Discover and re-discover Mexico’s cuisine, culture and history through the recipes, backyard stories and other interesting findings of an expatriate in Canada
Achiote (annatto) is a traditional flavouring for many dishes from the Yucatan peninsula. In addition to cochinita pibil (pork), tikinxic (fish) and pibipollo (large chicken tamale), chicken is also cooked in annatto sauce, traditionally wrapped in banana leaves and cooked in an underground oven (pib), aptly called pollo pibil. Modern versions of this dish are prepared on the stove, or as in this case, without the banana leaves, in a slow cooker ... click on title for more
Papatzules are a traditional and very popular dish in the Mexican state of Yucatan. The preparation is similar to a basic enchilada, but the ingredients make this dish unique: the sauce is made from ground pumpkin seed and epazote, and hard-boiled eggs serve as stuffing. Using some ingredients from my garden, I prepared my own version of papatzules … click on title for more
The original recipe for Natilla was brought to Mexico from Spain during colonial times; it included just milk, sugar and eggs, with flavourings such as citrus zest, or cinnamon. Nowadays, corn starch is often added to aid in the thickening of the mix, and flavourings such as vanilla and chocolate (both originally from Mexico) are common, even in recipes from Spain. My recipe is based on a classic Spanish recipe, and for a Mexican touch, vanilla and lime were chosen as the main flavourings ... click on title for more
Natilla is a creamy custard, originally brought from Spain during colonial times; the classic recipe was later adapted to the modern Zacatecan kitchen with a "tres leches" - "three-milk" approach, by using sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk, in addition to whole milk. Flavourings are usually added as toppings, such as in this case, with roasted pecans ... click on title for more
Zacatecas is located along mountains and high altitude terrain, in the Mexican Plateau (Altiplano mexicano), between mountain ranges to the East (Sierra Madre Oriental), and the West (Sierra Madre Occidental), where there is a profusion of pine and oak forests. There is a type of cheesy sweet gorditas, very traditional in the Southern regions of Zacatecas; the patties are placed on individual oak leaves, then cooked in stone ovens ... click on title for more
