Kota Japan Large Granite Mortar & Pestle Natural Stone Grinder for Spices, Seasonings, Pastes, Pestos and Guacamole

So beautiful that I want it out on the counter. The pestle is long which is what I wanted for ease of use.It works really well for pounding and grinding hard, dry spices. The grinding bowl is more shallow than expected for the height of the mortar but this allows more grip length on the pestle, a welcome trade-off. A towel can block spices from flying out of the bowl.This also means the weight helps keep it in place during use. It is so heavy that care is needed moving it around and I can’t recommend it for people with weaker grip strength unless it is not moved around.We seasoned it by grinding rice until the powder looked clean, which only took three grinds.The pestle was not well packaged, as others have noted, but thankfully nothing was chipped or cracked.

Five Stars because:• heavy and durable,• beautifully finished, elegantly designed• comfortable to use for lots of pounding• good value• everything positive, nothing negativeI use this nearly every day for grinding dry spices and smashing garlic, ginger, chilies, etc. Absolutely love it. No hesitation recommending this mortar and pestle.

This Grey Granite mortar + pestle set is beautiful! The outside is nicely polished. The interior of the mortar, and the working end of the pestle are coarse, just right for grinding spices. The shape of the mortar is deeper than wide, so that the items to be ground can't jump out. Easy to clean with plain water and a nylon brush. No seasoning required. Definitely a quality product.

Very heavy and very excellent product…this needs to be heavy as to not move around while using it and it does the job extremely well

This mortar/pestle set is good looking and works very well. I have a big Thai style one used for papaya salad and wanted a smaller mortar to make small hot pepper/onion dipping sauce. I used it a few times so far and it works very good. I usually start with the garlic and then add the chili pepper. The rough hard surface really breaks the garlic and chili down fast without a lot of effort. The mortar is nice and heavy and is not going to move around. My only complaint is that I thought it was going to be bigger or at least the hole a little deeper. Stuff tends to fly out if you are pounding hard things like peppercorn. The pestle probably isn't suited for certain style of pounding also like how you would pound papaya salad with high lifting motions because I would think after awhile the pestle would chip. A wooden pestle would be better for this style. Overall though it works great for what I intended to use it for (chili dipping sauce) with less effort than my big Thai mortar. Another quirk is that the finish looks very nice but smooth and is a bit slippery when you wash it so you have to be careful not to drop it on top of your other dishes sitting in the sink or they'll probably break since this mortar is quite heavy for it's size. It is actually heavier then my Thai mortar which is wider and taller but made from nickel metal mix.

I have used many but having big hands i love the length of the pestle is the best part. The grinned texture in the mortar really helps in making smooth pastes easier. The depth of the mortar is good too, hardly any spills. Have been using it a lot especially in grinding and making powders. Mortar is heavier but that makes it much more durable.

A mortar and pestle is a simple tool but a lot goes into the design. It has to be small enough that you can crush a few seeds but large enough that you can crush larger items like dried peppers or to make aioli. It has to be heavy enough to stay put but not so heavy that you don't know where to store it. The surface of the tools has to be rough so you have good friction but not so porous that food sticks to it or it is impossible to clean. The shape of both tools has to be such that they mate well as you move the pestle around so you can grind things into powder if you need to. The pestle has to fit into your hand with various grips.I have used a bunch of bad tools such as those that are so small you can't hold the pestle, or made of wood or other material that wears out or can't be cleaned, or too shallow so that stuff flies everywhere or so deep that you can't see what you're doing.This is the perfect tool on all counts for me. I am usually cooking for 4 and sometimes 8-10 and it's the perfect size for crushing a few teaspoons or tablespoons of spices or a small batch of aioli or spice paste. If you're making huge meals or need to make large quantities you might look carefully at the size. It is heavy (made of granite) but can easily be moved around, but it is attractive enough that I leave it out in the kitchen as a decoration.

After frying two electric spice mills, we bought this. We love it, use it every day for salt, pepper, garlic, etc., etc., etc.It is better, faster, and we keep it on the counter - it is heavy, but that is the reason it works so well, so fast, and so easily.Tip: a small firm-bristled brush makes it easier to empty completely, and also to keep it grinding "stone- to- stone", and low maintenance.