Comales were traditionally made, for centuries, with clay. In the countryside there are plenty of homes and fondas that still use clay comales and tend to have one for making tortillas and corn masa foods and another for charring or toasting vegetables and spices (continue for more information and photos).

Here you can see the three different types of comales. In the back is a rectangular teflon, followed by an aluminum comal which is happily showing seasoning and aging signs, and up front is an old cast iron comal. Whichever comal you have, clean it lightly, with warm water, soap and a gentle sponge, so that if it is cast iron or aluminum it will slowly season and if it is teflon it will not scratch.

Here is a more close up view…

Comales tend to be passed down through generations and are deeply esteemed. The comal that I treasure the most, up front in the above photos, comes from my mothers’ kitchen. It has about of 40 years of cooking life, has a beautiful black color with dark brown areas and it is not completely flat. It has dents, chips and texture developed through time and travels, which speak its history every time I cook in it.

When I went to Yucatán in December of 2008, I got a very large silver colored aluminum comal which is already starting to develop blackened areas throughout, but it will take a while for it to be seasoned and to flavor foods as intensely as my older comal.

Comales are used for many things such as cooking tortillas, sopes, quesadillas and other related masa foods; charring tomatoes, tomatillos, fresh chiles, onion and garlic; toasting seeds, nuts, dried chiles and other spices; cooking vegetables like nopales or catcus paddles, corn, big texas style onions and scallions, among other things.

You can substitute a comal with any other kind of cast iron plate or griddle or a heavy dry skillet, preferably non-stick if making tortillas.

However, there are benefits from having your own comal.  For one thing, as other Mexican kitchen tools such as molcajetes, aluminum and cast iron comales age with you, season with time and retain a memory of the flavors from their cooking life that permeates future foods cooked in them. Another benefit is that the comal infuses food with a rustic griddle flavor, lighter than a grill or smoker, but peculiar, rich and deep in its own way.

Comales are such an integral part of Mexican cuisine and culture that a town of one of Mexico’s most famous novels is named after it. If you like reading, I recommend it! It is called Pedro Páramo by Juan Rulfo. It tells the story of a man who travels to the hometown of his dying mother, and along the way he runs into a ghost town called Comala, which translates to a place that makes comales. The fictional town of Comala (though there is a real town called Comala too, if not more…) has probably become larger than the novel and even the author in Mexican folklore and culture. It is said that the author gave it this name because the fictional town was eternally burning hot, just like a comal, which is typically used for long periods of time, many times a day and takes a long while to cool off.

Called cazo or olla de cobre in Spanish, Mexican cooks swear by these hand-hammered copper pots to make special things, such as carnitas for savory food, but mostly for all sorts of sweets.

This may be partly because copper is one of the most effective materials to transfer heat with even distribution as well as steady intensity, throughout its entire cooking surface. Yet since copper is a reactive metal, and most cazos de cobre are handmade and not lined with tin, copper pots are not good to rely on for everyday cooking. A copper pot is best suited as a specialty pot, for special things and special occasions. And of course, it looks beyond divine in any kitchen. You can, of course, look for copper pots that are lined with tin or stainless steel, and they in turn, need special care…

According to food science expert Harold McGee in his book On Food and Cooking, copper has a “high affinity for oxygen and sulfur, and forms a greenish coating when exposed to air.” To ensure that your copper pot is as clean as can be, that doesn’t corrode, and it maintains its pretty luster, you need to give it a good maintenance and cleaning regimen. As much as it sounds serious, it is quite easy! The woman who sold it to me taught me her method.

Before and after using it, each time, clean it with a sponge and lightly soapy water, rinse it. Then cut a lime in half and sprinkle a generous amount of grainy salt on it, kosher or sea salt will do.

Use the salted lime to polish the pot, squeezing the lime to release the juice as you scrub along. Then just rinse and dry.

You see? It’s simple!

Other methods used to maintain and clean copper pots use another acid instead of lime, such as vinegar. The Culinary Institute of America’s book The Professional Chef suggests adding flour to the acid and salt mix to make a copper cleaning paste. The flour is just added for a more helpful texture of what’s used to clean the pot.

Any method will work as long as you have an acid and a salt. The acid causes a reaction with the copper that erases the stains or discoloration and cleans it and the salt gives you the grittiness to scrub.

I tend to make my Jellos in clear and simple plastic cups like the ones you’d see on street stands in Mexico. It is simple, fast and you can see through all the colors and layers of your creations without having to unmold the Jello. It is also great for kids because they can just eat the Jello right out the cup. Also, in a way, servings are pre-measured (continue for more information and photos).

But if you want to be artistic with the shapes, aside from the flavors of your Jello creations, the newest molds are made of high-quality silicone and come in elaborate shapes.

See below all the choices I could gather for individual servings of Jello…

There are also large molds that can be used. Same applies as above. I even have one that comes from my mother-in-law’s kitchen, which was made in the 60’s especially for Jello. Yes, it’s true!  See the green retro mold below? It is plastic, in the shape of a traditional Mexican large Jello. It has a lid to cover the Jello as it sits and settles in the refrigerator, and it has a conveniently located tight-fitting lid on the top that makes it easy to unmold the gelatin as you flip it over. Both lids help keep other savory smells from the refrigerator from slipping into your sweet Jello. If you like vintage items, plastic molds are the way to go. They come in a wide variety of shapes and are fun to search for on Esty or at yard sales, Goodwill, and antique shops.

You can also use metal round, tube or bundt cake pans. They work beautifully to make layered ring-molded gelatins too.

You should be able to find ring-shaped molds and individual-portion molds at your local cookware store. But the internet is also a great resource for more variety, especially if you are looking for artfully shaped silicone molds or retro plastic molds.

When it is time to unmold your Jello, the most important thing is to make sure your gelatin has had sufficient time to chill (at least 2 hours in the refrigerator) and is completely set – it should be firm and not feel sticky or sag. Once set, it should slide out of the inverted mold easily with a few gentle shakes side to side. If your Jello is acting stubborn and seems too attached to the mold, try either carefully running a wet small knife (with warm water) around the top edge of the mold to loosen or filling a shallow pan or sink with warm water (but not hot!) and dipping the mold in just to the rim for 10 to 20 seconds to help loosen it up.

Limes are one of the most iconic ingredients of Mexican cooking. Not lemons. Limes! To me, limes have a much more concentrated citrus punch, and I like the fresh juice. I have a deep disregard for pre-squeezed lime juice bottles sold at the stores; they taste like airplane food.

What’s complicated about squeezing a fresh lime? Nothing much really. But when you use as many as I do, this squeezer is a delight: gets as much juice as the lime has in a snap, feels heavy and powerful in your hand, and it is easy to maintain and keep clean.

My lime squeezer is as common as common gets. You can find one easily in just about any Mexican kitchen. It is made of cast aluminum, which resists corrosion from the acidic juices. It is super simple to use: open it up, place a halved lime cut side down and just squeeze the juice wherever you want it to go, directly over food or into a bowl or measuring cup. Close and squeeze the long handles that give you leverage to extract all the juice and that’s that. Since it is so big, it works with lemons too… (continue for more information and photos)

Here’s a photo of my lime squeezer…

And from the other side…

Up close you can see the perforated bottom that strains the juice from the pulp…

Here it is, with a big and juicy Mexican lime half ready to go…

And squeeze…look at all the juice coming out!

If you have limes or lemons that are tough and resist being juiced, here’s a hint: roll the lime or lemon, pressing down firmly with the palm of your hand, on a hard countertop until the pulp is softened. This will losen it up and make it easier to squeeze.

Fortunately, cast aluminum Mexican-style lime squeezers like mine are pretty ubiquitous these days and can be found in many department stores and big box stores that sell cookware. If you run into trouble finding one there, a boutique kitchen store is a good bet, or you can look on the Internet.

You will find all kinds of lime squeezers, colorful plastic ones, round ones, electric ones, even squeezers that resemble pliers. Any of these will work, but I stand by my handheld lime squeezer. It works like new even though I’ve had it forever! What’s more, it has bigger holes than usual so more juice comes out faster. Plus, my mom gave it to me, it aged with her and now it is aging with me.

It it is traditionally made of basalt volcanic rock, which is very porous and rough and it makes it very heavy. There are however, newer versions of lighter material, that I am not so fond off. When new, there are many takes of how to “cure” them, so they can begin to be used. Some people grind white rice, while others grind peeled garlic cloves.  I like to do both. So just take either one or the other, or both, and grind them with the pestle. Then just wash with a soapy sponge and rinse under cold water (continue for more information and photos).

Molcajetes stand on three short legs.

They are sometimes carved in the shape of an animal, most typically pigs, which can look friendly or quite scary.

A wonderful thing about molcajetes, is that since they are so porous they have a remarkable memory. They store within them, the essences, oils, smells and flavors of all that has been served or made in them. Maybe that’s why it is said that molcajetes season with time and use. Maybe that’s also why it is said that making a sauce or rub or paste in a molcajete makes it taste better….

Here is a photo, of mine….

Though it is not that easy to find molinillos outside of Mexico, any market in any part of Mexico will likely have not only one, but different kinds to choose from…

It’s true that tortillas can be made in many different ways such as simply flattening round corn masa or dough balls with your hands or rolling out the masa with a rolling pin. However, the tortilla press makes the process be a speedy, consistent, fun and even therapeutic one (it is!).

Moreover, look at what a pretty tool it is (click here for more information and photo).

Here is what a tortilla press looks like when closed. Sitting on my chair. Mine is cast iron, but you can also find aluminum and wooden ones. I prefer cast iron, but don’t mind aluminum as long as it is heavy and sturdy. I find the wooden ones a bit tricky to use.

This is what one looks open, ready for you to use. As you see, there are some pieces of plastic cut in rounds -from produce bags is perfect.

A plastic round is placed in the bottom of the opened press, so you can place a corn dough or masa ball, top with another plastic round and then simply close the press, and press it down.

Tortilleros tend to be stunning in their craftsmanship, design and color. They are usually handmade and can have from the most simple to the most intricate designs. Mexican cooks take great pride in arranging their table to make it colorful and beautiful, and the tortillero is no exception (continue for more information and photos).

Tortilleros are all circular in shape and are made from many materials. There are basically 2 different types. The first is a woven basket, typically made from natural sources such as wood, palm leaves or different plant materials. The woven version can come with or without a lid.

When it doesn’t come with a lid, usually a cloth napkin is placed inside to wrap and hold the tortillas. The cloth napkins can be as beautiful as the tortilleros! Many are hand decorated and sewn like the one above.

Then…there are those with the lids, which tend to look like cute little hats.

The second type of tortilleros are those made completely out of textiles. They are just as creative and can be decorated as the woven ones, from simple, to very dressed. They always have an opening to place the tortillas inside and can also be placed inside of a woven tortillero.

Tortilleros can also serve as open baskets for bread and come in many different forms… Just see how many!

Some people also like to get a thing called a “tortilla warmer”, which acts pretty much like a warming pillow. It can be placed in the microwave and then under the tortillero, to keep the tortillas even warmer…

See the smallest one up there? So small and cute. Sandra recommended for spreading butter or jam. Although that little one may not seem so practical, it is a pleasure to use and it makes me smile each time I do.