Mexican Culture and Cookery
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• Ancient Mexico and Central America were
home to some of the earliest and most
advanced civilizations in the western
hemisphere
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• 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.
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• Besides being nutritious, seeds
contributed to the flavor and texture of
such foods as tamales, mullis - the
precursors of mole - porridges and
beverages.
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• 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.
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• 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.
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• 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.
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French Influence
• Modern Mexican cooking is considered by
culinary historians to be a fusion of three
cuisines - indigenous, Spanish and
French.
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Salsa
• Spanish word for sauce
• Also refers to a relish or condiment
• Mixture of chopped vegetables,
seasonings, cooked or uncooked
• Fresh or bottled
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Risen in popularity
Low in cholesterol, fat, calories
Not only a premeal dip
Over eggs, beef, and chicken
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• 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.
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• These spices, including cinnamon, cloves,
anise, cumin and saffron, joined preHispanic herbs and chiles to create the
sophisticated, multi-layered flavors that
are the hallmarks of fine Mexican food.
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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.
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• 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.
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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.
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CAZUELA (earthen potware for
cooking corn)
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Salsas
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• 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.
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• 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.
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Comal
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• 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, breadbaking.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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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.
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Tacos/Burrittos
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Peppers/Chiles
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• Chile peppers increase the bodies
endorphin production and endorphins are
natural opiates. These are the moodelevating substances which are also
released when performing physical
aerobic exercises.
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• 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.
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• 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.
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• 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.
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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.
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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
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• 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.
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Taco Origins
• Means light snack
• Evolved from rural areas of Mexico
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Taco Basics
• Northern Mexico
• Grilled meat wrapped in flour tortillas
• Majority are made with soft tortillas
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Taco Stands
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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
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