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With all the fancy food processors, blenders, and coffee grinders on the market today, it’s easy to assume something as basic as a mortar and pestle set is no longer needed in the kitchen.

But find out more about this handy little “gadget” and you probably won’t make that assumption.

This is the perfect Father’s Day gift for dads who cook. For some reason, men seem to love pounding and grinding things into a fine pulp! Go figure.

A mortar is a sturdy bowl and a pestle is a club-shaped tool with a rounded bottom. Together, this dynamic duo is still the ideal kitchen tool when you want to pulverize spices, herbs, nuts, or other foods, reducing them to a thick paste.

Read a short history of the mortar and pestle, and learn how to use this tool, here.

Find recipes that use ingredients pulverized with a mortar and pestle here.

Learn how to make French pistou or pesto (Did you know the word “pistou” means “to pound”?) here.

Read about the 5 top mortars and pestles here.

Look for this “gotta have” gadget at fine department stores and kitchenware stores everywhere.

Another Kitchen Gadget You Just “Gotta Have” - from Daisy Benson