StewsHard

Tatemado (Colima Slow-Cooked Pork in Fire-Roasted Chilli Sauce)

Name: Tatemado (Colima Slow-Cooked Pork in Fire-Roasted Chilli Sauce)
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 225 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 1200 g Pork (espaldilla y costilla); 6 Chillies ancho secos; 4 Dried guajillo chillies; 100 ml Vinegar de cana; 50 g Piloncillo (raw cane sugar); 1 Cinnamon stick; 4 Clove; 8 Black pepper en grano; 5 cloves Garlic; 5 g Oregano seco; 15 g Salt

225 min (45 prep + 180 cook) Hard 8 servings Colima

Edmond Bojalil

Recetas Mexas

Published: 20 Mar 2026 · Updated: 25 Mar 2026

Colima-style pork slow-cooked in a sauce of fire-roasted chillies with cane vinegar and spices.

About this recipe

Tatemado is the most representative stew of the state of Colima. It consists of pork pieces slowly cooked in a sauce made from fire-roasted chillies, cane vinegar, spices and piloncillo (unrefined cane sugar). The result is a sweet-sour, lightly smoky sauce that permeates the meat during hours of slow cooking. A celebratory dish requiring patience and dedication.

History & Origin

Tatemado is the culinary jewel of the state of Colima, a recipe that defines the gastronomic identity of this small but rich region on the Mexican Pacific coast. The word tatemado comes from the Nahuatl tlatematl, meaning roasted or burnt over fire, referring to the technique of charring chillies directly over a flame until the skin blisters and burns, concentrating their natural oils and sugars. This tatema process is fundamental because it imparts a smoky flavour that cannot be achieved any other way. The recipe has pre-Hispanic roots that merged with ingredients brought by the Spanish, especially cane vinegar and spices such as cloves, cinnamon and black pepper. In Colima, tatemado is prepared in clay pots placed over firewood or charcoal and cooked for hours. It was and remains the centrepiece at weddings, patron saint festivals and family gatherings. The most experienced cooks of Villa de Alvarez, Comala and the capital Colima are renowned for their versions of tatemado, each with their secret proportions of chillies, vinegar and spices. The dish is traditionally served with white rice and freshly made corn tortillas.

Estimated cost

£13.00

Total cost

£1.63

Per serving

* Approximate prices based on UK supermarkets

Nutritional information per serving

460

Calories

34g

Protein

22g

Carbohydrates

26g

Fat

3.5g

Fibre

600mg

Sodium

* Approximate values. May vary depending on ingredients used.

Method

1
Cut the cerdo into large pieces and cuecelo in water with salt for 45 minutes until this casi tender. Set aside the stock.
💡 Use a mixture of espaldilla and costilla for mejor flavour and texture.
2
Tatema the chillies: ponlos directamente on the llama of the estufa turning them with pinzas until the skin ampolle and queme slightly. Soak them 15 minutes in hot water.
💡 No the quemes demasiado or amargara the sauce.
3
Licua the chillies with garlic, cinnamon, clavo, pepper, oregano, piloncillo (raw cane sugar) and vinegar of cana until you get a smooth sauce. Strain.
💡 You can sustituir the vinegar of cana for apple cider vinegar.
4
En a cazuela of barro or of fondo thick, frie the sauce in a little lard for 10 minutes until thickened and oscurezca.
💡 La sauce should burbujear activamente to the freirse.
5
Anade the trozos of cerdo cooked and enough stock for cubrir the meat. Cover and cook a heat very under for 2 hours.
💡 If using cazuela of barro, the flavour sera aun mejor.
6
Uncover the ultimos 20 minutes for that the sauce concentre. Adjust sazon and serve with rice white and tortillas of maiz.
💡 El tatemado mejora si recalienta to the day siguiente.