Mexican
Xonequi
A deeply satisfying black bean soup from Xico, in the highland coffee country of Veracruz, built around the obscure climbing green xonequi (Ipomoea dumosa, a wild morning glory relative) or Swiss chard as its widely available stand-in. Smoky chipotle mora chiles thread through the broth, while small masa dumplings — enriched with lard, onion, and epazote — swell gently in the pot and thicken every spoonful. Diana Kennedy documented this as a true village preparation: humble in its parts, complex in its result.
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How the 9 are reached
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- 9 · black beans, rinsed and picked over, pork lard (optional but recommended), epazote sprig, dried chipotle mora chiles, tortilla masa, pork lard, heaped tablespoons finely chopped epazote leaves, to finish:, xonequi leaves or roughly chopped Swiss chard leaves
I
The Market List
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225 g (8 oz)
black beans, rinsed and picked over
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Approximately 3 litres (3 quarts) hot water
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2
garlic cloves, peeled
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1
thick slice white onion
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1 tablespoon
pork lard (optional but recommended)
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Salt to taste
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1 large
epazote sprig
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2
dried chipotle mora chiles
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250 ml (1 cup)
tortilla masa
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1½ tablespoons
pork lard
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2 tablespoons
finely chopped white onion (optional)
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3
heaped tablespoons finely chopped epazote leaves
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Salt to taste
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To finish:
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500 ml (2 cups)
xonequi leaves or roughly chopped Swiss chard leaves
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Within reach counts in town, delivered, shipped and the nearest city. A staple counts once it has a local seller. Charted from each shop's own pages; not yet vouched by a cook who shops here.
The larder of Pemberton →II
The Method
1
COOK THE BEANS: Place rinsed beans in a heavy pot with the hot water, garlic, onion, and lard. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a steady simmer. Cook uncovered or partially covered until beans are completely tender, approximately 1½–2 hours depending on bean age. Add more hot water as needed to keep beans submerged. Season with salt only once beans are fully soft. Add the epazote sprig and simmer 10 more minutes.
From the canon — Epazote (Dysphania ambrosioides) is one of Mexico's defining culinary herbs — a pungent, aromatic annual with a distinctive smell sometimes described as petr… Epazote — identification and usage →
2
PREPARE THE CHIPOTLES: Toast the chipotle mora chiles briefly in a dry pan over medium heat (163°C / 325°F) until fragrant but not blackened, about 45 seconds per side. Soak in a cup of hot bean broth for 20 minutes until softened. Blend chiles with their soaking broth until smooth. Pass through a medium sieve and stir the purée into the bean pot. Simmer together 10 minutes.
3
MAKE THE MASA BALLS: Combine masa, lard, onion if using, and chopped epazote. Season with salt. Work together until smooth and homogeneous. Pinch off pieces and roll into balls roughly 2 cm across. Press a small thumb indentation into each. Set aside on a plate.
4
ADD THE GREENS: Bring the bean broth to a gentle simmer. Add the xonequi or chard and cook 15 minutes until tender and wilted into the broth.
5
ADD THE MASA BALLS: Lower the masa balls carefully into the simmering pot. Do not boil hard. Cook another 15 minutes until the dumplings are cooked through with no raw center.
6
SERVE: Ladle into deep bowls with generous broth. Eat immediately.
III
Sensory Tests
◇Break a dumpling open after cooking: the interior should be fully set and cohesive but still faintly moist — not raw and starchy at the centre, not dry and crumbling at the edge. If it dissolves entirely into the broth, the masa ratio was too loose or the dumplings were rolled too small.
◇Smell the broth before the dumplings go in: you should detect smoke, dried fruit (raisin, prune), and a low background heat from the chipotle mora. If the dominant note is simply 'spicy' or 'tinny', the chile was canned in adobo rather than dried and toasted.
◇Rub a leaf of xonequi or chard between your fingers before adding it: xonequi releases a faint resinous, almost floral scent consistent with its morning glory family. Chard smells of iron and wet earth. Both are correct substitutes for this dish, but the cook should know which they are working with and adjust cooking time accordingly — xonequi is more delicate and wilts in under two minutes.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish lives or dies at the moment the dumplings enter the simmering broth: the heat must be a steady, gentle simmer — not a rolling boil that breaks the dumplings apart, not a slack warm liquid that leaves them sitting raw and waterlogged. Once they go in, the pot is not stirred until the dumplings have set their exterior, roughly three minutes, or the masa disperses into the broth and the textural counterpoint that defines the soup is lost.
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V
What to Pour
The pairing
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The whole pairingPillar VI
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The working kitchen