The Spanish name for a griddle commonly used to heat tortillas is comal.
A comal is a broad, usually flat cooking surface used across Mexico and parts of Central America. It is traditionally made from clay, though modern versions are often cast iron, steel, or other materials. Cooks use it to heat or cook tortillas, toast chiles and spices, roast vegetables, and prepare other foods without the deep oil associated with frying.
The word comal comes from comalli, a Nahuatl term for a griddle or cooking plate. Indigenous Mesoamerican cooks used clay comales long before the Spanish conquest, and the utensil remains central to tortilla-making today. A tortilla is often placed on the hot surface, turned several times, and allowed to puff as it finishes cooking.
A comal is not the same as a cazuela, which is generally a cooking pot or earthenware casserole, or a molcajete, which is a stone mortar and pestle. Nor is it a metate, the traditional stone slab used to grind maize and other foods.