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A
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Arroz (Rice) - It's
a course of its own in any comida corrida, and I
usually douse it in the salsa so generously
provided on every table. I have a feeling many
Mexicans do the same. Atole
- A hot drink made with cornflour, water, milk and
various flavourings. The most popular flavours are
chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. Atoles are
drunk all the year round, but are most popular in winter,
especially for Día de la Candelaria.
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| C |
Comida Corrida
- This is an essential part of any Mexican day. It
translates as "running meal", which does not
refer to our friend Moctezuma, but to a set meal taken
somewhere between one and four o'clock in the afternoon.
It's dirt cheap, usually between 20 and 30 pesos for a
four course meal. Beats tea and sandwiches any day!
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| CH |
Chiles - The
most important part of Mexican cuisine, chiles
come in so many varieties that even most Mexicans don't
know them all. They range from sweet to incredibly hot,
so treat with caution, but try them!
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E
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Enchiladas - tortillas filled with
chicken, beef or cheese and baked in sauce, mole
being the best!
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F
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Frijoles (Beans)
- Mmm...! Alright, you may not like these too
much - a Dutch acquaintance of mine once described them
in a very unfavourable way, but they are a staple
of the Mexican diet, so it's a good idea to have them.
I may even miss them back home!
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H
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Huevos (Eggs)
- Pure and simple, scrambled, fried or poached, huevos
are always so much better when served with chile.
Try huevos mexicanos or rancheros for
an incredible breakfast.
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| J |
Jícama - A
little bit like a turnip, but with a slightly sweet
flavour, jícamas are usually eaten raw in
salads and are also used a lot in piñatas.
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| M |
Mole - A
fantastically complicated recipe involving chocolate and
a multitude of spices and chiles. Despite
how it sounds, absolutely delicious!
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| P |
Pan de Muerto (Bread
of the Dead) - This is a pastry specially prepared
for the Days of the Dead and
is available for the whole of the month of October. The
top is decorated to resemble bones or skulls and the
flavour is absolutely delicious! Ponche
(Punch) - A delicious Christmas drink made of sugar
cane, tejocotes,
apples, oranges and whatever else happens to be around.
For those who need it, extra "flavour" is added
in the form of rum or brandy.
Postre (Dessert) - If anyone
remembers their English school pudding, this is exactly
what it is. Usually, you get a choice of jelly,
rice pudding, ate (a jelly paste made from quince or
guava - a bit like liquorice) and if you're lucky, ice-cream!
Makes me feel quite nostalgic.
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| R |
Rajas - Pickled chiles,
used in everything from tortas to tamales. Rosca de Reyes (Kings' Crown) - A cake made in a ring with fruits and nuts
on top. This cake is cut on Los Reyes Magos, and the
unlucky recipients of the figurines concealed inside must
buy tamales
or atole
for Día de la Candelaria!
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| S |
Salsa (Sauce)
- Mexican salsa is so much more than sauce.
Invariably, it contains chiles of one kind or
another (though you can never be sure which, so smell it
first!). Salsa come in two varieties; cooked
(gloopy) or salad style. Whatever kind, try it,
your mouth will love you forever! Sopa
(Soup) - "Ugh!" you may say, and having
endured a lifetime of cup-a-soup I would agree, but here,
soup is fresh and made with natural ingredients.
It's usually served with a lime which is there to fight
bacteria, but I assure you, it's delicious. Yum!
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| T |
Tacos - Not the crunchy hard things
from Taco Bell, but fried tortillas containing
a variety of fried meats and lashings of salsa. Works a treat
on the arteries! Tamales
- sweet or savoury cornmeal puddings steamed in corn
leaves (the savoury kind usually contain mole or rajas).
The tamal is traditionally eaten on Día
de la Candelaria, but tastes just as good at
any time of year!
Tejocotes - A
small orange fruit often used in piñatas
or Christmas ponche.
Tortas -
Sandwiches made of large rolls of bread containing
avocado, frijoles,
tomatoes, rajas,
salsa,
and a seemingly endless choice of fillings, from just ham
to every single ingredient the vendor has!
Tortillas -
Described in one of my guidebooks as "the versatile
and ubiquitous staff of life in Mexico", these
little corn or wheat cakes are absolutely essential to
the Mexican way of cooking. The price of tortillas
is also taken as an index to the cost of living here,
that's how important they are.
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