I first met the comadre through a colleague of mine at the University of Puebla, Mexico. I was in the habit of bringing meat loaf, mashed potatoes, and other “gringo food” that the professor’s elderly American father missed, to his house in Cholula, the small town where we both lived, and where the comadre worked as his housekeeper. She […]
Continue ReadingAmaranth greens were a staple in pre-Hispanic Mexico until the Spanish friars declared amaranth a forbidden crop because the seeds were used by the indigenous people to form replicas of their gods. Thankfully, nutritious amaranth is now cultivated for its seeds, used in candy and cereal. The leaves are also widely used, especially in southern […]
Continue ReadingThis was one of the prepared foods we picked up at the Juchitan market. Several different ladies were selling this marinated chicken dish, so we picked out one of the friendliest-looking, bought her chicken, and asked for her recipe, which she explained carefully. I didn’t believe how easy it was until I made it at […]
Continue ReadingPipian is a specialty of central Mexico, especially the states of Puebla and Mexico. Restaurants in Mexico seem to feature more duck on their menus in the last few years, although the native muscovy duck was domesticated and eaten in pre-Hispanic times. I have adapted my recipe for pipian verde, which I learned to cook in Puebla […]
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Many years ago, our intrepid little band of gypsies became hopelessly lost on a trip through what was then relatively undeveloped Baja California. Too dark to be on the road, and too late to find accommodations, the situation called for some ingenuity, and we got permission from a farmer to park our van alongside his […]
Continue ReadingWhen asked by the New York Times magazine to write about the most important contribution of the past millennium, Italian author Umberto Eco chose the humble bean. In How the Bean Saved Western Civilization, Eco points out that in the five centuries after the year 1,000 A.D. Europe’s population nearly tripled, and the amount of […]
Continue ReadingIn the introduction to her cookbook, Adela Fernandez talks about the flowers that adorned her father’s table and the heavily embroidered tablecloths and napkins, often with flower motifs, that were made especially for his theme meals. The food served often contained flowers, including hibiscus, nasturtium, squash blossoms and colorín, or “bird’s tongue.” This recipe for Aztec squash […]
Continue ReadingIt is customary for Mexican cooks to save the seeds they remove from dried chiles and store them, mixing several varieties in the same jar. This traditional recipe from El Bajio restaurant in Mexico City may be made with either boneless pork leg or beef shanks. Ingredients: 2 pounds cut-up boneless pork leg or beef […]
Continue ReadingThe Mexican trout farms in the mountains outside Atlixco have open air restaurants that are crowded with families getting out of the city on weekends. The menus feature trucha empapelada, or en papillote, with a variety of seasonings. This version of Mexican trout with sesame seeds in parchment paper is delicious and unusual. Ingredients 4 whole small […]
Continue ReadingAlthough undoubtedly made without chile in their native Cornwall, these tasty, filling meat pies have been mexicanized in translation, usually with the addition of serrano chiles, either canned in vinaigrette or fresh. Some cooks incorporate cream cheese into the dough, but the filling is so rich, the pastes do nicely without the extra fat and calories. Ingredients: […]
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