Mexican food guides
What is huitlacoche? Where does mole poblano come from? We answer the most common questions about Mexican dishes and ingredients, with history, origin and recipes to cook them at home in Canada.
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Achiote: what it is, taste, uses and substitutes
Discover achiote (Bixa orellana), the red seed at the heart of cochinita pibil and Maya cooking. Recados, colour, earthy flavour and traditional uses.
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Acuyo: what it is, taste and uses in Mexican cooking
Discover acuyo, the Veracruz name for hoja santa (Piper auritum), a large-leaved aromatic herb used in tamales, moles and fish of the Gulf.
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Agua de alfalfa: what it is, how to make it and benefits
Agua de alfalfa: a traditional Mexican green drink with fresh alfalfa juice, lime and pineapple. Refreshing, hydrating and rich in chlorophyll.
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Agua de chía con limón: what it is, benefits and recipe
Agua de chía con limón: a pre-Hispanic hydrating drink with Mexican chia seeds, lime juice and water. Rich in omega-3 and fibre.
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Agua de horchata: what it is, how to make it and its taste
Mexican agua de horchata: a recipe with rice, cinnamon, milk and vanilla. A refreshing, sweet and creamy drink that sets Mexico apart from other horchatas.
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Agua de jamaica: what it is, recipe and benefits
Agua de jamaica: a refreshing Mexican drink with the calyces of Hibiscus sabdariffa. Recipe, diuretic benefits and African origin of the flower.
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Agua de mango: what it is, how to make it and when to drink it
Agua de mango: a traditional Mexican agua fresca recipe with ripe mango, water and sugar. A refreshing tropical drink for the warm season.
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Agua de melón: what's in it, recipe and a touch of chia
Mexican agua de melón: a refreshing recipe with melon pulp, water and sugar. A hydrating warm-season drink with an optional chia variant.
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Agua de pepino con limón: what it is, recipe and benefits
Agua de pepino con limón: a refreshing, light and hydrating Mexican drink. A traditional recipe with notes of mint, ideal for warm climates.
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Agua de tamarindo: what it is and how to make it
Agua de tamarindo: a sweet-and-sour Mexican recipe with tamarind pulp, sugar and water. A refreshing, digestive drink native to Africa and popular in Mexico.
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Aguachile: what it is, history and the spicy seafood recipe from Sinaloa
What aguachile is, its origin in Sinaloa, ingredients (prawn, serrano chilli, lime) and how it differs from traditional Mexican ceviche.
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Ahuautle: what it is, taste and how it's eaten
Discover ahuautle, the eggs of an aquatic fly from Lake Texcoco. Called Mexican caviar, it was an Aztec food and lives on in fritters and revoltijos.
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Mexican smoking: what it is, techniques and woods
Discover traditional Mexican smoking: chipotle, pejelagarto, smoked cheese and meats. Techniques with fruit woods and mesquite of the Mexican south-east.
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Sesame (ajonjolí): what it is, taste and uses in Mexican food
Discover ajonjolí (Sesamum indicum), the aromatic seed at the base of mole poblano and Oaxacan mole. Varieties, Mexican production and culinary uses.
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Alaches: what they are, benefits and how to cook them
Alaches (Anoda cristata) are a traditional quelite of central Mexico with a mucilaginous texture, used in broths, soups and pre-Hispanic stews still made today.
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Alegría: what the amaranth sweet is and how it's made
Alegría: a pre-Hispanic sweet of popped amaranth and piloncillo. Originating in Tulyehualco, a symbol of cultural resistance of the grain of the gods.
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Star anise: what it is, aroma and uses in Mexican cooking
Discover star anise (Illicium verum), an Asian spice used in Mexican breads, atoles, Christmas punch and sweets. It flavours moles and cured meats.
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Anona: what it is, taste and benefits of the fruit
The anona (Annona reticulata) is a tropical fruit of Central America and south-eastern Mexico, with creamy whitish-pink pulp, sweet and aromatic. A relative of the…
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Asado en penca: what it is and how maguey roasting works
Discover cooking in maguey leaf: the pre-Hispanic technique of wrapping meats and vegetables in maguey leaves to roast them with a herbal flavour.
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Ate de membrillo: what it is, how it's made and how to eat it
Ate de membrillo of Morelia: a colonial Mexican sweet of quince pulp and sugar. A Michoacán tradition of the sixteenth century. Eat it with fresh cheese.
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Atole de cajeta: what it is and how to make it
Atole de cajeta: a traditional Bajío recipe with cajeta from Celaya, milk, cinnamon and cornflour. A creamy and sweet hot drink.
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Atole de chocolate: what it is and how to make champurrado
Atole de chocolate or champurrado: a pre-Hispanic hot drink of cacao, maize masa, piloncillo and cinnamon. An ancestral Mexican tradition.
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Atole de elote: what it is and how to make it step by step
Atole de elote: a traditional Mexican recipe of tender maize with milk, cinnamon and sugar. A creamy hot drink enjoyed across the country.
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Atole de fresa: what it is and how to make the creamy drink
Atole de fresa: a Mexican recipe for a creamy hot drink with natural strawberry, milk and cinnamon. Ideal for winter and the December posadas.
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Atole de guayaba: what it is, ingredients and how to make it
Atole de guayaba: a traditional Mexican winter recipe with fresh guava, maize masa, cinnamon and piloncillo. A creamy drink with an intense aroma.
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Atole de masa: what it is, how to make it and its uses
Atole de masa: the base recipe of Mexican atole blanco made with nixtamalised maize masa. A pre-Hispanic drink of thick texture served sweet or savoury.
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Atole de pinole: what it is, origin and how to make it
Atole de pinole: a hot Mexican drink of toasted maize with cinnamon and piloncillo. Pre-Hispanic origin, a traditional recipe of central and northern Mexico.
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Day of the Dead atole: what it is and how to make it
Atoles for the Day of the Dead offering are hot ritual drinks of nixtamalised maize: champurrado, white atole, chocolate, strawberry or guava. A pre-Hispanic tradition.
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Axayácatl: what it is, taste and how it's eaten
Discover the axayácatl, an aquatic fly of Lake Texcoco eaten toasted or ground. Prawn flavour, ahuautle and survival in Chimalhuacán.
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Bacalao a la vizcaína: what's in it and how it's made
Mexican bacalao a la vizcaina is a star dish of Christmas Eve: dried cod with tomato, olives, potatoes, guero chillies and almonds. A national Christmas tradition.