Provenance · Volume IX · In progress
The Mexican Canon
Two hundred and twenty-five entries
Contents
I2
IIopening
III18
IV87
V114
VI1
VII3
VIIIopening
IXopening
Xopening
Overview & Cultural Context
Why this cuisine is its own thing — roots, history, the living movement.
The Land & Sea
Terroir — geography, climate, what grows and swims here.
The Pantry
The defining ingredients, named to species.
The Method
The foundational techniques the cuisine is built on.
The Canonical Dishes
The dishes a serious practitioner is expected to know.
The Beverage Tradition
Wines, spirits, ferments, tea and coffee, ceremonial drinks.
The Table & Service
How the food is served and eaten — the order, the rituals, the hospitality.
The Thread
Where this book connects to others — migration, trade, diaspora.
The Lineage & Authorities
The masters, the literature, the sources an entry is anchored to.
The Network
The producers and purveyors who carry the real ingredients.
← The LibraryVolume IX · contents
Mexican · IV The Method
The Method
Fifty-three entries
Nixtamalization is the controlling process of Mexican cooking: without the alkaline transformation of dried maize, there is no masa, no tortilla, no tamale. From that foundation the chapter builds outward through the instruments — the comal, the molcajete — then through the dried chile and its preparation, then through the sauces, pastes, and complex moles that those techniques make possible, and finally through the canonical dishes and their regional forms.
Nixtamalisation: The Transformation of CornNixtamalization — cal treatment of dried maizeMasa making — stone metate vs electric mill vs MasecaTortilla — hand press, comal, and the puffComal temperature managementMolcajete — stone mortar technique and seasoningMolcajete techniqueDried chile identification — the essential taxonomyToasting dried chiles on a comal — timing, temperature, the point of over-burnSoaking and blending dried chiles — hydration, ratio, techniqueTatemada technique (charring tomatoes and chiles)Tomatillo: The Mexican Husk TomatoFrijoles de olla (pot beans — foundational technique)Mexican Bean Cooking: Frijoles de OllaLos Frijoles: Bean Cooking and the Olla de BarroFrijoles refritos (refried beans technique)Guacamole — traditional preparation and techniqueMexicoArroz rojo (Mexican red rice technique)Achiote Paste (Recado Rojo): Yucatan SeasoningAdobo marinade (dried chile paste for pork)Chiles chipotles en adobo (homemade)Pipián rojo (red seed and nut sauce)Salsa borracha (drunk salsa with pulque or beer)Chile de árbol salsa (dry-toasted blender salsa)Chiltomate — Yucatecan charred tomato-habanero sauceChile rellenos — roasting, peeling, stuffing, battering, fryingChile Relleno: Stuffed Poblano TechniqueRajas y elote en crema (poblano and corn in cream sauce)Quesadillas — comal vs. pan techniqueMexicoEnchiladas: Assembly and TechniqueTamale TechniqueHoja santa technique (anise leaf wrapping and infusion)Las Tres Culturas: Pre-Columbian, Colonial, and ContemporaryLa Cocina Oaxaqueña: The Seven Moles and BeyondLa Cocina Yucateca: Achiote and the PitLa Cocina Veracruzana: The Gulf SynthesisMole de Xico (Veracruz mole)Mole rojo de Puebla (simplified red mole)Cecina (Oaxacan thin-cured pork)Tasajo (Oaxacan cured sun-dried beef)Chorizo mexicano (fresh pork sausage technique)Discada norteña (plow disc mixed meat cook)Consomé de birria and quesabirria tacosPinto Beans: New Mexican PreparationCalabacitas: New Mexican Squash PreparationGreen Chile RoastingPiñon: New Mexico's Native NutEscabeche (Yucatecan pickled vegetables and jalapeños)Tepache and Fruit Fermentation: Peel and SugarThe Lebanese Emigrant Routes: Tacos al Pastor and West AfricaEl Chocolate: From Xocolātl to the Modern BarEl Día de los Muertos: Food as Ritual and Memory尤卡坦和安第斯 Beyond Mexico: Central American and Andean Root Traditions
IV · The Method · 9 of 9Next chapter → The Canonical Dishes
Nixtamalization is the controlling process of Mexican cooking: without the alkaline transformation of dried maize, there is no masa, no tortilla, no tamale. From that foundation the chapter builds outward through the instruments — the comal, the molcajete — then through the dried chile and its preparation, then through the sauces, pastes, and complex moles that those techniques make possible, and finally through the canonical dishes and their regional forms.
Chile Technique Salsas
Four entries
Salsa roja — roasted tomato and dried chile · Salsa verde — tomatillo preparation · Pico de gallo — raw salsa fresca
Oaxaca Moles Complex Sauces
Two entries
Mole amarillo (Oaxacan yellow-green mole) · Mole negro technique — charring chiles and tortilla
Flavour Building
Three entries
Los Chiles: The Mexican Chilli Taxonomy · Mexican salsa construction · Mole construction
Grains And Dough
Six entries
El Nixtamal: The Alkaline Transformation · Corn Tortilla: Making by Hand · Mexican tamale technique
Heat Application
Four entries
Comal and dry-heat charring · Mexican barbacoa pit technique · Sopaipilla
Pastry Technique
Four entries
Mexican Dessert Architecture: Dulces Regionales · Bizcochito: New Mexican Anise Cookie · Natillas: New Mexican Egg Custard
Sauce Making
Five entries
The Mexican Mole: Architecture of the Ancient Sauce · El Mole: The Complete Sauce System · Salsa Technique: Raw, Cooked, and Roasted
Wet Heat Methods
Six entries
Mexican carnitas and barbacoa · El Tamal: Assembly and Steam Cooking · Tamales Oaxaqueños: Banana Leaf Tamales
Also in this chapter
53 entries
Nixtamalisation: The Transformation of CornNixtamalization — cal treatment of dried maizeMasa making — stone metate vs electric mill vs MasecaTortilla — hand press, comal, and the puffComal temperature managementMolcajete — stone mortar technique and seasoningMolcajete techniqueDried chile identification — the essential taxonomyToasting dried chiles on a comal — timing, temperature, the point of over-burnSoaking and blending dried chiles — hydration, ratio, techniqueTatemada technique (charring tomatoes and chiles)Tomatillo: The Mexican Husk TomatoFrijoles de olla (pot beans — foundational technique)Mexican Bean Cooking: Frijoles de OllaLos Frijoles: Bean Cooking and the Olla de BarroFrijoles refritos (refried beans technique)Guacamole — traditional preparation and techniqueArroz rojo (Mexican red rice technique)Achiote Paste (Recado Rojo): Yucatan SeasoningAdobo marinade (dried chile paste for pork)Chiles chipotles en adobo (homemade)Pipián rojo (red seed and nut sauce)Salsa borracha (drunk salsa with pulque or beer)Chile de árbol salsa (dry-toasted blender salsa)Chiltomate — Yucatecan charred tomato-habanero sauceChile rellenos — roasting, peeling, stuffing, battering, fryingChile Relleno: Stuffed Poblano TechniqueRajas y elote en crema (poblano and corn in cream sauce)Quesadillas — comal vs. pan techniqueEnchiladas: Assembly and TechniqueTamale TechniqueHoja santa technique (anise leaf wrapping and infusion)Las Tres Culturas: Pre-Columbian, Colonial, and ContemporaryLa Cocina Oaxaqueña: The Seven Moles and BeyondLa Cocina Yucateca: Achiote and the PitLa Cocina Veracruzana: The Gulf SynthesisMole de Xico (Veracruz mole)Mole rojo de Puebla (simplified red mole)Cecina (Oaxacan thin-cured pork)Tasajo (Oaxacan cured sun-dried beef)Chorizo mexicano (fresh pork sausage technique)Discada norteña (plow disc mixed meat cook)Consomé de birria and quesabirria tacosPinto Beans: New Mexican PreparationCalabacitas: New Mexican Squash PreparationGreen Chile RoastingPiñon: New Mexico's Native NutEscabeche (Yucatecan pickled vegetables and jalapeños)Tepache and Fruit Fermentation: Peel and SugarThe Lebanese Emigrant Routes: Tacos al Pastor and West AfricaEl Chocolate: From Xocolātl to the Modern BarEl Día de los Muertos: Food as Ritual and Memory尤卡坦和安第斯 Beyond Mexico: Central American and Andean Root Traditions