This is a bamboo steamer tray that's mostly used to warm foods like dumplings, chicken or pork meat, and vegetables. Bamboo steamers come in a variety of sizes and are available at most Asian markets and some supermarkets and department stores.

This type of charcoal grill has been used in Thailand for a long, long time! Hot coals are placed in the bottom of the grill and a wok sits on the top. The grill is essentially a metal pail with concrete inside formed into a space that holds charcoal (which is added through a hole cut into the side. A ceramic piece holds the wok above the coals.

The clay pot on the left is used in the oven to cook dishes such as Seafood with Silver Bean Thread Noodle, Dungeness Crab with Thai herbs and Pineapple Fried Rice with Shrimp in Clay Pot. The clay pot on the right is used for soups like Tom Yum. Charcoal can be put in the bottom.

To Western cooks, a cleaver can seem rather intimidating. In reality, cleavers are among the most useful pieces of equipment ever invented. The blade of a heavy cleaver is powerful enough to cut through bone. The flat of the broad blade is ideal for crushing garlic or ginger; it is not as dangerous as it looks, provided you handle it with care. Learn to regard it as just another kitchen knife, and you will be rewarded with a lot of fun and very satisfactory results.

This little wood stool with metal teeth on one end is used to extract the meat from a coconut. The coconut is cracked open and the metal teeth loosen the meat from the shell so it can be used to make fresh coconut milk.

An electric rice cooker is the most convenient way to cook rice and you'll find one in most homes in Asia. The rice cooks in just 5-10 minutes and after it's cooked you can leave it in the rice cooker to warm until it's ready to serve.

A sticky rice serving basket is perfect for serving sticky rice. The woven bamboo allows the rice to breathe a little and yet it keeps some of the heat in as well. In Thailand, rice is never left uncovered during a meal, so the bamboo server also helps with that.

The basket is made from woven bamboo, which keeps the sticky rice from getting too wet during steaming. The steaming pot is made from aluminum. Water is placed in the bottom of the pan and it's brought to a boil. Sticky rice, which has been soaked overnight, is placed in the basket. The rice should steam for approximately 15-20 minutes or until it turns translucent. Any round pot cover can be placed in the basket in order to keep most of the steam from escaping.

Several types of strainer are available, but the two most useful are the perforated metal scoop or slotted spoon, and the coarse-mesh, wire skimmer, preferably with a long bamboo handle. Wire skimmers can retain strong flavors; do not use them with liquids based on fish or fish sauce.

Serve soup like Tom Yum, Hot and Sour Soup (Gang Som Pae Za in Thai) and Chicken and Coconut Soup (Tom Kha Gai in Thai). Charcoal is placed in the bottom of the pot, which keeps the soup warm during a meal.

Used to pound curry pastes and other dried spice ingredients such as coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cloves, and dried peppers. The mortar on the left is made from clay and the pestle at the bottom is made from wood. This kind of mortar and pestle is commonly used for pounding green papaya salad (Som Tum), fresh peppers, fresh garlic, and more.

This three tray aluminum steamer comes in a variety of sizes. It's used for steaming fish, vegetables, tapioca dumplings, and chicken. Water is placed in the bottom tray and it's brought to a boil. Oil should be rubbed on the trays before using to keep the food from sticking. A big sheet of banana leaves is often used with this type of the steamer to wrap up food prior to cooking.

In Thai cooking, a good wok is very important! A non-stick wok or frying pan is best for stir-frying noodle dishes like pad thai or fried rice. Stainless steel or cast iron woks are best to use for stir-frying vegetables or meat.

Some wok sets come with a spatula and ladle made from cast iron or stainless steel. These are very useful, particularly the ladle.