Mexican Lenten food: what is eaten and why

What is it?

Mexican Lenten food is the repertoire of dishes without red meat eaten during the 40 days from Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday, a period of Catholic abstinence and penance that culminates in Holy Week. Although observing abstinence has relaxed among today's population, the Lenten dishes keep alive a rich and distinctive gastronomic tradition: capirotada (bread, cheese and piloncillo syrup), romeritos with prawn fritters in mole, Veracruz-style fish, salt cod Mexican-style, potato or huauzontle fritters, broad bean soup, lentils, beans, salads and an abundance of fish and seafood. The Fridays of Lent are observed strictly as days without meat, including Good Friday. It is one of the most distinctive seasonal menus of the Mexican gastronomic calendar.

Origin and history

Lent as a period of Catholic fasting and abstinence reached New Spain with the evangelising friars of the 16th century, who adapted the ecclesiastical rules to the Mesoamerican food realities. Larousse Cocina notes that instead of European salt cod (scarce and expensive in inland territory), the friars and the mestizo indigenous population developed local alternatives: river and lake fish (charal, mojarra, tilapia), dried fish from the Pacific and the Gulf, seafood when there was coastal access, and abundant use of pre-Hispanic vegetables such as romeritos, nopales, quelites, huauzontles and huitlacoche. México Desconocido documents that capirotada arose as a Lenten sweet in the 17th century in convents of central Mexico, with religious symbolism (the bread as the body of Christ, the cinnamon as the wood of the cross, the cheese as the shroud, the syrup as the blood, the dried fruits as the nails). Mexican Lenten cuisine was inscribed in Mexican intangible cultural heritage and is part of the traditional cuisine recognised by UNESCO in 2010.

Characteristic ingredients

Mexican Lenten dishes follow three rules: no red meat (beef, pork, lamb, goat), generally no poultry (although there is regional flexibility), and with fish or an absence of animal protein. The main ones are: romeritos with prawn fritters in mole (central Mexico); Veracruz-style fish (whole red snapper in a sauce of tomato, capers, olives and güero chillies); Mexican salt cod Biscay-style (also a Christmas dish); roasted red snapper with chipotle chilli or adobo; Acapulco-style or Sinaloa-style ceviche; huauzontle fritters stuffed with fresh cheese and battered; capirotada (bread toasted in piloncillo syrup with cheese, dried fruits and spices); broad bean soup; lentils with plantain; chillies stuffed with tuna or sardine; nopales with dried prawn; boiled chayotes. The regional cuisines contribute specific dishes: in Veracruz various seafood; in Sinaloa seafood broths; in Tlaxcala huauzontle fritters; in Hidalgo fried charales. The essential ingredients: fish, seafood, dried prawns, romeritos, nopales, huauzontles, capulines, beans, lentils, broad beans, stale bread, fresh cheese, piloncillo.

Cultural significance

Mexican Lenten cuisine is one of the most distinctive and best-preserved gastronomic sets of the national religious calendar, expressing the culinary creativity that arises from restriction and religious symbolism. Although the practice of fasting and abstinence has relaxed among today's urban population, the Lenten dishes (especially romeritos, capirotada and salt cod) remain current as a family tradition and as seasonal gastronomy. The Fridays of Lent mark peaks in the sale of seafood in markets, fishmongers and restaurants specialising in seafood. Capirotada is made especially for Holy Week and shared with neighbours and relatives. Traditional Mexican cuisine was recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2010, and Lenten gastronomy is part of this heritage. The Government of Mexico promotes the Lenten dishes as a national gastronomic tradition. Economically it supports the Mexican fishing industry of the Gulf, Pacific and Sea of Cortez during February-April, and the producers of romeritos, huauzontles and other ritual vegetables.

Frequently asked questions

What can you eat during Mexican Lent?

Fish (red snapper, mojarra, charal, tuna, sardine, salt cod), seafood (prawn, crab, octopus, squid, oyster, clam), eggs, legumes (beans, lentils, broad beans, chickpeas), vegetables (romeritos, nopales, huauzontles, huitlacoche, quelites), bread (capirotada), pasta, rice, fruit and dairy. What is NOT traditionally eaten on the Fridays of Lent and Good Friday: red meat (beef, pork, lamb) and sometimes poultry.

What is the difference between Lenten food and Day of the Dead food?

Lenten food follows a religious rule of abstinence: no red meat, with an emphasis on fish, seafood and vegetables during the 40 days before Holy Week. Day of the Dead food is a ritual offering over 3 days (31 Oct - 2 Nov) without food restrictions, with festive dishes such as pan de muerto, mole, tamales, atole. They share a mestizo origin and a ritual character.

How are the Lenten dishes served?

They are served mainly on the Fridays during the 40 days of Lent (Ash Wednesday to Holy Saturday), being more rigorous in Holy Week. The dishes are made at home or eaten in seafood restaurants and specialist establishments. Capirotada is served cold or warm as an individual dessert; the romeritos hot as a main course; the Veracruz-style fish whole to share.

Where does Mexican Lenten cuisine come from?

It originates in the colonial fusion of New Spain in the 16th century: the European Catholic rules of abstinence were adapted with Mesoamerican ingredients (romeritos, nopales, huauzontles, charales) and local techniques. The convents of Puebla, Oaxaca and Mexico City developed emblematic Lenten dishes such as capirotada and romeritos with prawn fritters, today part of the national gastronomic heritage.