A new twist on the mortar and pestle

Fun and useful?  A jam jar with a  pebble in it?  You decide.  The  Flavour Shaker by Jamie Oliver (£17.94 from Amazon) is a matrushka-like update on the mortar and pestle, which allows you to grind spices and press garlic and powder sugar with a flick of the wrist (well, probably a few dozen flicks of the wrist, but you get the idea.)  Judging by the reviews on Amazon it's either stupidly great or greatly stupid.

Basically, you crack open the polycarbonate body, you put the spices in it with a little ceramic ball, and shake.  You can even go so far as to make vinaigrette in it.  Is it a marketing con?  Easy way to tell.  Try putting some cinnamon stick in a jar with a rock in it and see how well it crushes.  Or star anise  I don't see garlic cloves being effectively crushed by your average irregularly shaped rock, and it claims to do garlic beautifully.  If it does actually work on hard spices, you've got a hand-powered replacement for an electric spice mill.

[Gabrielle Taylor]