The pestle is the long thing and the mortar is the little bowl. The cook, who isn't me, I promise you, can pound awkwardly shaped spices in the mortar with his pestle.

By fall 2011, she was ready to launch her own label, mortar & pestle apparel. “I’ve always liked the ring of it, the sound of it,” she says referring to her brand’s name.

A mortar and pestle feels like a kitchen tool out of time, but many people still use it today for its ability to get bold, fresh flavors out of their spices.

Simple and versatile, the mortar and pestle is a popular piece of kitchenware that has been in existence for millennia. Read on to find our top recommendations.

True to the book’s title, a mortar and pestle is used in nearly every recipe to create bumbu bumbu, the spice pastes that lend a panoply of complex flavors to Tanumihardja’s 75 noodle dishes ...