These are a list of equipment and tools that are used for Mexican and Tex-Mex cooking. None of these are crucial to these cuisines, but they all provide an authentic, useful tool for this kind of cooking.

Bean Masher:

Mexican bean mashers look like miniature billy clubs. Although this tool is not used for keeping the peace, the bean smasher helps mash beans that are not fully cooked. Those fully cooked, as well as refried beans, can be mashed with a regular potato masher.

Cazuelas:

These are, Cheap Bean Bags
, clay pots that are sometimes buried in the coals of a wood fire in Mexican and Texas cooking. Cazuelas are used to cook beans, stews, and soups.

Comal:

Traditionally used to cook tortillas, the comal is a flat cast iron pan without sides. Roasting peppers, tomatoes, or garlic in a comal is very common when making salsa.

This is done by placing the ingredients in a dry, comal, and heating on the stove top until lightly charred.

Metate:

This ancient grinding tool was once the most important tool in every Mexican kitchen, Cheap Bean Bags
, ., Cheap Bean Bags
, The metate was used to grind corn treated with lime, and made into a masa dough for tortillas and tamales. It was also used to mash beans. It has a round handpiece called a mano.

The metate is no longer commonly used because people stopped grinding and mashing their own corn, and instead buy prepared masa dough, or masa mix.

Molcajete:

This tool took over the job of the metate. The three-legged stone molcajete is a more modern device, although still basic. It has a pestle (or tejolote in Spanish), and is used to grind any number of ingredients, Cheap Bean Bags
, and vegetables.

Although much of Mexico has replaced the molcajete with electric appliances, it is still considered superior over blenders and food processors for making guacamole, salsas, and other mixtures where chunkiness is wanted. The molcajete also double-duty as an attractive serving dish.

Molcajetes are fairly easy to find in Mexican markets, and at very cheap prices. They should be seasoned before using, as their is a grit that comes off of a new porous rock molcajete.

First, rinse as much of, Cheap Bean Bags
, the grit and rock off as you can, then grind a couple of fresh chile peppers. Toss out the pepper mash, then put the molcajete in a hot oven until, Cheap Bean Bags
, it dries out completely. One characteristic of the molcajete is it always retains a little bit of the flavor from the last thing you ground in it.

Tortilla Press:

This is a hinged contraption that is used to flatten out tortillas evenly.

It is usually made of cast iron or aluminum, with a top and a bottom flat surface. It is necessary to line the surface of the tortilla press with two sheets of plastic (a plastic grocery bag works well) to keep the tortillas from sticking.

Billy is the writer and editor for Food in Texas, a website devoted to the celebration of traditional homemade Texas Food. With simple recipes and cooking ideas that bring out the best in classic Texas cuisine, Food in Texas is creating its own culinary legacy.

Food In Texas

Source: ezinearticles.com