mortar and pestle ...

[ORChick]

... the original blender

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifes...or-unplugged/2012/03/07/gIQA4rqb9R_story.html

Anybody have one? I have 5, for some strange reason. I have a little tiny one, about 2" across, that I bought for spices; it is useless ... much, much too small, and the tiny pestle isn't big enough to put any pressure on the spices. When I told someone that I really wanted a bigger, heavier one, she bought me a marble one as a gift ... about 4-5". It is useful, but I would have gone even bigger if she hadn't pre-empted me. And then I have 3 Japanese style mortars - http://www.justhungry.com/suribachi-japanese-grinding-bowl-or-mortar - they are ceramic, with a ridged interior, good for grinding garlic, among other things. I have one that I bought, and a larger one that was given me by friends in Japan, and a smaller one that came with a ginger grater that I bought.
For those who haven't thought of these, they are a useful, non-electric kitchen gadget that might be worth considering.

 

[SSDreamin]

I have one.

My DS, age 12, knew I wanted one quite badly and bought it with HIS OWN MONEY, so I absolutely MUST keep it and pretend to use it, but it is not very practical. It is all wooden. He found it on clearance for $5.

Now, I need to figure out a way to get a stone one into the house, without hurting his feelings :/

 

[Wannabefree]

I've wanted one forever. Where do you even get them from?!

 

[ORChick]

I have one.

My DS, age 12, knew I wanted one quite badly and bought it with HIS OWN MONEY, so I absolutely MUST keep it and pretend to use it, but it is not very practical. It is all wooden. He found it on clearance for $5.

Now, I need to figure out a way to get a stone one into the house, without hurting his feelings :/

Use the wooden one for mashing up softer things (garlic works well, but the smell lingers ), maybe mixing up softened butter with herbs, or making pastes from fresh herbs (and, that reminds me, I also have a wooden one, that I don't use much, bringing the total to six!). Be very appreciative (I'm sure you are anyway) of his lovely present. But explain that, although the wooden one is perfect for whatever you choose to do with it, the stone/ceramic one that you have added to the kitchen is needed for a few things that you can't do in the wooden one - like powdering some spices. Even if you use it more often than the other, your son doesn't actually have to see that you do . (What a sweet gift )

 

[ORChick]

I've wanted one forever. Where do you even get them from?!

Any good kitchen store will have them, in various sizes and qualities; a decent one isn't cheap though. I'm sure Amazon would too. Also ethnic groceries; I've seen nice looking granite ones in Asian markets, and I'm sure that Mexican markets would have them as well.
Make sure that whatever kind you choose has enough room, and is heavy enough, for the work you want to do. And also, if stone, that it is hard enough not to crumble bits of itself into whatever you are pounding.

 

[Dawn419]

I used to have 2, both were gifted to me and apparently neither one made the move from TN to AR. :/

I've been eyeing one at the health food store where we buy our ACV from, so I think I'll drop doc a hint while we're there since my birthday is coming up (too soon).

 

[DianeS]

I have one, a tiny one about 2.5 inches across, that I got from my local Goodwill about a week ago. Its ceramic and was only $3.99! So far I've used it for breaking up pumpkin seeds and flax seeds for inclusion in bread doughs. Takes a while to break enough up, but I've never used a larger one so I don't know the difference. Yet.

 

[hqueen13]

Oh! Just saw a granite one at Ikea for only $15.99! I kinda wanted it then, but now I might have to make an excuse to go get it....

 

[gram of 5]

I have two. A wooden one that isn't practical to use, gifted to me. The other is the "stone" type that I make guacamole in quite often. I just got the recipe for the Pumpkin Seed pesto and am going to make that in the stone one. I don't know that I am capable of crushing herbs with the mortar and pestal. There is something very special about making the guac in there tho. I love grinding and crushing the ingredients. I have tried using it for parsley, but couldn't quite get it to the consistency I wanted. Any one have any recipes????

 

[Mart]

I also have a tiny one that I use to grind coriander seeds or cloves but that is the extent of the use I can make out of it.

I have a grain mill and a hand powered food processor for the other, bigger jobs.