The Food of the Yucatan
We were lucky enough to spend a day behind the scenes in a Cocina Economica close to Mérida in the Yucatan - you can read about it here. Below is a more detailed description of some of the dishes.
Brasa de Reina - We were treated with this for breakfast!
Brasa de Reina - A famous tamale made with masa corn dough which is green from the added chaya leaves. It is layered with toasted sunflower seeds, cooked black beans, cooked eggs and chaya leaves. The people of the Yucatan are very proud of this dish. I enjoyed the nutty flavours from the sunflower seeds and fresh tomato sauce, but it’s something I may have to adjust to for breakfast. We were lucky to try this dish as it’s usually only prepared around Easter time.
Potato cakes - These were served with a rice and black bean soup known as ‘Frijol Colado’. It is black beans cooked with habanero chilli, onion and salt. It was a heavy, carbohydrate packed breakfast. The potato cakes were similar to hash browns but made with mashed potato and lightly fried until golden.
Relleno Negro - I didn't get the chance to see this being prepared but did eat a huge bowl of it. I was told it was made with mild dried chillies (such as arbol), which are toasted on a comal until almost at the point of burning. The chillies are blended to a paste with oregano, onion, garlic and mild spices (cumin, cloves and allspice) to make a ‘Recado negro’ or black chilli paste. The black paste is then cooked out with fresh turkey stock and then blended. It really is jet black and full of flavour. The sauce is served with pieces of turkey on the bone, beef and egg dumplings, and fresh tortillas. It’s a hearty dish and a messy one to eat, but one of the most flavoursome!
Sopa de lima - Another deceivingly simple dish, sometimes just written on menus as ‘lime soup’ but it’s much more than that. A fresh chicken stock is prepared with a whole poached chicken, onions, Mexican oregano, epatzole, garlic and sweet and mildly hot chilli known as xcatic chilli which is pale green and yellow in colour. The stock is cooked for around an hour until infused, then seasoned with salt and strained. Plenty of lime juice (Yucatan limes which are sweet and floral, rather than harshly acidic) is added. The soup is garnished with shredded meat from the poached chicken, slices of avocado, lime, and toasted corn tortilla strips - these add a nutty popcorn-like flavour to soup which is really moreish. I really enjoyed the balanced flavours of this soup, with a sharpness of the fresh uncooked lime at the end similar to the Thai Tom Yum and great on a hot day for a light lunch.
Pollo Asado - Essentially grilled chicken, surely this was simple I thought? No, the Mexican ladies didn't just throw chicken on a grill. First, whole chicken were butchered and marinated in a mixture of achiote paste, let down with fresh lime juice and salt. After a couple of hours, the chicken is grilled in batches over low smoking charcoal to impart flavour. The pieces of chicken are then poached until cooked in chicken stock, then returned to the charcoals turning now and then, to add a final hit of smoke and golden colour. They are served with a smoky tomato salsa. The tomatoes are cooked by placing them directly into the same charcoals and then blended until smooth with salt. It sounds simple, but this was being prepared over hot open fires, on a day which was easily 35 degrees.
Pollo Asado cooking on the open fire
Papadzules - A signature of Maya cuisine in the Yucatan, these are soft corn tortillas filled with chopped boiled eggs. They are transformed with a bright green sauce, made from hulled pumpkin seeds that have been toasted and blitzed until a powder is formed. The toasted pumpkin powder is then cooked out with a fresh chicken stock that has been infused with the famous Mexican herb epatzole and onions. The green pumpkin sauce is then seasoned and strained, and served over the top of the tortillas (if you know your French culinary terms, then nappe or lightly coating in consistency). The dish is then finished with a cooked fresh tomato salsa. Papadzules are deceptively simple looking, but far more technical to prepare than they may appear. The rich pumpkin seed sauce is the star of this dish and is complimented perfectly with the sharp tomato salsa, a great breakfast or brunch dish.
Papadzules
Pok Chuc - A hugely popular dish all over the Yucatan and beyond. Pork loin is sliced thinly and is marinated in sour Yucatan orange juice known as Naranja agria, black pepper, chopped garlic and salt. I believe this helps tenderise the meat as well as give it a sweet, sharp flavour. The pork is grilled over an open fire, but with flames that lick the pork so it can caramelise. The pork steaks must be turned frequently so they don't burn. Pok chuc is usually served with rice and pureed black beans that have been cooked with chicken stock, and pickled roasted red onions. The onions are cooked directly on hot charcoal until the skin is black, and the middle of the onions steam in their own juices. Once slightly cooled, the black skin is peeled, and they are chopped and seasoned with salt and lime juice to pickle. The smokey pork with the creamy beans and pickled crunchy onions are a great combination. I also enjoyed habanero salsa with this for an extra kick. Some people like to squeeze a little of the ‘Naranja agria’ juice over before eating too.
Cochinita Pibil - Traditionally a pit (called a pib) is dug underground where a whole marinated pig is buried underground with hot rocks, and smothered in banana leaves. It is left for around 5 hours until smoky, fragrant and fall apart tender. At Mama Grande, like many restaurants in the Yucatan, an adapted version has been made to make this dish more accessible and economic for daily cooking. We saw their version using pork rib racks, marinated in lime juice, achiote paste, garlic, pepper and Mexican oregano. The ribs were then transferred to a large pot, and cooked with a banana leaf lid over a very low smoking fire for around 3-4 hours. We tried this later in the day on some warm tortillas and pink pickled onions, and it was as tasty as it sounds. The fatty, tender, smoky chunks of pork goes brilliantly with the crunchy acidic onions. Definitely something I think my brothers would enjoy eating.
Sopa de Pollo Asado - A minestrone style soup prepared with a chicken stock base (in this case from the pollo Asado dish). Diced onions, red and green sweet peppers, tomatoes and garlic are slowly fried over the open fire in manteca (rendered pork fat) until lightly caramelised, and then added to the stock. The soup is cooked for about half an hour, as the stock already has a lot of flavour. Pasta is toasted in a dry pan until golden, to add a little nutty flavour and added to the soup before it is cooked and served. We sampled this soup too. It was very flavoursome with a slight smokiness from the grilled chicken, we were definitely getting pretty full by this point!
Panuchos and Salbutes
Panuchos - You’ll see these on practically every menu in the Yucatan; a small tortilla, sliced to create a pocket which is filled with black bean puree and then deep fried until crispy. Pulled pork (cochinita), chicken or traditionally turkey is added. Then, pink pickled onions in lime juice, shredded lettuce, cucumber, fresh tomato and slices of ripe avocado are added. They're a great lunch and for me they have a great combination of textures and flavours. We still haven't figured out how to eat them gracefully. Similar to Paunchos are Salbutes; these are tortillas deep fried and puffed until crispy and served with the same toppings with without the black beans.
Sikil Pa’ak- Toasted and ground sunflower seeds are mixed with chopped charcoal-grilled tomatoes, and freshly chopped coriander and salt. This can vary all over the Yucatan, but here at the Cocina Economica they left it chunky and thick, which made a great dip.
We tried a few drinks throughout the day including horchata - a refreshing rice milk based drink spiced with cinnamon and sugar. We liked their version which wasn't too sweet or heavy on the cinnamon. I also had some black coffee served strong with breakfast, and fresh lemonade later on, made simply with lemon juice, sugar and water like the traditional English way (and a fair amount of water when we were by the fire!)
A few other things we've eaten here:
During our time in the Yucatan we were also introduced to many other dishes, ingredients and techniques that I had not come across before, such as...
Aguachile - Similar to the Peruvian dish ceviche, usually fresh prawns which are cured in lots of lime juice with coriander, habanero chilli, onion, tomato and salt.
Blanche - A drink popular in the Yucatan Maya made from fermented tree bark of the leguminous tree, honey and water.
Hola Santa - This is a large leaf herb, with a unique flavour that is compared to tarragon. I thought the flavour was similar to Thai basil with a minty taste too.
Epazote- An indigenous herb to Mexico with a unique and strong aroma, often used in Mayan cuisine and we came across it in most markets.
Epazote leaf at the top, and tiny chillies at the bottom.
Empañadas De Queso - Cheese empañadas unlike the Argentinan version, these are made with masa dough and filled with cheese, sometimes Dutch edam or a Mexican String cheese and deep fried until crispy.
Chaya leaf - A green leaf, sometimes called tree spinach, used by the Maya in many dishes and drinks. Often said to have great health benefits including digestion, lowering cholesterol and blood circulation. The leaves must be eaten cooked, and they are said to be slightly toxic in raw form. We saw these being sold in bags by the Maya people in many of the markets in Yucatan.
Annatto - Small red seeds used in the preparation of achiote paste, the base of many Yucatecan dishes as well as Rojo recado spice paste.
Naranja Agria - Sour Yucatan oranges, these were everywhere you looked. I enjoyed a glass of this juice freshly pressed, and also in many marinades. We also bought some from the market and made a salad dressing with the juice for some beetroots.
Habanero chillies - I thought I had tried these before, but fresh Habanero are quite unique in flavour and heat. I found them floral, and addictively hot, especially in the form of a salsa with lime. These are indigenous to the Yucatan region.
Tortas - Large toasted bread buns, usually served at breakfast or a snack, these can be filled with anything from pulled meats, fried eggs or cheese. We tried a heavy torta one morning with a combination of fried and crumbled black pudding and chorizo.
Xtabentun - A potent spirit from Yucatán from anise and honey which has been fermented.
Edam Cheese - We were surprised to see Edam cheese in Mexico. Apparently the American Amish people who came to Mexico brought the cheese here from Holland. The cheese clearly stayed in Mexico and seems to still be very popular.
Tamale - Everywhere in Mexico has their own version of a tamale. We had tried a few variations with different fillings but the base of a good tamale is a corn dough made from masa, and they are usually steamed or grilled in corn husks or banana leaves to impart flavour.
Mamey - A tropical fruit served in many forms, freshly cut, juiced or as a sorbet, which is how we tried it. The flavour was subtle and sweet like a melon with a similar flavour to papaya.
There were many more things we didn't see or try, but we gave the Yucatán a good go.