The typical kitchen earthenware mortar, i often referred to as krok kabue, is made of clay, which is shaped into a bowl before being fired. With this mortar, housewives can pound cooking ingredients into minute pieces. It is used together with a large pestle, which is made of hardwood to make it heavy enough to pulverize food in almost no time. An earthenware mortar in the ancient style has a large circular rim. Like a cone, the body from the rim to the bottom gets narrower, but it has a wide base, so that it can accommodate the force of the pounding.
Thai people have used mortars as a major household utensil since ancient times. It was during the early Rattanakosin period that the Thai mortar started to change its form, since Thais were engaging in more trade contact with the Chinese, leading to frequent cultural exchanges between them. Then the kitchen mortar changed in both its size and form, and later, many began to be made of stone, which is still popular.An earthenware mortar has several constraints, however. For instance, it cannot contain much food, as it is hard to break a large amount of food into pieces. And if the pounding is too heavy, the mortar may break. However, the kitchen mortar is still used widely in Thailand, because Thais feel that no utensil can grind food as well as a mortar and pestle can.
Thai people have used mortars as a major household utensil since ancient times. It was during the early Rattanakosin period that the Thai mortar started to change its form, since Thais were engaging in more trade contact with the Chinese, leading to frequent cultural exchanges between them. Then the kitchen mortar changed in both its size and form, and later, many began to be made of stone, which is still popular.An earthenware mortar has several constraints, however. For instance, it cannot contain much food, as it is hard to break a large amount of food into pieces. And if the pounding is too heavy, the mortar may break. However, the kitchen mortar is still used widely in Thailand, because Thais feel that no utensil can grind food as well as a mortar and pestle can.