Oaxacan Regañadas (Crispy Lard Flatbread)

History & Origin

Regañadas are one of the most singular and least-known antojitos outside Oaxaca. Their name, which in Spanish evokes a scolding or reprimand, popularly refers to the crunch they emit when broken — as if the dough is scolding as it snaps. They are a flat wheat tortilla enriched with pork lard, baked on a comal or wood-fired oven until achieving a texture similar to an artisanal cracker, albeit larger and more rustic. Unlike tlayudas — the emblematic Oaxacan dish made with dry maize tortilla — regañadas are made from wheat flour and have a more clearly colonial origin, resulting from the adoption of Castilian flour in seventeenth-century Oaxacan cooking. At the markets of Etla, Zaachila and the Mercado 20 de Noviembre in Oaxaca city, regañadas are sold spread with asiento, covered in refried beans and hot stringy Oaxaca cheese, making a substantial snack that Oaxacans eat standing between the market tables. They are especially popular as an afternoon snack accompanied by hot metate-ground chocolate.