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.
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Cueritos: what they are, what they taste like and how to eat them
Cueritos are pork rind cured in vinegar, soft and gelatinous. Discover what they are, how they taste, how to eat them and how they differ from chicharrón.
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Cuetla: what it is, taste and how the worm is eaten
Discover the cuetla, an edible caterpillar of the Sierra Norte of Puebla. Bacon flavour, gathering on cuajinicuil and use in tacos and salsas in July.
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Cumin: what it is, uses in Mexican stews and substitutes
Discover cumin (Cuminum cyminum), an essential spice of recado, marinades and Mexican barbacoa. History from the galleon, uses and difference with caraway.
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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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Day of the Dead mole: what it means and why it's offered
Mole is the main dish of the Day of the Dead offering in central and southern Mexico: it is placed to feed the souls and shared with the family.
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Day of the Dead tamales: what they are and their meaning
Day of the Dead tamales are a Mexican ritual offering: Oaxacan mole tamales, white Yucatecan ones (mucbipollo), chipilín, ash and other regional varieties.
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Dried chile de árbol: what it is, heat, uses and substitutes
Discover the dried de arbol chilli, fine and very spicy, the base of salsa macha, taquera salsa and chilli-coated peanuts of Mexican cuisine.
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Dried piquín chilli: what it is, heat and uses of the powder
Discover the dried piquin chilli, the wild little chilli of north-east Mexico that gives rise to the spicy powder used on fruit, sweets and salsas.
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Drying chillies: what it is, techniques and equivalents
Discover the drying of Mexican chillies: how the jalapeño becomes chipotle, the poblano becomes ancho and the mirasol becomes guajillo. Techniques and flavours.
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Encacahuatado: what it is and how the peanut mole is made
Discover encacahuatado, the creamy Mexican salsa with peanut, ancho and chipotle chilli, a dish of central Mexico served with chicken, pork or turkey.
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Enchiladas mineras: what they are, origin and recipe
Enchiladas mineras are tortillas passed through guajillo chilli salsa, filled with cheese and served with chicken, potatoes and carrots. An emblematic dish of Guanajuato.
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Enchiladas potosinas: what they are and how to make them
Enchiladas potosinas are maize-masa tortillas with guajillo chilli worked into the dough, filled with fresh cheese and folded. An emblematic snack of San Luis Potosí.
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Epazote: what it is, taste, uses and substitutes
Epazote (Dysphania ambrosioides) is a pre-Hispanic aromatic and digestive herb, essential in beans, huitlacoche, quesadillas and broths of Mexican cuisine.
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Escamoles: what they are, history and why they are called Mexican caviar
Escamoles are ant larvae, a pre-Hispanic delicacy from Hidalgo and Tlaxcala known as Mexican caviar. Discover their history and preparation.
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Escobeta: what it is and how it's used in Mexican cooking
The escobeta (Ramaria spp.) is an edible coral mushroom that grows in temperate Mexican forests. It is gathered in the State of Mexico, Tlaxcala, Puebla and Veracruz.
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Esquites: what they are, history and the street-corn-in-a-cup recipe
What esquites are, their pre-Hispanic origin, ingredients (sweetcorn, epazote, chilli, mayonnaise, cheese) and how they differ from corn in a cup.
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Flautas: what they are and how to make golden taquitos
Flautas are rolled tortillas fried until golden, filled with chicken, potato or beef. A classic Mexican antojito with cream, lettuce and green salsa.
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Fresh piquín chilli: what it is, heat and how it's used
Discover the fresh chile piquín, the green version of the wild chilli of the north-east and the Huasteca, used in green salsas, pickles and regional stews.
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Fried quesadillas: what they are, fillings and recipe
Fried quesadillas are a Mexico City street snack: maize masa filled with huitlacoche, squash blossom, mushrooms or cheese, fried in lard. A must-try in Mexico City.
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Frying in lard: what it is and how it's used in Mexican food
Discover frying in pork lard: a traditional Mexican technique that gives deep flavour to carnitas, tamales, refried beans and tortillas.
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Gaznates: what they are and the traditional sweet recipe
Mexican gaznates: a traditional sweet of crisp wafers filled with sweet meringue. A colonial recipe from central Mexico.
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Glorias de Linares: what they are and what's in them
Glorias are the typical sweet of Linares, Nuevo Leon: caramelised goat's-milk paste with walnut, wrapped in cellophane. A Monterrey-region tradition since the 19th…
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Gorditas: what they are, how to make them and fillings
Gorditas are antojitos of thick maize masa cooked on a comal, split along one side and stuffed with stews such as chicharrón, picadillo or curd cheese. A speciality of…
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Granadilla: what it is, taste and how it differs from maracuyá
The granadilla (Passiflora ligularis) is a sweet passion fruit with gelatinous orange pulp and edible seeds. Native to the Andes, popularised in Veracruz and Puebla.
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Green enchiladas: what they are, what's in them and recipe
Green enchiladas are maize tortillas filled with chicken and bathed in tomatillo salsa with serrano chilli, cream, cheese and onion. An emblematic Mexican dish.
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Green pipián: what it is and how to make the salsa
Discover green pipián, a pre-Hispanic salsa of pumpkin seed, miltomate, hoja santa and green chilli, native to Puebla and central Mexico.
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Guajillo chilli: what it is, heat, uses and substitutes
Chile guajillo is the dried mirasol chilli, essential in birria, red pozole and adobos. Learn its flavour, heat and uses in Mexican cooking.
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Guanajuato cuisine: what to eat and dishes of the Bajío
Discover Guanajuato cuisine: enchiladas mineras, fiambre, charamuscas and the colonial and mining tradition of the Mexican Bajío.
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Guava roll: what it is, how it's made and its origin
The guava roll is a Mexican sweet of hardened, rolled guava paste, typical of Aguascalientes and Zacatecas, a relative of the ate of Morelia.
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Guava: what it is, benefits, varieties and uses in cooking
The guava (Psidium guajava) is a Mexican tropical fruit, aromatic and rich in vitamin C. White and pink varieties, a key ingredient of Christmas punch and traditional…