15 Kitchen Utensils That Will Give You Abuela-Status Cooking Skills

Taking those first few steps away from the family home into some sort of adulthood is a painful process. As the keys on our ring multiply, things get complicated: there’s the expense, the responsibilities, the interminable laundry. The cruelest gut-punch of them all may well be having to abandon all that good home cooking: the rice and beans, the tostones, homemade salsa. If you work all day or live on your own or — gasp! — are the one in charge of getting dinner on the table, there is nothing more comforting and nostalgia-satisfying than the smells of home from your own kitchen right now.

Of course, you don’t have all day to simmer stock for the pozole or fold tamales, so make sure you grab a box of stock and pre-ground masa at the store. Below, we’ve got you covered with all the gadgets you will need to make the dishes you crave at home. Some of them are the same the same utensils the abuelas use, while others are updated versions of classic tools that will make your life even easier. No one is suggesting that it is even possible to top your abuela’s ajiaco, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying

7 Cazuela de Barro

Clay Pot Kitchen BeLatina

Clay cookware was the traditional vessel of the pre-Columbian cook. Used still in Mexico to cook beans, moles and stews, it is not unusual to see one of these beautiful vessels perched right on the stovetop in many Central American households. More shallow versions of the pot-bellied classic can withstand both stovetop and oven needs. In Colombia, ajiaco is both prepared and served in traditional black clay earthenware called chamba, which helps to retain the heat of the stew for prolonged enjoyment.