Pestle and mortar, which is which?

[purplepoppy]

A pestle and mortar is a common kitchen item. But without googling do you know which is the pestle and which is the mortar?

Updates

+1 y

C'mon, who knew and who googled? Too many getting the right answer for GAG.

[NormalBoringGuy]

Wow, nothing excites me more than being asked a question that I can't Google. I find it refreshing to answer questions based on my own knowledge and experiences rather than relying on search engines. It gives me a chance to express my thoughts and opinions in a genuine way.

A mortar and pestle are both kitchen tools used for grinding and crushing ingredients. The mortar is a small, bowl-shaped container made typically out of stone, ceramic, or wood. It has a sturdy base and deep walls to hold the ingredients. On the other hand, a pestle is a tool used for grinding and crushing inside the mortar. It is usually made of the same material as the mortar and has a long, handle-like shape.

[DJB72]

The mortar is the bowl or board depending what you're grinding and the pestle is the crushing implement.

Granite makes the best, marble or alabaster is ok but often stains and woods are hard to find strong enough for use over more than 5 years. A good granite one can be used by your grandchildren.

[DJB72]

Sorry Poppy, I've used them for decades so I knew

[DeeDeeDeVour]

I've been using these for many years.

The mortar is the bowl while the pestle is the object used to pound or grind on the ingredient (s) inside the mortar.

Not counting cooking class, this should have been taught in elementary Science, Lab and/or high school Chem?

[IslaTheWitch]

I have to know... lol

I use them almost every day, mortar is a bowl, pestle is this stick or however you would call it... pardon my English lol

[docster]

I only guessed right because of that movie "The Court Jester" from the 1950's. The star was trying to remember the rhyme: The pill with the poison is in the vessel with the pestle, but the flagon with the dragon holds the brew that is true.

[AngryCarl]

Ah the good old days when Hollywood movies had educational content.

[KostasKouvalis]

I'm very familiar with them. The indigenous people's of North America used varients of them and still do, and u saw some recently in a museum in the Yucatan. I've never realized until now that I have no clue which is which and google didn't help shit honestly.

I'm gonna guess the long stone is the pestel and the bowl is the mortar

[KillinItHard]

I don't think it's actually that common unless you're Hispanic or of other sorts that typically use it. I don't want to call out races or be too disingenuous but I know for sure that most non-latino/Hispanic don't keep this in their kitchen as an everyday item and I get questioned about what it is and used forv when I get visits, they think I'm doing some Harry potter-witchy shit, lmfao. It's for salsas mostly when I use it, calm down...

[exitseven]

The pestle is that rod looking thing and the mortar is the thing that looks like a coffee cup.

[EmmaMary]

@purplepoppy

I certainly like to think I do... But won't give my answer here for fear of spoiling all the fun.

[lightbulb27]

A morter... they used to bombardement things... that's the morter. It's the thing that fires the shell. Thus the round hole.

The Pestle is like that of a flower, the post looking thing.

got one, love it for grinding spices!

[WhiteSteve]

Dang…. I call it a “molcajete”, so I’m not even sure. If I’m guessing, the bowl part is the mortar?

[KillinItHard]

Correct, being half Mexican, I use my moljca very often. The bowl is the mortar. The "masher" is the pestle. It's great for salsas and sauces where a large amount isn't necessary. Otherwise, I just say "Fuck it" and use the blender, lol.

[WhiteSteve]

@KillinItHard Sick, I’m full gringo, so I feel like I nailed it😂

Yeah, I won’t usually eat guacamole unless it’s just been made (I don’t like when it gets brown), so I have one and it gets a fair amount of work👍 Went to dinner at a Mexican restaurant where they made tableside guacamole, and I just watched this waiter bang it out so quickly, I was like “shit, I can do that”, haha. Went out and bought one that week. Also makes a great blunt heavy object if the shit ever jumps off, lmao

[KillinItHard]

No one likes brown guac, if you make it at home and wanna save it for 2 days or so, add like a half inch of water on top of your guac and seal it somehow. Mix it in when you unseal it, still tastes fresh like you just made it. I wouldn't keep it more than 3 days max though.

[WhiteSteve]

@KillinItHard oh shit! Guac-hack! Thanks, bro! Never heard that. Now I won’t have to eat the whole damn thing every time and get a stomachache😂

[BlissfullyCurSed]

The bowl is called mortar and that thick stick is called pestle. English is not my native language, so I deserved an MHO.🙃🙃🙃

[BlissfullyCurSed]

I learnt'em while watching British bake off programmes😶😶.

[FreyaRed]

pestle, plunger, tappet, pounder, muddler, dasher, stamper is the hand part

The mortar has only one noun and stays on the ground

[RebelinSteel]

Yep I do and I know why each is called. One of them works quite well for a woman’s area and the other for a guys lol.

[RebelinSteel]

mortarium, meaning, "receptacle for pounding" and pistillum, meaning "pounder"
I wonder how that would fit into female / male body parts lol. Is 5inches okay for my Pistillum, or he has been using my mortaium, do you think he fancies me.

[electromagnetic]

Bowl is the mortar and the smasher is the pestle.

[CassandraSpender]

Every artist knows the pestle is what you crush your pigment in, the mortar is the bowl

[boobliker]

mortar is a durable bowl commonly made of stone pestle is a rounded grinding club and can be made of stone or hardwood, it both are used to break things down to powder or a past

[AviatorTom]

I believe the pestle is the bowl and the mortar is the stick you grind with.

[KillinItHard]

Reverse that.

[Bricealan]

I have one, made of stainless, for crushing up my companion animals meds into his food.

[Bricealan]

P. S. I also used it to crush up Strychnine, in my dearly beloveds - ex wife's breakfast food? !

[andreasderjuengere]

I'll only google it right after posting :)

I think that the mortar is the ''bowl''

[AngryCarl]

The mortar is the bowl thingy and the pestle is the dong thingy. I know this from chemistry class. Did not google.

[Passerby2]

Because we usually say, stick and ball, needle and thread, I would assume the pestle is the thing you hold

[JayBones]

My mother and wife are witches. The grinding jawn is the pestle

[NathanDavis]

yes... el molcajete

[NathanDavis]

oh, and the tejolote...

[Zestyassmf1997]

Mortar is pot. Pestle is the club.

[Zestyassmf1997]

I actually knew.

[Anonymous]

Pestle is grindy thing mortar is bowl.

[Keith469]

Yup.