Molcajete is the world's oldest culinary tool. This volcanic rock mortar and pestle is any Mexican cook’s favorite. This set is carved and piece is unique and it gets better with each use. It is oven safe, retains heat for about an hour and its best uses are for crushing spices. Best of all it makes an impressive presentation of guacamole and other party favorites.
- Perfect for crushing whole spices and making spice blends.
- Its rough interior texture of mortar helps crush and grind ingredients.
- Ideal for blending and serving guacamole and or for making pesto and other sauces such as salsa.
- Line the interior with lettuce to use as an all-purpose serving bowl.
- Heavy pestle does the work for you, ensuring efficient grinding, blending and mixing.
Better Care for Molcajetes
Just like cast iron, molcajetes need to be cured, or “broken in”. Small grains of the rock can loosen from the surface when it’s first used, giving your food a gritty texture. Curing helps smooth the surface.
Here’s what we recommend for curing before first use:
- Rinse the molcajete with water (or let it soak in water overnight), then clean with a wire brush, or toothbrush, to get rid of surface debris and dust.
- Place enough rice to make an even layer across the bottom of the molcajete.
- Pour in about a tablespoon of water, then use the pestle to work the rice up and around the entire inner surface of the molcajete until the rice has formed a grey paste.
- Rinse out the paste, and repeat the rice grinding until the resulting paste is no longer grey.
- You can then repeat with garlic, onion, cumin seeds, rock salt, or cilantro to add a seasoned flavor before your first use.
Packaged for you
Each molcajete is packed in a tortilla basket made of hand-woven palm leaves. Each one is unique in color and pattern. You can use the basket for corn chips, or tortillas.
Size: Approximately 7" diameter. Variations in size may occur since each one is hand-carved and unique.
