Oaxacan cuisine: what it is, its history and the seven traditional moles

What is it?

Oaxacan cuisine is one of the richest and most diverse gastronomic traditions in Mexico, native to the state of Oaxaca in the south of the country. It is distinguished by the heritage of the Zapotec and Mixtec peoples, the extensive use of native maize, autochthonous chillies and techniques such as roasting (tatemado) and grinding on the metate. It is known as 'the land of the seven moles' for its variety of complex sauces: black, red, coloradito, yellow, green, chichilo and manchamanteles. It is consumed every day in homes and markets such as the 20 de Noviembre or the Tlacolula market, and reaches its fullest expression during festivities such as the Guelaguetza, weddings and the Day of the Dead, when tamales, mezcal and traditional sweets are prepared to honour the ancestors.

Origin and history

Oaxacan cuisine has its roots in the Zapotec and Mixtec civilisations, which for more than 3,500 years cultivated maize, bean, squash and chillies in the central valleys and the Sierra. Fray Bernardino de Sahagún, in his General History of the Things of New Spain (sixteenth century), already described the use of moles, tamales and pulque among the southern peoples. The arrival of the Spanish brought pork, chicken, almonds, spices and the technique of baking, which merged with the Mesoamerican base in the colonial convents of Oaxaca de Juárez, where Dominican nuns perfected recipes such as black mole. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Oaxacan cuisine became established as a national reference thanks to the work of traditional cooks and publications such as those of Larousse Cocina. In 2010, traditional Mexican cuisine, with Oaxaca as one of its pillars, was inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

Characteristic ingredients

Oaxacan ingredients have a character of their own. Among the chillies, the black, red and yellow chilhuacle (endemic to the Cañada), the Oaxacan pasilla, the chilcostle and the chiltepín stand out. The aromatic herbs include hoja santa, hierba de conejo, chepiche and pennyroyal, which perfume broths and tamales. Maize appears in native varieties such as the bolita, the base of tlayudas, memelas and tejate. The most representative meat is tasajo (salted and dried beef), accompanied by quesillo (Oaxaca cheese), stuffed tlacoyos and grasshoppers toasted with garlic. Mezcal, made from espadín, tobalá or tepeztate maguey, is the emblematic drink. Each Oaxacan region (Central Valleys, Mixteca, Sierra, Isthmus, Coast, Cañada, Papaloapan and Tuxtepec) contributes its variants: the Mixteca stands out for its goat stews, the Isthmus for its iguanas and dried prawns, and the Coast for its pescado a la talla and caldo de piedra.

Cultural significance

Oaxacan cuisine is considered one of the gastronomic hearts of Mexico and a symbol of national identity. Its inscription on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List in 2010 recognised not only the dishes, but the agricultural system, the rituals and the intergenerational transmission of culinary knowledge. Festivities such as the Guelaguetza in July bring together the eight regions of the state in a great cultural showcase where food is the star. The Day of the Dead transforms kitchens and markets with the preparation of black mole, pan de muerto, water chocolate and tamales for the offerings. Oaxacan cuisine also sustains a vital economy of markets, fondas and mezcal palenques, and has projected the state as a world-class gastronomic tourism destination, with traditional cooks such as Abigail Mendoza recognised internationally.

Frequently asked questions

What are the seven moles of Oaxaca?

The seven Oaxacan moles are the black, red, coloradito, yellow, green, chichilo and manchamanteles. Each has distinct chillies, spices and techniques: the black contains black chilhuacle and chocolate, the yellow is distinguished by hoja santa, and the chichilo is the smokiest and most complex. They are served at weddings, festivities and traditional celebrations.

What does Oaxacan food taste like?

It has deep, smoky and spicy flavours balanced with sweetness and acidity. The toasted chillies and the chocolate provide a noble bitterness, herbs such as hoja santa and epazote give anise notes, and the mezcal accompanies with smoke. It is a complex cuisine, where a single sauce can carry more than twenty slowly ground ingredients.

What is eaten in Oaxaca besides mole?

Tlayudas (large toasted tortillas with asiento, bean, quesillo and tasajo), memelas, empanadas de amarillo, caldo de piedra, grasshoppers, chiles rellenos with picadillo and tamales wrapped in banana leaf. On the Coast the pescado a la talla and seafood stand out; in the Mixteca, the chileajo and Tepehuan goat.

Where does Oaxacan cuisine come from?

It is native to the state of Oaxaca, in southern Mexico, where the Zapotec, Mixtec, Chinantec, Mixe, Mazatec and Afro-descendant cultures converge. Its roots are pre-Hispanic, with more than 3,500 years of tradition, enriched by colonial mestizaje and recognised by UNESCO in 2010 as Intangible Cultural Heritage.