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Dining in MexicoThink you know what Mexican food is? Have you eaten at lots of Mexican restaurants in your country? Well, even the most "authentic" Mexican restaurant anyplace outside fo Mexico won't prepare you for the scrumptious taste of real Mexican food. For many visitors to Mexico, dining will be an exciting and new experience. Depending on where you are in Mexico, or what region you find yourself visiting, the culinary experience will vary, as each region has its own specialties.There are, however, some general traits of Mexican food which can be found in almost any kitchen across the entire country. For one, Mexican food isn't usually cooked spicy hot. It's made that way according to taste, at the table with condiments. You'll find jars of condiments at every table in restaurants while travelling in Mexico, filled with chiles and sauces. Also, Mexican food isn't loaded with cheese and sour cream like it is in the United States. Traditional Mexican food is basically made of primary ingredients that existed in the region before the arrival of Europeans, and cheese was not one of these ingredients. Cheese came with Europeans. These primary ingredients are tomatoes, squash, chiles, tortillas, and of course: beans. The Building Blocks of Mexican DiningChilesThe term chile pepper doesn't really narrow the field down much, when it comes to identifying ingredients of Mexican food. There are dozens and dozens of types if chiles, each with its own distinctive taste, appearance, and two names (one name for when the pepper is fresh, and another for when it's been dried!). The spiciness ranges from almost nothing at all, very subtle, to red hot fire in the mouth! Mexicans will pickle, smoke, stew and stuff all sorts of peppers for all sorts of dishes. TacosTacos are fast food, Mexican style. All is means is folding anything into a tortilla. You can serve a taco soft or fried, and you can have double tortillas. A quesadilla is really just a type of taco. TortillasThe classic type of tortilla is a corn tortilla, made only with corn, water, and lime. You cook the corn in the water and lime then grind it up into masa. Masa is just a word for dough. The dough gets patted into pancakes, then cooked on high heat. These days, restaurants might just skip this labor-intensive process and serve bread, but they'll most likely have tortillas on hand as well. Some parts of Mexico will also have the newer flour tortilla, in addition to the corn tortilla. The closer you are to the USA, the more likely you are to see a flour tortilla. FrijolesFrijoles are beans. There are two major types of bean served most frequently in Mexico. There's the pink bean, which is called flor de mayo, which is used mainly in the northwest part of Mexico. Then there's the black bean, which is used mainly in the southeast. Beans are used tons of ways, and leftover beans are fried to make refried beans, or frijoles refritos. Don't be misled by the name: refried beans are fried once, albeit very well fried. They are not friend twice, as the name implies. EnchiladasIf you take a tortilla and coat it in chile sauce, then fry it in very hot oil, you have made an enchilada. Fold it up on a plate, maybe add some chopped onions and some mexican cheese and voila, a traditional tasty Mexican meal. The cheese is called queso cotija, which is crumbly and white. TamalesThe corn masa mentioned in the tortilla section, which is just corn dough, is mixed with lard, and a filling is added if you like. Then you wrap the package in a green corn husk and steam it. The taste is divine. Just divine. The corn taste from the corn husk smokes its way into the tamale while it cooks and the result is pure heaven. Tamales can be cooked so many different ways, and if you travel across Mexico you'll undoubtedly discover different tamales in different areas. Drinks You Can Order in MexicoMexicans love their soda. There are more flavors of soda flavors here than anywhere else you'll ever go. Then there are the wonderfully refreshing aguas frescas, which is flavored water, in flavors like tamarind, melon, and hibiscus. Everywhere you go you will access to fruit juices and smoothies as well, which come in a dizzying array of tropical flavors. Try the atole, which is a hot corn drink either sweet or bitter.Tequila is popular in Mexico, and Mexico has made this drink popular throughout the world. It's made from the agave plnat, and is a type of mezcal. There is a place called Tequila, in thestate of Jalisco, around which the particular type of agave plant grows. Mezcal comes from other agave plants around Mexico and it's much easier to make than tequila. It's also much stronger! Mezcal comes with a worm in the bottle, which you are supposed to drink after you finish the bottle. Pulque is a brewed beverage dating back to the times before the Hispanics arrived in Mexico. It's made of fermented juice of maguey or agave. It has a peculiar taste to many non-Mexicans, but if you want to try it, look for a pulquerias in central Mexico. Places to Eat OutTaquerias are taco joints which are small with a central cooking area amongst the few tables. Making tortillas is a woman's job in Mexico, and at some taquerias you can watch the tortillas being made right before you eyes as you dine. Taquerias are local places, and good value and a good meal. The restaurants you see lining the arcades of central plazas in towns will cater to tourists, so expect to pay more for less quality in some cases. They are in good locations, however, so getting a cup of coffee is a good thing to do at these places. Market stands or vendors are not good deals, so don't eat at them. To save money at dinnertime, go for the comida corrida or menu del dia. This consists of many courses of food at cheaper prices because the menu is fixed. |
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