Chapter 9: Mexicans and Central Americans Notes 4
NTR 348 – Cultural Aspects of Food
Traditional Food Habits
Mexicans are proud of their culinary heritage (p.243)
o It consists of a blend of foods that are native and European that is prepared with cooking
techniques such as Indian (Aztec) and Spanish
Notably, from the Maximilian reign, French and Viennese influence the cuisine
Resulting in sophisticated and spicy
Theobroma (cacao tree)
o Means “food of the gods.”
Ingredients and Common Foods
Beans
Cocoa (word means “bitter” according to Aztecs)
Corn
Tomatoes
o Indigenous ingredients that were the basis of Indian fare before the Spanish arrival
In 15 century the Empire had an estimation population of 25 million people
th
Tenochtitlan
o The capital city which was surrounded by lakes on which were built chinampas
These are referred to agricultural fields of mud that are rich
The mud is scooped from the bottom of the lake
Monarchy stored surplus crops to protect against famine (p.243)
Also known for their animal husbandry and game protection laws (p.243)
Ingredients that were consumed included:
o Roast turkey
o Quail
o Duck
o Fish
o Crab
o Lobster
o Frog
o Turtle
o Insect dishes garnished with squashed blossoms, sauces of tomatoes, squash seeds,
green plums, or chile sauces that were red, yellow, or green
o Chocoatl
Most popular hot beverage that is an unsweetened chocolate drink made from
native cacao beans
o Corn
Staple grain
o Legumes
o Fruits
o Vegetables
o Dogs
Domesticated for meat
o Minimal game – based on availability
Deer
Peccary
Rabbits
o A consistent source of fat or oil was a notable deficiency of the Aztec diet
Spanish Contributions
Cinnamon
Garlic
Onions
Rice
Sugarcane
Wheat
Hogs
o Reliable source of protein and lard to native diet
Mexican cuisine
o Corn tortillas with pork filling
o Sauces such as tomato, chile, onions, and salsas
o Rice
o Beans
o Pan-fried boiled beans
Also known as frijoles refritos or refried beans
o Distillation of alcohol to fermented beverages
Tequila and mescal were the result
Staples
Diverse Mexican cuisine
o Retained native diets
o Traditional foods
o In other regions, local fruits, vegetables, and meats are based on the availability
o Majority of poor Mexicans have little variety in their diet
Some eat corn, beans, and squash entirely
o Tortillas
Heated kernels (nixtamal) in a lime concoction are pulverized on a stone slab
(metate) and made into a flour named masa harina
Is then combined with water in order to make the dough and cooked onto a
griddle until soft or crisp with lard
Can be broken up and made into a sauce
Can be soaked in milk overnight and then pureed to make a thick dough
Generally used to gordos (fat-fried cakes) and bolitos (like dumplings
and added to soups)
o Beans
Served at every lunch, dinner, and breakfast as well
Are the filling in stuffed foods
Common side dishes
o One-dish meals
Generally, always served with tortillas
Caldos
Hearty soups or stews
o Menudo
Tripe and hominy soup believed to have curative
properties mostly for hangovers
Popular breakfast dish
Casseroles (sopas-secas)
Made with stale tortillas, macaroni, or rice
Meat
Prepared over high heat
Typically, grilled, fried, or slow, moist cooking techniques are used
o Help tenderize the tough cuts
o Marinating is another common method of tenderization
o Mostly all the portions of the animal are used
As well as organs and variety cuts
Sausage
o Spicy pork or beef chorizo is popular
Stuffed foods
Such as tacos, flautas, tamales, burritos, quesadillas, and enchiladas
Tacos
o Mexican version of sandwiches
Flautas
o Are tightly rolled variations of tacos
o Served with guacamole or a red or green sauce
Enchiladas
o Tortillas softened in lard or sauce and filled with meat, poultry,
seafood, cheese, or egg mixtures
o They are baked and then covered with a sauce
Tamales
o Oldest Mexican cuisine
o Dates to Aztecs’
o Masina harina or leftover pozole (hominy) is made to use the
dough
Placed in corn husks (north) or young leaves of bananas
or avocados (south)
Leaves are folded and baked in ashes or steamed in
water
o Filled with meat or vegetable mixture
o Tamales dulce - can be sweetened for a dessert
Quesadillas
o Tortillas, fried with cheese, meat that was leftover or vegetable
o It's folded in half and heated or fried crispy
Burritos (popular in the north)
o Like tacos, but folded with a filling such as beans with salsa
o Large and thin wheat flour instead of corn tortillas
Vegetables
o Substantial garnish or part of the main dish
o Potatoes
o Greens
o Tomatoes
o Onions
Are most common
o Chiles
Stuffed
Used in seasonings and sauces
Sugarcane
o Grows well in Mexico
o Used with dried fruits and vegetables, candied fruits and
vegetables, sugared fruits, and nut pastes
Used in desserts that are complex or eaten alone
o Desserts with eggs
Flan (most common)
Egg custard that is sweetened and topped with
caramelized sugar
Huevos reales (popular as well)
Made with egg yolks, sugar, sherry, cinnamon,
pine nuts, and raisins
Dulce de leche
Used as a spread
Hardened to make candy
Made by boiling condensed milk until the sugars
thicken and caramelize
Cajeta
Like dulce de leche, however, flavored cinnamon
goat’s milk is used
Eaten by itself as a pudding or used to top fresh
fruit or ice cream
Beverages
Most common is coffee
Soft drinks and fresh fruit are blended with
water and sugar
o Named aguas naturales
Milk is not consumed as frequently
o But in coffee with milk or sweetened
hot cocoa
Beer (most popular alcoholic beverage)
Epazote
Herb with minty overtones added to many
dishes such as beans
o Reduces flatulence
Regional Variations
Mexican Plains
o Consist of arid plains and high mountain valleys in northern and central regions of
Mexico
o Chichimecs (“sons of dogs” named by Aztecs due to their seminomadic)
Indians who inhabited the area originally
Diet consisted of corn, beans, squash, greens, cactus fruit (tuna) and young
cactus leaves (nopales)
Hunted small game and ate turkey
Mexican Indians and Indians of American Southwest
Adopted pinons (pine nuts), pumpkins, and plums
Specialties of the region
o Hominy-based stews (pozoles)
o Salads made with cooked nopales
o Spanish introduced to the northern plains:
Longhorn cattle
Dairy cows
Wheat
Only area in Mexico where beef is consumed frequently
Served as steaks or in stews
Prepare beef also by air-drying it in thin slices called cecinas
o Like American chipped beef, however, more assertion in flavor
o Can be used in stews, soups, or fried and used in fillings
Chihauhau
o Shredded beef and fried into a snack
Known as mochomos
Spit-roasted kid, cabrito al pastor
o Served in the Monterrey area
Birra
o Kid or lamb stewed in sauce flavored with vinegar and roasted
chiles
Specialty in Guadalajara
Area is known for barbacoa as well
Pit-roasting meats that are wrapped in maguey
leaves
Cow cheeks (the whole head, traditionally) and kid
o Prepared in the northern sections like barbacoa
Lamb
o Is preferred in the central regions
Fish
o Important to the diet of the:
Baja peninsula
Along the Gulf of California coast
Along the Gulf of Mexico coast
o Huachinango (red snapper)
Used in filling of tacos and cooked in an orange sauce
or marinated in vinegar and onions and is served chilled
Shark
o Found on the eastern coast
o Pan de cazon from Campeche
Layered and shredded between tortillas and beans
Shrimp and clam
o More inland areas
o Fish from freshwater lakes such as:
Pescado blanco (small whitefish)
Served fried or added to soups
Cheese
o More common in north than other parts of Mexico
Queso flameado (referred to as queso fundido from
Guadalajara)
Dish that pertains fondue-like and at times
topped with crumbled chorizo
o Served with fresh salsa and tortillas
Wheat tortillas
o Wheat products are popular as well
Traditional Mexican Cheeses
o Queso blanco
o Queso fresca
o Queso panela
o Ranchero seco
o Requeson
o Queso anejo
o Queso asadero
o Queso Chihuahua
o Queso Oaxaca
o Queso Cojita
o Queso anejo enchilada
o Queso Manchego
Bunelos
o Popular northern dessert of Mexico
Circles of sweet pastry are fried until they slightly puff
Eaten fresh, broken up and cinnamon-laced syrup that is
hot is added, or sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon
Coffee with milk is a common beverage to consume
with
Centuty plant (maguey cactus)
o Sap of cactus is a reliable substitute for fresh water
o Called aguamiel (honey water)
o Tequila is the popular beverage of the region made from
fermented aguamiel
Known as pulque
Is a sour, mild-like alcoholic beverage that was
consumed throughout Mexico before Spaniards arrival
Spaniards tried their fermentation methods on pulque
and created a harsh brew named mescal
Produced in the central-western state of Jalisco near the
towns of Tequila and Tepatitlan
From maguey subspecies Agave tequiliana
