With the cupboards laid in with enough food and basics for several weeks, it’s time for hearty grounding dishes and decadent sweet things, writes Janet Blaser.
Stories by Janet Blaser
Sheet-pan dinners (and one dessert): a cinch to prepare
For something easy and delicious with minimal prep and cleanup, try ‘sheet pan’ dinners – roasting meats, fish and vegetables on an oiled cookie sheet.
Prepping your pandemic pantry for coronavirus: self-quarantine essentials
Whether or not the coronavirus affects your community, we can all individually prepare for the likelihood of restrictions in travel and gatherings.
It’s tomato time: get ’em fresh-picked and get slicing
Best picked fresh and plant-ripened, tomatoes provide an essential umami flavor, whether baked, grilled or in a zesty vinaigrette.
Beaches, architecture, affordability among the attractions of Mazatlán
Thriving cultural scene with an international roster of events, fantastic seafood and a friendly community of locals, expats and snowbirds add to its charm.
Rotisserie chicken: skewered, roasted and ready to use
Found in pollerías in every neighborhood and in supermarkets too, rotisserie chicken is a kitchen-ready ingredient with limitless uses.
Cilantro: once an exotic herb, now a kitchen essential
Fresh, fragrant cilantro figures prominently in Mexican cuisine, though it goes well in everything from stir-fries to smoothies.
No monkeying around: yummy plantains are a breed apart from bananas
Slightly sweet, with a dense potato-like texture, plantains are the starchy cousin of bananas; in the tropics they’re cooked in many ways.
Real Mexican vanilla: harder to get but worth the expense
Though the Mexican market is rife with imitation products, it’s worth seeking out and spending more for genuine vanilla, a key ingredient in these recipes.
Mexico’s pineapples: sublimely sweet and recipe ready
Besides the classic piña colada and its valuable addition to fruit salad, fresh pineapple lends its tantalizing sweetness to all sorts of recipes.
The humble carrot takes center stage with an array of dishes
Carrots seem like such a simple, innocuous vegetable, but they’re actually a wonderful ingredient and lend themselves to an array of interesting dishes.
Beer takes fried fish or shrimp to another level of excellence
Done right, beer-battered fish is light and crispy, and the fish inside is cooked through but still moist and tasty.
What expats crave from home: Miracle Whip, cheddar cheese, Twizzlers, peanut butter
What do expats miss? Topping the list miss are Miracle Whip, Cheez-Its, sweet pickle relish, peanut butter, horseradish, molasses and sharp cheddar cheese.
Squash blossoms: stuff them, add them to salads or put them in a quesadilla
Lightly battered or not, stuffed with a mild cheese, they can be eaten as an appetizer; the delicate squash flavor also lends itself well to egg dishes.
Versatile chayote — stuff it like a squash or use it raw in salad
This odd-looking vegetable is actually a fruit and an excellent source of vitamin C and antioxidants and a good source of fiber too.
Tequila’s wild and unpredictable cousin: mezcal is complex and surprising
While mezcal aficionados advise sipping slowly to fully enjoy the beverage, it’s also a versatile base for a multitude of cocktails.
With lots of fresh fruit and veggies available, time for Ensalada Navideña
One of the most confounding aspects about living in Mexico was adjusting to the growing seasons: summer here is not when things grow.
It’s baking season: try these recipes with pecans, or walnuts if available
Mexico produces about half of the world’s total crop of pecans and they’re harvested in October/November – coincidentally just in time for holiday baking.
Stevia is a calorie-free sweetener that is easy to prepare from fresh leaves
Bear in mind that you can’t just replace sugar with stevia in baking; whatever you’re making won’t have the same texture or browning.
Jamaica flowers are good for tacos and make a refreshing drink
Flores de jamaica are hibiscus flowers, but not the big, colorful, decorative ones. This is a different variety, roselle hibiscus, or Jamaican sorrel.
Food for thought: restaurant etiquette for those who want to integrate
This is about restaurant etiquette – yours, not the waiter’s or anybody else’s. It’s about good manners and being considerate; basically, being a grown-up.
For a brown sugar substitute, try rich and earthy-flavored piloncillo
Piloncillo – those cones of what look like brown sugar in every market and grocery store – is similar enough to use as a substitute.
A tuna salad sandwich isn’t quite the same without tuna from a tin
Today we’re going to talk about canned tuna. Yes, fresh tuna is available but many of us have a special place in our hearts for a good tuna salad sandwich.
Expat 101: moving to Mexico is best done with some preparation
When I moved to Mexico 13 years ago, I felt like I was well prepared. Yet it was still a bumpy (though often amusing) ride until I felt comfortable.
Always keep a bowl of limes at hand to use in all kinds of dishes
Limes have become such a standard part of my regular diet that I forget how “exotic” they are. They’re cheap, plentiful and used in every kind of dish.
