mortar-and-pestle
I recently grinding some chilies with ginger in my granite mortar and pestle, and after cleaning it still has a bit of gingery smell (and maybe a bit of color too?). I washed it with warm water, let it dry, and then grinded some white rice in it as well.
Is it okay that it still smells a bit like ginger? If not, what should I do to remove it?
Thanks!
There are at least three potential downsides:
Neither.
The traditional instrument for making guacamole, and other Mexican mashed and ground preparations, is the mocaljete, which is similar to a mortar & pestle, but made with a shorter pestle and out of black basalt, a rough volcanic stone:
A regular mortar and pestle out of ceramic or granite will not work for a fat, squishy fruit like avocado; it will just squish around and out of the bowl. You need the rough, pitted texture of the volcanic stone to "grab" the avocado pulp.
Personally, I find that the ideal tool for making guacamole or avocado salsas is actually a regular mixing bowl and a heavy pastry blender:
... but even a large metal serving fork will work fairly well. Better than a regular mortar and pestle will.
Best Answer
Should be fine, in fact some people argue that a pestle and mortar is suppose to have remnants of past spices and that it adds to variety and such.
If you're really concerned of the taste, smell or if you ground nuts (allergies), etc. or just don't want the smell/taste then soak it for a long period of time, then rewash it and repeat till it fades.