Best Overall
Chefsofi Mortar And Pestle
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Mortar and pestles are indispensable tools in the culinary world, offering a timeless method for grinding, crushing, and blending ingredients with precision and control. With origins dating back thousands of years, these simple yet effective devices have stood the test of time, retaining their relevance in modern kitchens. Crafted from materials like marble, granite, or wood, mortar and pestles come in various sizes and designs to suit different needs. Our favorite is the ChefSofi Mortar and Pestle if you want a high-quality product with an easy-to-use design. Whether it's pulverizing spices for aromatic curries, crushing herbs for flavorful pestos, or blending ingredients for savory pastes, mortar and pestles provide a tactile and authentic cooking experience, enhancing the depth and complexity of dishes with their hands-on approach to food preparation.
Mortar and Pestle: A Buying Guide
Mortar and pestle sets have varying sizes, features, and purposes, making it hard to pick the right one for your needs. Thankfully, this buying guide will help you get the information about mortar and pestles that you need to ensure you invest in the right product.
Benefits of Mortar and Pestles
Fast grinding
Imagine cutting all your different ingredients with a knife one by one. Now, compare that to making a paste with a mortar and pestle. See the difference? By far, mortar and pestles are a faster option for preparing your meals.
Better taste and scent
Breaking your food into small pieces with an electric blender or knife is effective, but it doesn’t release your ingredients’ flavor, nutrients, and scent like a mortar and pestle does — by crushing them. The bashing motions involved in crushing with a mortar and pestle help with releasing the flavor and aroma of your ingredients.
On-the-go crushing
There are instances when you’re running low on time to chop your ingredients with a knife or when there’s no electricity to power up your blender. A mortar and pestle set is your best friend in such cases, allowing quick crushing of your ingredients to improve your meal’s taste and aroma.
Considerations When Choosing a Mortar and Pestle
Material
While some mortar and pestle sets are made of stone, others are crafted from ceramic materials. Opting for stone-based mortar and pestles is generally preferred, as stone is natural, higher-quality, and more hygienic.
Weight
The more a set weighs, the more stable it’ll be, allowing for convenient grinding of your ingredients. If you’re looking to crush something light, like pills, you can get away with a mortar that weighs a couple of pounds. But for heavy crushing, we recommend a minimum weight of 5 to 10 pounds.
Capacity
In most cases, a regular 2-cup capacity works fine for mortars. If you’re considering a mortar and pestle for grinding small pills from time to time, you’ll be good with a mortar with less capacity. But for grinding ingredients for meals and scientific experiments, a 2-cup mortar is the optimal solution.
Additional Buying Tips
Stability or anti-scratch functionality?
Mortars can either have a polished bottom for scratch resistance or an unpolished surface for stability. A way around this is a silicone base, which would ensure the mortar stays in place while providing resistance against scratches.
Polished or unpolished mortar?
Some mortars have a polished exterior for a clean and minimal appearance, while others are rough to allow for a sturdy grip in your hands. Unless you’ll be holding the mortar with your hands for stability, consider a polished one for safe handling and a clean look.
Things You Should Know About Mortar and Pestles
Pestle handling
Your set’s pestle will highly impact your user experience, especially if you’re into heavy crushing. We recommend pestles that offer a big, soft, and stable grip for the convenient grinding of ingredients. Pay special attention to this if you suffer from a wrist injury or another medical condition.
Effect on flavor and scent
The last thing you’d want from your mortar and pestle set is it changing your food’s flavor and scent. Unfortunately, that’s the case with most ceramic crushing sets since they’re made from industrial chemicals. So, make sure the mortar and pestle set you consider doesn’t contain any chemicals that might ruin the taste of the crushed goods.
Top Picks
- Best Overall: Chefsofi Mortar And Pestle
- Sturdiest Choice: Hicoup Mortar And Pestle
- Best Design: Hic Kitchen Mortar And Pestle
- Most Durable: Prioritychef Mortar And Pestle
- Most Stable: Coolerkitchen Ez-Grip Mortar And Pestle
- Most Versatile: Sweejar Mortar And Pestle
Reviews
Sturdiest Choice
Hicoup Mortar And Pestle
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Best Design
Hic Kitchen Mortar And Pestle
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Most Durable
Prioritychef Mortar And Pestle
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Most Stable
Coolerkitchen Ez-Grip Mortar And Pestle
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Most Versatile
Sweejar Mortar And Pestle
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FAQs
What are mortar and pestles used for?
Mortar and pestles are used for grinding food ingredients like nuts, garlic, ginger, or chilies. They’re also widely used for experiments and in the medical field for chopping pills and blending other medicines.
Are mortar and pestles necessary?
Mortar and pestle are important pieces of equipment for meal preparation. While you can always chop your ingredients with a knife or electric blender, the taste and scent offered by a mortar and pestle set upon crushing your food are unmatched.
Are mortar and pestles safe?
Most mortar and pestle sets are made from natural stones and are safe for crushing food ingredients. Even the ceramic mortar and pestles are food-grade and usually have been authenticated by food authorities for safety.