Crinkle-cutting isn’t just a nostalgic gimmick; it’s a clever way to boost texture, crunch, and sauce-gripping power in fries, pickles, carrot sticks, and much more. Here’s how and when to use those wavy blades to make your food sturdier, crispier, and a whole lot more fun to eat.

Despite our shared last name, my grandmother hated cooking. She was infamous in our family for using her oven as a cabinet for potato chips and sliced bread. And yet, when I helped clean out the kitchen after she died, I found dozens of mid-century kitchen implements I couldn’t hope to name. A fork with eight tines. An Iron Maiden the size of an egg. A terrifying vessel shaped like the decapitated head of a winking, coquettish cat.

The most intriguing of these was a corrugated stainless-steel blade with an overhead Bakelite handle.…