Pasta,
I think its cool that you have a new gadget. I use my stone M&P for
grinding pepper corns and other seeds. Garlic and dried peppers too.
Dont they drink a lot of tea in India? Perhaps it a combination tea
crusher or coffee grinder that you just pour your boiling water into
after you have mashed what ever you were mashing. Will it hold a quart
of water, does it appeare that it would be placed over a flame? It will
look nice displayed in your kitchen.

Good Luck
Happy shopping
Jim
PastaLover wrote:
> I was out doing some Christmas shopping today. Was in Cost Plus World
> Market. They had a stainless steel mortar and pestle; the label says
> "made in India" and the little cardboard label inside the mortar said it
> was a fixture of Indian cuisine for centuries.
>
> It's not rounded on the bottom; more squared off like a pot. The pestle
> is heavy stainless and has a conical end that fits in the square of the
> bottom edge.
>
> I did a web search--all the metal mortars I found are rounded, just like
> my existing stone one.
>
> Does anyone know about this Indian style and what special uses it would
> be used for?
>
> Yes, before anyone asks, I bought it (only $10). Can always use another
> kitchen gadget! And I've got a collection of other stainless steel
> kitchen tools/toys. But I am curious what I can use it for. I'm assuming
> for just about anything I'd use the normal stone one for, but are there
> any special uses?