Salting and curing: cecina, machaca and dried meats of Mexico

What is it?

Salting and curing are traditional Mexican techniques for preserving meats through dehydration with salt and, in some cases, seasonings such as chilli, garlic and vinegar. They arose in response to the warm climate and the lack of refrigeration, especially in the north of Mexico and in Morelos. Products such as Yecapixtla cecina, Sonoran machaca, Chihuahua dried beef and spiced cecina are a direct result of these techniques. The meat, generally beef or pork, is cut into thin slices, generously salted and left to dry in the sun or air for hours or days. The result is intensely tasty meats, light to transport and with a long shelf life, the basis of tacos, machaca with egg and northern ranch stews.

Origin and history

The curing of meats with salt arrived in Mexico with the Spanish, who brought Mediterranean techniques for hams, cured beef and tasajos. However, the dry climate of northern Mexico and the central altiplanos allowed its immediate adaptation to local conditions. During the colonial era, the cattle haciendas of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sonora and Durango popularised machaca: salted meat, dried and pounded on stone to keep for months. In Morelos, the town of Yecapixtla developed from the 19th century a particular technique: very thin slices of salted beef aired in the sun for a few hours, without prolonged curing. Larousse Cocina and the Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Mexican Gastronomy document that Yecapixtla cecina obtained a Collective Mark in recent years, protecting its tradition. Sonoran machaca is also recognised as a typical regional product, linked to the cowboy culture of the northwest.

Characteristic ingredients

The techniques vary according to region and type of meat. Yecapixtla cecina uses lean beef without fat, cut into 2-3 mm slices, salted with coarse salt and aired in the sun for 6 to 12 hours. The spiced cecina of Oaxaca and Puebla adds chile guajillo or ancho paste to the salting, giving it a characteristic reddish colour. Northern machaca uses lean beef cuts, salted with coarse salt and dried in the sun for 2 to 4 days, until hard, then pounded with stone or shredded. Chihuahua dried beef is hung in mesh cages in the open air, without direct sun, for days. In all cases, salt extracts moisture and prevents bacterial growth, while the seasonings (chilli, garlic, vinegar, sour orange) provide flavour and preserve. Rehydration is done in warm water or directly when cooking with juices.

Cultural significance

Salted and cured meats are a living gastronomic heritage in many Mexican towns. Yecapixtla, in Morelos, holds the Cecina Fair every year with thousands of visitors who tour the local taquerias. Sonora has made machaca with egg a symbolic dish of northern breakfast, present in burritos, chimichangas and broths. Oaxacan spiced cecina appears on tlayudas and in markets such as the 20 de Noviembre. These techniques sustain small family producers and keep alive ancestral knowledge adapted from Iberian tradition. Traditional Mexican cuisine, declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2010, explicitly recognises preservation techniques as a value of the national gastronomic system. Cured meats also have economic value: they facilitate inter-regional trade without a cold chain and allow export to Mexican communities abroad.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between cecina and machaca?

Cecina is meat salted in thin slices, briefly aired in the sun and eaten almost fresh. Machaca is salted meat, completely dried for days and then pounded or shredded, giving a fibrous texture. Cecina is typical of the centre and south (Yecapixtla, Oaxaca), and machaca of the north (Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila).

What does Yecapixtla cecina taste like?

It has an intense concentrated beef flavour, slightly salty, with notes of sun and natural airing. Its texture is firm but tender, easy to chew when grilled over charcoal. Spiced cecina adds heat and chile guajillo aroma. It is usually served in a taco with beans, guacamole and fresh cheese.

How is northern machaca served?

The most popular form is machaca with egg: the meat is rehydrated with onion, tomato and chilli, cooked with scrambled egg and wrapped in a wheat tortilla to make burritos. Machaca broth, chimichangas and breakfast burros typical of Sonora and Chihuahua are also prepared.

Where does Mexican cecina come from?

The technique of salting and drying meat arrived with the Spanish from the Iberian peninsula, where cecinas such as that of Leon existed. In Mexico, it was adapted from the 16th century onwards in cattle areas. Yecapixtla, Morelos, is the documented origin of the most famous Mexican cecina, while Sonora developed machaca from cowboy tradition.