fancy cooking

when i started out on my cooking adventures, about eight years back, i was completely into acquiring fancy cooking equipment. when lifestyle started stocking such equipment i went on a wild spending spree and bought several fancy pots and pans. in fact, i was mighty disappointed when i couldn't find a tagine or a couscousiere. however, over time i have realized that making do with what i have is both fun and creative. so now i use a huge strainer instead of a couscousiere and believe me, it works just fine. as for the tagine, i'm planning to make one for myself this summer at my pottery studio.
but as i was writing this post, i remembered that i needed one of those bamboo steamers to make dumplings. any ideas on how i can substitute the bamboo steamer with some utensil readily available in an average indian kitchen?
here is the minimalist, mark bittman of the new york times who tells you how you can do without all that fancy stuff in your kitchen.