Mortar and Pestle

Appears in
Pepper

By Christine McFadden

Published 2008

  • About

Once you’ve tried a mortar (that’s the bowl) and pestle you’ll understand why cooks the world over rely on this versatile kitchen duo. You can use it for grinding dry spices, crushing and pounding wet spices such as ginger, garlic and chillies, and for blending sauces and pastes. The friction of the pestle against the rough surface of the mortar coaxes out the freshest possible flavours, and also allows you to control texture. I use a mortar and pestle rather than a food processor for making spice blends such as Sichuan Spiced Pepper and Salt, or the zesty ginger and garlic paste that goes into Tandoori-Style Chicken.