Japan — suribachi production concentrated in Banko-yaki (Mie Prefecture) ceramic tradition
The suribachi (grinding bowl) and surikogi (wooden pestle) are uniquely Japanese kitchen tools designed specifically for grinding sesame seeds, miso paste, and soft ingredients to a smooth paste. The suribachi's interior surface is covered with fine parallel ridges (kushi-me) that create the grinding surface — unlike a smooth Western mortar, the ridges grip and shear the material between pestle and bowl. This produces a paste with better cell rupture and a different, more emulsified consistency than the pounding action of a stone mortar. The surikogi is made from sanshō (Japanese pepper tree) wood, which is traditionally believed to impart a mild pleasant aroma during use and whose open, irregular grain provides friction. Suribachi is used for: grinding sesame for gomaae sauce; blending tofu for shira-ae dressing; making sesame-based dipping sauces; and mixing white miso with other flavourings for misoyaki sauces.
The suribachi is a tool, not a flavour — but the emulsification of sesame into a smooth paste in suribachi produces a different texture and flavour delivery than chopped or food-processed sesame
Always preheat the suribachi briefly with hot water and dry before use (warm ceramic grinds more efficiently than cold); grind in circular motions along the ridges (not across them or with pounding); sesame seeds must be lightly toasted before grinding; do not fill more than 1/3 of the bowl (grinding action requires space for the material to move); clean ridges with a suribachi brush (a special stiff brush — a toothbrush is an acceptable substitute).
The classic gomaae sesame sauce (from suribachi): toast white or black sesame until fragrant and just beginning to pop, transfer to suribachi, grind until paste-like consistency (the oil from the seeds will naturally bind the paste), then add sugar, soy, mirin and grind until smooth; an immersion blender can approximate suribachi results for large volumes but lacks the tactile control; the suribachi technique of grinding develops an intuitive understanding of emulsion — the moment sesame transforms from gritty to smooth paste is a skill marker for Japanese home cooks.
Using too much material in the bowl (restricts the grinding action — sesame stays whole in overcrowded suribachi); using raw sesame seeds (pre-toasting is essential — raw seeds do not grind to a smooth paste and lack flavour); grinding across the ridges rather than along them (inefficient and wears the ridges more quickly); cleaning the suribachi with a sponge (pushes food into the ridges — a stiff brush only).
Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art — Shizuo Tsuji