Brilio.net - Various modern electric kitchen appliances now offer convenience in grinding various food ingredients, from fruits, spices, herbs, to hard ingredients such as meat and ice cubes. These tools do provide time efficiency in the cooking process. However, the use of traditional equipment such as mortars and pestles is still in great demand.
The process of grinding spices with a mortar is believed to produce a more authentic taste, and makes it easier to control the texture as desired. Stone mortars are the main choice for many people because of their durability and strength. The stone material allows the mortar to last for decades of use. This qualified quality makes the price of stone mortars relatively high, but this situation is exploited by unscrupulous traders who sell fake mortars at low prices.
Fake mortars are generally made from a mixture of cement and sand. Visually, fake mortars are very similar to real stone mortars because their surfaces are coated with black paint. Using fake mortars made of cement is dangerous because sand residue can mix with the food being ground.
The method of testing the authenticity of the mortar can be done by soaking it for 15 days. During this period, the soaking water is changed every day while brushing the surface of the mortar. Genuine stone mortars are resistant to water so they remain sturdy even when submerged for a long time. On the other hand, fake mortars made of cement will crack and the original color of the cement will be visible. Although effective, this method takes quite a long time to ensure the authenticity of the mortar.
Instead, you can apply a short tutorial shared by TikTok user @cobekbatutangerang. Through one of the videos uploaded, he explains a quick way to distinguish between real and fake stone mortars . As reported by BrilioFood on Tuesday (12/17), he only uses a little water to distinguish the mortars.
photo: TikTok/@cobekbatutangerang
The method is, first prepare two mortars made of different materials (stone and cement). Then pour a little water onto the surface of the mortar. It doesn't need to be too much, just enough until the surface of the mortar is covered with water. After that, smooth it using a mortar.
photo: TikTok/@cobekbatutangerang
In the video, TikTok user @cobekbatutangerang explains that a real stone mortar will immediately change color when its surface is wet, just like the nature of natural stone. When dry, the stone tends to be a dull gray color. While when wet, the color will immediately be jet black.
It is different with fake mortars made of cement. Even though they are soaked in water, there is no change in color on the surface of the mortar. This is because cement mortars are generally painted black to look like stone. The painting also makes the mortar not change color in wet or dry conditions.
photo: TikTok/@cobekbatutangerang
Apart from the color, the TikTok user also emphasized to distinguish the mortar from its weight. The reason is, the original stone mortar is heavier than the cement mortar. This also applies to the mortar.
photo: TikTok/@cobekbatutangerang
(brl/lut)
