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Explore the ancient use of seeds in Mexican cuisine, from their nutritional value to their contribution in flavor and texture. Discover the influence of French cuisine and the rise of salsa. Learn about basic kitchen tools and techniques, as well as the importance of public food markets. Dive into traditional cooking methods like stewing, grinding, toasting, soft-frying, sweating, and neutralizing.
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Ancient Mexico and Central America were home to some of the earliest and most advanced civilizations in the western hemisphere
A culinary legacy of the pre-Hispanic people, cooking with seeds remains an important and nutritious aspect of Mexican cuisine. • All seeds contain some type of stored-up energy used by young plants in the first phases of their lives, and the ancient Mesoamericans made use of this energy, most often found in seeds as carbohydrates and fats, as a significant part of their dietary needs.
Besides being nutritious, seeds contributed to the flavor and texture of such foods as tamales, mullis - the precursors of mole - porridges and beverages.
Achiote (annatto) is a red coloring and flavoring derived from the seeds of the bixa orellana, a decorative tropical shrub native to Latin America and later brought by the Spaniards to the Philippines.
Another edible seed whose use dates to pre-Hispanic times is the chia (salvia hispanica.) • These small bundles of nutrition provide all essential amino acids, omega 3 fatty acids, antioxidants and fiber, as well as containing 19-23% protein by weight.
Another popular drink is made with papaya (carica papaya), a fruit used extensively in blended drinks and salads and for tenderizing meat, but less well known for its seeds.
French Influence • Modern Mexican cooking is considered by culinary historians to be a fusion of three cuisines - indigenous, Spanish and French.
Salsa • Spanish word for sauce • Also refers to a relish or condiment • Mixture of chopped vegetables, seasonings, cooked or uncooked • Fresh or bottled
Risen in popularity • Low in cholesterol, fat, calories • Not only a premeal dip • Over eggs, beef, and chicken
As part of the 16th century culinary fusion that resulted in Mexican cuisine, the Spaniards brought spices to the New World, along with olives and olive oil, almonds, grapes, dairy and wool-bearing animals, rice, wheat and citrus fruit.
These spices, including cinnamon, cloves, anise, cumin and saffron, joined pre-Hispanic herbs and chiles to create the sophisticated, multi-layered flavors that are the hallmarks of fine Mexican food.
Food Markets • Mexico's greatest treasures is its public markets, both the covered ones and the street variety. • They have been preserved, not as oddities but as a way of life.
These lively, colorful and fascinating food paradises have a history that goes back for many centuries, in fact as far back as the beginning of established communities thousands of years ago.
Basic Kitchens • Basic tools and techniques of the Mexican kitchen have changed astonishingly little in the seven thousand years since maize, chilies and squash were first domesticated. • Corn was and is the basic staple food of Mexico, and the preparation of corn dough the earliest and most basic culinary technique.
In the ancient Mexica empire, ritual was important at every stage of the meal, beginning with its preparation. • The correct form of preparing corn for cooking was to blow on the kernels before putting them into the pot, to give them strength to face the heat.
A kernel of corn which had fallen to the ground was to be picked up immediately; neglecting it was an insult that could cause ill fortune in the form of hunger or worse • A version of this belief persists to this day, with some women believing that burning a tortilla on the comal is bad luck.
Underground pits such as the pib of the Maya were, and still are, used for cooking meat and corn dough dishes such as mucbil pollo; however, above-ground ovens were unknown until the Spanish introduced wheat and, with it, bread-baking.
Guisar: Stewing • most common way of cooking meat and poultry • Long, slow simmering required to blend the flavors of the sauce generally takes longer than the time necessary to cook the meat.
Moler: Grinding • The process of grinding chilies, herbs, spices and tomatoes in a molcajete is labor-intensive, and an alternative is to grind dry ingredients, such as spices, in a spice or coffee mill before combining them with other ingredients.
Tostar/Asar: • This is commonly done on the comal, but any well-seasoned griddle or dry skillet will work. • It is a quick process, done over high heat and involving no liquid or oil. • Tortillas, dried chilies and some sauce ingredients are toasted on a comal, griddle or dry skillet.
Sofreir: Soft-Frying/Sautéing • Not much deep frying is done in Mexican cooking, with the exception of some street snacks which are cooked on a special type comal with a well in the center to hold oil or lard.
Poner a Sudar: Sweating • This refers to the method used for removing the skins from fresh chiles, especially poblanos, which are usually cooked without skins, either for stuffing or for making rajas, strips of chiles which are used in a great number of dishes
Desflemar: To Neutralize by Soaking • This refers to taking the "bite" out of a hot fresh chile, or even a strong onion, by soaking in a solution of water with either vinegar or salt, both of which draw out the heat. • If handling a fresh chili causes either coughing or watery eyes, this is a good indication that the chili will be quite hot, and soaking for one-half to one hour will help to neutralize it.
Bakeries • It is difficult to pass a bakery without entering as the aroma of freshly baked bolillos (French rolls) and pan dulce (sweet bread) wafts into the street. • Remeber that Mexican bakeries do not use preservatives and the bread should be eaten within a day or two.
Chile peppers increase the bodies endorphin production and endorphins are natural opiates. These are the mood-elevating substances which are also released when performing physical aerobic exercises.
An alkaloid substance called Capsaicin (8-methyl-N-vanillyl-6-nonenamide) that causes the heat of chilies and peppers is a flavorless, odorless chemical concentrated in the veins of chilies and peppers. • When eaten, capsaicin stimulates the brain to release a neurotransmitter called substance P, which lets the brain know something painful is going on.
The brain, 'thinking' that the body is in big trouble, mistakenly responds by turning on the waterworks to douse the flames. • The mouth starts to salivate, the nose starts to run, the eyes might start to water and the face breaks into a sweat. • The heart beats faster and the natural painkiller endorphin is secreted.
The heat of chile peppers is measured in Scoville Heat Units. • Bell peppers rank at zero SHU's, Jalapeños at 3,000–6,000 SHU's and Habaneros at 300,000 SHU's. • The record for the highest number of SHU's in a pepper is assigned by the Guinness Book of Records, to the Red Savina Habanero, with 577,000 SHU's.
FYI • A US manufacturer of hot sauces has made what he claims is the fieriest chili powder it is possible to make. • The powder is so hot that Blair Lazar's customers have to sign a legal waiver before tasting it.
FYI • U.S. territory of Guam is the world’s largest per capita consumer of Tabasco sauce • Drinking a quart and a half of Louisiana style hoe sauce can cause reparatory failure if the body weight is 140 pounds or less • Best remedy is milk, yogurt, sour cream
Over the past decade or so, manufacturers have taken the humble chili pepper and distilled it into ever more fiery sauces. • The names of the concoctions, After Death Sauce and Insanity Sauce are just two, give some idea of the pain that is involved during and after consuming them.
Taco Origins • Means light snack • Evolved from rural areas of Mexico
Taco Basics • Northern Mexico • Grilled meat wrapped in flour tortillas • Majority are made with soft tortillas
Taco Stands • Vary from one stand to another • Filling, is fried, grilled or steamed • Garnished with chopped onion, cilantro • Array of salsas • Lime wedges for squeezing on everything • Tacos are either a morning treat or a bedtime snack • No tacos sold during noon to 6 pm
