MSP - Thai Cooking Supplies (incl. Mortar & Pestle)

[Inasuitcase]

More help needed...I LOVE this board:-)

My boyfriend's b'day is in early August. He's expressed a desire for a GRANITE mortar & pestle set (I read it's best to buy a mixed set of wood & granite elsewhere on Chowhound - not the Midwest Board.) He'd like, at least , a three-cup capacity. Does anyone in the Twin Cities have a suggestion as to where to buy a good one inexpensively? I've found them online for around $40 but I'd like to buy him more than just that but funds are tight. I thought I'd include a Thai cookbook (Also, seeking suggestions for a beginner.) and a few ingredients. Open to ideas. Thanks:-)

[gregnim]

The Golden Lion Grocery Store in Brooklyn Park carries a good selection of reasonable mortars and pestles (their bahn mi @ $2.75 are the reason I keep showing up there). I also bought Supatra Johnson's "Crying Tiger Thai Recipes form the Heart" (local author and cooking instructor) which is a great entry level Thai cookbook at the Golden Lion.

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Scene Lounge
370 The Bridge Street Town Centre, NW, Huntsville, AL 35806

[soupkitten]

i think a 3 cup granite m&p will run you a bundle no matter what (& weigh a ton!). if non-granite is an option, 3+-cup m&p options would be available at the hmong market & shuang hur. in addition to the mercados, maybe also try patel's on central. they seem to have a lot of cookware at a low markup. for less-expensive thai cookbooks try 1/2 price books or other secondhand local bookshops.

[AnneInMpls]

Also check in a large Mexican grocery - perhaps El Burrito Mercado in St. Paul or Las Americas on Nicollet Ave in Minneapolis. I know I've seen huge stone mortar-and-pestles at various Mexican markets. (Maybe even at the Mercado Central or the Midtown Global Market, but I'm quite unsure about this.)

Good luck!
Anne

[normativestructures]

I'd give Ax-Man on University and Snelling a try too. They have a wide selection of mortars and pestles pretty regularly (in the "science supplies" section), and it will probably cheaper there than anywhere else.

[The Dairy Queen]

I second the recommendation for Shuang Hur, although, I don't know if they have granite ones (or if that would even be desirable). Ax Man only has really small M&Ps, which are okay for grinding spices but not for making green papaya salad!

~TDQ

[tex.s.toast]

I was in Shuang Hur market on University ave in st paul saturday and noticed a pretty decent selection of different material and variable size mortars and pestles, and they also would have some good starts on other thai cooking supplies.