Saturday's Wirecutter piece worked the cordless-vacuum aisle; Sunday's is the four-tool kitchen stack that pays for itself by Tuesday and keeps paying for the next decade.

Molcajete. The lava-stone mortar and pestle from a Mexican cookware supplier runs $35–$55 on Etsy and at Latin grocers. [1] Season it by grinding a handful of rice into white powder three times — the dust is the abrasive that smooths the bowl. After that it produces guacamole, salsa, and dry-spice rubs that no food processor matches; the texture is part of the dish, not an artifact of it.

Comal. A 12-inch cast-iron comal, $25–$35 at Lodge or a cookware store, replaces the nonstick pan it is better than. [1] It blisters tomatoes for salsa, toasts dried chiles in 90 seconds, and crisps the dipped tortilla for birria tacos. The same pan grills cheese sandwiches in October.

Slow cooker. The 6-quart programmable slow cooker, $40–$60, is the unglamorous Cinco-de-Mayo workhorse. [2] Birria goes in Sunday night and out Monday morning. Mole simmers without attention. Beans become beans. The same tool runs the rest of the year as Sunday-night chili and Wednesday-morning oatmeal.

Blender. A standard countertop blender, $50–$80, is the bridge between the molcajete and the slow cooker. [2] Soaked chiles, garlic, onion, vinegar, oregano — three pulses and the marinade is ready. The same blender does smoothies in July.

The four-tool stack is $150–$230. It pays for itself in the first dinner; it stays in service for ten years. The kitchen the rest of the year wants is the kitchen Cinco de Mayo asks for first.

-- NORA WHITFIELD, Chicago