State of Mexico cuisine: what it is and typical dishes

What is it?

State of Mexico cuisine is the culinary tradition of the State of Mexico, in the central highlands that surround Mexico City, and combines Matlatzinca, Otomí, Mazahua, Nahua and Spanish heritage with the products of the Toluca Valley, the lakes of the Anáhuac and the volcanoes of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. Its emblematic dishes are Capulhuac barbacoa (the national capital of barbacoa), Toluca green chorizo (with tomatillo, coriander and poblano chilli), Toluca plaza tacos, Lerma mosquitos (small fried fish), the caldo de oso of Tenancingo, the pink mole of Taxco-State of Mexico, the pulques of the shared Apan valley, State of Mexico tamales, mixiote and Toluca sweets such as garbanzas and buñuelos. It is one of the regional cuisines with the most diversity in Mexico, as it ranges from the Lerma basin to the summits of the Nevado de Toluca.

Origin and history

State of Mexico cuisine inherits from the Matlatzinca peoples (Toluca Valley), Otomí (north and sierra), Mazahua (east) and Nahua (south), who dominated the highlands before the Spanish arrival. The region fed the Mexica empire with the valley's products: maize, beans, squash, tomato, Lerma fish and migratory ducks. The lagoons of Lerma, today partly drained, were an ecosystem of lake fishing with axolotls, silversides, frogs and ducks. The Spanish conquest of 1521 introduced pigs, sheep and goats, the drivers of the later barbacoa. The founding of Toluca de Lerdo in 1530 organised the valley's trade. Capulhuac, a village near Tianguistenco, was from the seventeenth century a centre of production of lamb barbacoa in an earth pit wrapped in maguey leaves; today it is a national emblem, according to Larousse Cocina. Toluca green chorizo, a State of Mexico creation of the nineteenth-twentieth century, is attributed to the village of Capultitlán: pork chorizo with tomatillo, coriander, poblano chilli, almonds and spices, unique in Mexico. México Desconocido documents that the Toluca plaza tacos (steamed tacos) were born in travelling markets. The Lerma basin was one of the great pre-Hispanic larders, today in sharp decline owing to industrial drainage.

Characteristic ingredients

State of Mexico Capulhuac barbacoa is the most famous in the country along with that of Hidalgo: a whole lamb marinated with ancho, guajillo and pasilla chillies, wrapped in maguey leaves and cooked in an earth pit with mesquite wood for 8-10 hours. It is served with consommé (the cooking broth), tortillas, salsa borracha (pasilla chilli with pulque), onion, coriander and lime. Toluca green chorizo contains ground pork, tomatillo, coriander, poblano chilli, serrano chilli, almonds, raisins, pumpkin seeds, vinegar and garlic, stuffed in natural casing and air-dried. The caldo de oso of Tenancingo is a spicy broth with vegetables and meat, with no bear (a folkloric name). Plaza tacos are steamed tacos in a reed basket with lard, filled with potato, pork crackling in green salsa, green mole, mole prieto or refried beans; classics of the Toluca plaza. Lerma mosquitos are small fish fried whole as a snack, today endangered by river pollution. The most-used chillies are ancho, guajillo, pasilla, mulato and poblano. The pulque of the shared Apan valley is drunk daily. Romeritos in mole, Metepec tortas and Toluca sweets (limes filled with coconut, garbanzas, buñuelos) complete the regional repertoire.

Cultural significance

State of Mexico cuisine is one of the most deeply rooted in central Mexico, part of the UNESCO dossier of traditional Mexican cuisine inscribed in 2010. Capulhuac, known as the national capital of barbacoa, holds the Barbacoa Fair every year, where tonnes of the dish are prepared and the master barbacoa makers are honoured. Sunday barbacoa is an urban ritual of central Mexico: thousands of people in Mexico City, Toluca and the state's municipalities eat barbacoa on Sundays as a deeply rooted family tradition. Toluca is the national capital of chorizo (green and red) and of cured sausages. The Candlemas festival in Tlaxcala-State of Mexico and the festivals of Pueblos Mágicos such as Metepec, Valle de Bravo, Malinalco and El Oro include traditional food. Metepec produces the famous Tree of Life in ceramic, a cultural icon. The Mazahua and Otomí cooking of the north of the state preserves pre-Hispanic traditions. The state government promotes routes such as the Pulque Route and the Mole Route. The Nevado de Toluca (Xinantécatl), an inactive volcano, is a natural setting complementing the cultural-gastronomic offering.

Frequently asked questions

Why is Capulhuac the capital of barbacoa?

Capulhuac, in the State of Mexico near Tianguistenco, specialised in the production of lamb barbacoa in an earth pit wrapped in maguey leaves from the seventeenth century. Today more than 80% of the professional barbacoa makers of central Mexico are originally from or trained in Capulhuac. The village supplies barbacoa to Mexico City, Toluca and nearby municipalities every weekend. Its technique has remained almost unchanged since the colonial period.

What is Toluca green chorizo?

It is a chorizo unique in Mexico made in Toluca and Capultitlán, State of Mexico. It contains ground pork, tomatillo (which gives it the green colour), coriander, poblano chilli, serrano chilli, toasted almonds, raisins, pumpkin seeds, vinegar and garlic, stuffed in natural casing and air-dried. It has a unique sweet-and-sour herbal flavour, different from traditional red chorizo. It is a typical dish for breakfast with egg, cheese and tortillas.

What does State of Mexico cuisine taste like?

It has the diverse flavours of the highlands: barbacoa smoked with maguey and a deep consommé, herbal and sweet green chorizo, mineral mole prieto, lake fish and ducks with marine-lacustrine notes, salsa borracha with pulque and pasilla chilli. It is a rural cuisine of the valley with products of Lake Lerma (on a smaller scale today), of the forest and of the volcanic summits; less spicy but very aromatic.

Where does State of Mexico cuisine come from?

It originates in the State of Mexico, in the central Mexican highlands surrounding Mexico City. Its roots are Matlatzinca, Otomí, Mazahua and Nahua, with a strong Spanish colonial imprint from 1521. Toluca (1530) was the commercial centre of the valley, and Capulhuac (seventeenth century) the cradle of pit-cooked lamb barbacoa. The lake cooking of Lerma and that of the highlands gave a unique regional diversity.