Veracruz style empanadas with tuna: Volovanes de Minilla

One of the most famous street snacks of Veracruz, this puff pastry empanada is flavored with the classic Spanish combination of raisins and olives, with the distinctly Veracruz touch of pickled jalapeños. I think of it as a fish picadillo. You can use any leftover cooked fish, flaked, in place of tuna. If you live in a […]

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Chiapas style beef with cabbage: Carne de res con col, estilo Chiapas

Chiapas style beef with cabbage is quick, easy, inexpensive and satisfying. And did I say versatile? It can be served with rice, used as a filling for stuffed chiles, or a topping for tostadas. Adapted from Essential Cuisines of Mexico by Diana Kennedy. Ingredients 1 pound lean ground beef 3 cloves garlic, crushed 1/8 teaspoon coarsely ground black […]

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Veracruz-style Mexican black bean soup with masa balls © Karen Hursh Graber, 2014

Mexican black bean soup with masa balls: Sopa de frijoles negros con bolitas de masa

Mexican black bean soup with masa balls could easily be a whole meal, accompanied by a salad. A nopales salad or a watercress and spinach salad would both be good choices. Ingredients For the soup: 2 tablespoons lard or oil ½ medium onion 1 roma tomato, peeled, seeded and chopped 2 cups cooked black beans […]

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Criollo Avocados. Photo by Beth Kelly

The Avocado: On Beyond Guacamole

The rich, yellow-green pulp of the avocado, nowadays most frequently associated with the ubiquitous Mexican dish known as guacamole, was once an appetizing mouthful for the mastodons that roamed the American continent, spreading the seeds of the fruit they swallowed whole. Thus the avocado tree, a native of the Tehuacan Valley of Southern Mexico, whose seeds have […]

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