliced meat freezes well and that you can portion it out and freeze it. Some people say a vacuum sealer protects frozen or fridge-stored meat, and one person points out that it only helps while the package stays sealed, so a package you open every lunchtime loses the benefit. One person says frozen turkey goes chalky; another accepts that trade for the saving. Thaw in the fridge.

Is a slicer worth the counter space?

People split on it, and it depends on how much sliced meat you eat, how much kitchen space you have, and whether you will also slice roasts, cheese and vegetables. Some people say it is a poor deal because a store will slice for nothing and the machine needs room; others that it earns its place through the savings on whole pieces and the other things it slices. One person puts the break-even at about 30 packs of sliced meat, which is a figure for one person’s prices, not yours. And some people simply find a slicer a chore to clean.

Questions this step helps with

Meat is too expensive now — how do I still eat it?

Who can help

SNAP (Food Stamps) — How to Apply
SNAP helps you pay for groceries every month when money is tight, and this official page shows how to apply in your state.
Open fna.usda.gov ↗
Nationwide (U.S.) · Varies by state office
Feeding America — Find a Food Bank
Find a food bank or pantry near you. Enter your ZIP code to see what's close.
Open feedingamerica.org ↗
Nationwide (U.S.) · Website, any time

In the UK

a quiet placeSit for a minuteA meadow, a river, and nothing you have to do. The field is always open — and the wind on this page already knows the way.

Full tip: https://findangel.org/tips/try-the-deli-slicer-before-you-buy-your-own/ · FindAngel.org — free, always.