GASTRONOMIA OAXACA 2
GASTRONOMIA OAXACA 3
GASTRONOMIA OAXACA1
GASTRONOMIA OAXACA 2
GASTRONOMIA OAXACA 3
GASTRONOMIA OAXACA1

The most delicious food in Puebla

The most delicious food in Guanajuato

The most delicious food in Morelos

Northern Mexico

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Central Mexico

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Southern Mexico

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Gastronomy and typical cuisine in Querétaro

The most delicious food in Puebla

Gastronomía de Yucatán

Northern Mexico

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Central Mexico

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Southern Mexico

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WHAT TO EAT IN OAXACA

Oaxacan cuisine is among the most diverse and delicious in all of Mexico, the beneficiary of abundant microclimates and fantastic biodiversity.

A closer look into the traditions of Oaxacan cooking reveal intensely ancient, laborious and intricate techniques and flavor profiles. Many dishes rely on local varieties of chilies, herbs, corn and other ingredients.There are hundreds of types of mole, Oaxaca is know as “the land of seven moles”. Mole is a exceptionally complex chili-based sauce with potentially dozens of ingredients like chile pasilla, chile guajillo, chocolate, cinnamon, oregano, sugar, clove, onion, peanuts, garlic, almonds, among others. These seven moles are amarillo, chichilo, coloradito, negro, manchamanteles, rojo, and verde. But Oaxaca has many more moles in its cuisine.

The state’s food history is a mix of pre-Hispanic ingredientes like chili, peanuts, chocolate, tomatoes, among other, with Spanish cooking methods, and speies brought from Arabia. The result of this fusion is a diversity of unique local dishes. Oaxacan resourcefulness extends beyond the well-known dishes. In this destination you can try more exotic dishes like the flying ants and the “chapulines” , famous pre-Hispanic dish.This crunchy and salty fried grasshoppers make a great addition to guacamole, quesadillas, or just as a snack. Another ancient adition or the blend of salt, roasted maguey worms and locally sourced hot chilli peppers, the perfect complement of mezcal.

The list of Oaxacan dishes is endless but some of the most-recommended are: the state's favorite meat, the tasajo, air-dried beef jerky; tamales poached in banana leaf filled with mole or chilín; “tlayuda”, giant, crispy tortillas mashed beans, cheese and salsa; “sopa de guías de clabaza”; “quesillo”, a white stringy and creamy cheese and is regarded as one of the best cheeses in Mexico; “cecina”, thinly sliced pork steak marinated in spices; and “sopa de guías de calabaza”, a soup made of squash blossoms, among many others. You may sample these dishes in any of Oaxaca’s numerous marketplaces or in elegant gourmet restaurants.

The typical drink of Oaxaca is mezcal, a spirit distilled from agave, mostly made with an artisanal process where the agave is smoked and then the ferment is later distilled. There are thousands of different Mezcals all over the city there is a multitude of Mezcalerías where you can sample different styles of this spirit. Mezcal is intense but you can blend it into a cocktail you get a unique drink.

Another typical drinks are: “tejate”, a frothy, non-alcoholic drink blended from corn and cacao and of course the hot chocolate, made with either water or milk is a real wonder.

One unique experience in Oaxaca is to take a cookin class, it is a way to get a real feel for a culinary region and learn about local ingredients and get an experienced chef to teach you about soups, appetizers, salsas, moles and desserts.

Gastronomy and typical cuisine in Oaxaca

“Mole Negro” Recipe

Ingredients for 35 servings:

  • 2 chickens, cut into 12 pieces, skinned
  • 2 tomatoes
  • 10 green tomatoes
  • 2 kg. lard
  • ¼ kg chile Chilhuacle negro, seeded and deveined *
  • ¼ kg chile Chilhuacle rojo, seeded and deveined *
  • ¼ kg chile dried mulato, seeded and deveined
  • ¼ kg chile dried pasilla seeded and deveined, seeds reserved
  • ¼ kg chile dried guajillo, seeded and deveined
  • ¼ cup pumpkin seed, peeled
  • ¼ cup sesame seeds
  • 1 platain
  • 3 dark chocolate tablets
  • ¼ cup chopped pecans
  • ¼ cup whole, unbleached almonds
  • ¼ cup unsalted peanuts
  • ¼ kg raisins
  • 100 g sugar
  • 15 stale bread, crushed
  • 10 green tomatoes
  • 5 cloves
  • 6 black peppercorns
  • 6 avocato leaves
  • 3 cinnamon sticks
  • 2 garlics
  • 2 large onions
  • 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
  • 1 teaspoon cumin seeds and thyme
  • 1 teaspoon fresh oregano
  • ¼ piece nutmeg
  • 2 tablespoon fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon anise seeds
  • 1 teaspoon marjoram
  • 2 blue-corn tortillas
  • garlic and onions to cook the chicken
  • salt to taste

Directions:

In a 2 gallon pot, add water, onions, garlic and the chicken pieces. Covered, over low heat for about 35 to 45 minutes, until cooked through and juices run clear when pierced with a fork. Remove the meat from the broth and reserve.

On rimmed sheet trays or a comal, arrange dried chiles and toast the chiles over medium heat about 1 minute on each side until blackened but not burnt. Remove chiles and let cool about 2 minutes. Cut chiles lengthwise and remove and discard stems. Place the chiles in a large bowl, cover with hot beef stock, and soak for about half an hour. Remove the chiles from the water, placing small batches in a blender with ¼ cup of the chile soaking water to blend smooth. Put the chile puree through a strainer to remove the skins.

In a skillet over medium heat, toast the almonds, peanuts, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and cloves and toast until almost dark. Remove and set aside. Toast seeds and veins in a sauté pan with 2 tablespoons oil until completely blackened, taking care to blacken but not burn them. Set aside. Soak the blackened seeds in 1 cup of cold water for 10 minutes. Drain the seeds and grind them in a blender for about 2 minutes. Add the blended chile seeds to the blended chile mixture.

In a cast-iron skillet over high heat, cook onion, tomatillos, tomatoes and garlic until blackened. Remove and add mixture to chicken stock. Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in an iron frying pan over medium heat until smoking. Add the raisins and fry them until they are plump. Remove from the pan. Fry the bread and the tortillas in the same oil until browned over medium heat. Remove from pan. Fry the plantain in the same oil until it is well browned, over medium heat. Set aside. Fry the sesame seeds, stirring constantly over low heat. When the sesame seeds start to brown, add the chopped pecans and brown for 2 minutes more. Let cool and grind finely in spice grinder, add toasted spices, nuts, pepitas and sesame seeds. Fry the tomatoes, tomatillos, ginger, thyme, and oregano over medium to high heat, about 15 minutes. Blend well, using 1/2 cup of reserved stock. Place the nuts, bread, plantains, raisins, onion, garlic and spices in the blender, and blend well, adding the necessary stock to make it smooth.

Heat the lard until smoking and fry the chile paste over medium to low heat, stirring constantly taking care not burn it. Add the tomato puree and fry until the liquid has evaporated. Add the ground ingredients to the pot. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until well-incorporated. Add the chocolate, the chicken stock, taste with salt and pepper and allow to cook, stirring occasionally. Toast the avocado leaves briefly over the flame or in a dry frying pan and then add it to the pot, adding slowly more stock. Let simmer another 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, remembering the mole should not be thick.

Place the cooked chicken pieces in the leftover stock. Serve the plate with a piece of chicken and corn tortillas.

 

 

* Chile endemic to Oaxaca that can be replaced by any other dry chile.

 

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Take note of all the dishes you can taste and discover in Mexico, their ingredients and where they come from
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