Durango – My Slice of Mexico

Pork in Red Sauce – Asado Rojo

November 30, 2023December 15, 2023by Irene5 Comments

"Asado" translates from Spanish as "roasted"; this dish probably got that denomination from being cooked traditionally over an open wood fire. Now also cooked over the stove, it could receive a promotion to stew, with its generous chunks of pork, in a rich red sauce (as the name indicates, by rojo). Several of Mexico's Northern states have their own versions; this recipe is based on the state of Durango's seasonings, which include a variety of dried red peppers, spices, and an acidic accent, traditionally achieved by adding orange juice or vinegar ... click on title for more

History and Regional Cuisine, Ingredients

Discada – A Farmer’s Meal

November 20, 2023March 12, 2025by Irene10 Comments

Traditional discadas were cooked on a plow disc, and included a variety of meats, fresh or cured. Onions, tomatoes and hot peppers, particularly jalapeños, were brought from the fields for the disc. More contemporary recipes may be prepared on a propane bbq, or indoors, in an iron skillet or pan, and have added cold cuts, such as ham, and hotdog sausages, and other vegetables and aromatics. Pouring some beer in towards the end of the cooking process was probably introduced by a sassy cook who was drinking by the side of the disc, noticing the dish getting too dry, which works well and also helps to scrape all the good charred bits at the bottom of the pan ... click on title for more

Ingredients, Regional Cuisine

Durango Style Gorditas

November 16, 2023December 4, 2023by Irene8 Comments

The word gordita means “chubby”, a very appropriate name for this dough patty, since it is formed into a nice, round shape, often stuffed generously. It is safe to say that every region in Mexico has its own gordita recipes; in Northern Mexico, it is traditional to grill plain corn masa patties, which are then opened and stuffed with a variety of dishes or stews, called guisados ... click on title for more

main course, Regional Cuisine

Durango Style “Tipsy” Hen – Gallina Borracha

November 19, 2022November 28, 2022by Irene1 Comment

Durango is a North-western Mexican state; most of the landscape in Durango is mountainous and densely forested, but there are also valleys and semi-desertic regions. A unique dish from this state is Gallinas Borrachas ("Tipsy" Hens) ... click on title for more

History, Mexican Culture

History Tidbit – A Revolution War Story

November 18, 2022November 19, 2024by Irene9 Comments

The Anniversary of the onset of the Mexican Revolution War is celebrated every year on November 20; started in 1910, it was a complicated conflict, which involved not only the deposition of a "long-term president" (read: dictator), but several conspiracies that led to a cruel civil war, with the rise and fall of many political and military characters for more than a decade, even after the promulgation on the Constitution of 1917. One of the most prominent figures was Francisco "Pancho" Villa, born in 1878 in Río Grande, in the Mexican state of Durango ... click on title for more