Gift Guide 2017: For the Cook Who Has Everything

You're wracking your brains because they've already got every appliance you can think of, and you're fresh out of ideas.  But have you considered looking backward instead of forward?

The people at ancientcookware.com import cooking vessels from all over the world.  Hard to find items like Thai sticky rice steamers, Indian tandoors and Brazilian soapstone pots.

Two of my favorites are the Indian biryani pot above.  Made of clay, it's the original slow cooker.

And this large Mexican metate, meant to grind dried corn for tortillas.  Hand carved from lava stone, it is equally good for seeds, nuts, chiles and spices.