The World's Food

Drink

Aguamiel

Aguamiel [aɣwaˈmjel] (literally agua "water" miel "honey") is the sap of the mexican maguey plant which is believed to have therapeutic qualities. according to native american histories, the process of obtaining aguamiel from maguey was first discovered during the reign of tecpancaltzin (c. 990–1042) by a toltec noble named papantzin, whose daughter xochitl was sent to the king with an offering of aguamiel. the sap is found in abundance among the agave plants which grow among the ruins of the teotihuacan civilization. also called honeywater it has been used in mexico as a medicine. in its fermented state it has been enjoyed as a beverage for centuries. the particularly viscous beer made from aguamiel is known as pulque in mexico. it was available commercially beginning in 1910 and its sale was emphasized only in california prior to late 1928.an individual maguey plant can produce about 1000l of aguamiel over the course of three to six months. over the course of the production period, the volume of aguamiel varies from about 0.4l/day at the beginning and end of production, to about 4–6l/day at the peak. it is obtained from the agave plant through cutting a growing, flowering stock, which releases the agave's sweet sap. after the plant is cut, sap can be harvested from the plant for up to two months.aguamiel was distributed by the agmel products corporation prior to the company's acquisition by zonite products corporation in march 1928. it could be obtained only in certain areas of mexico and would spoil quickly. aguamiel's use was not widespread until a rigorous process of concentration was developed.

Dessert, Sweet

Alfeñique

Alfeñique is a type of confection or sweet originating in spain molded into a long or twisted shape made of cane sugar together with other ingredients. this sweet has been used in hispanic america in folkloric events since colonial times. the alfeñique was a typical sweet of islamic spain, known as "al-fanid", which was warm and wet and used to treat coughs. in the kingdom of granada, it was made of sugar, water, honey and almond oil, stretched to created a viscous paste. alfeñique figures, especially calaveras (known in the us as sugar skulls), are widely created in mexico for the day of the dead celebrations in november.

Breakfast

Aporreadillo

Aporreadillo or aporreado is a typical dish from southwestern mexican cuisine. this dish consists of meat beaten with a stone, salted, shredded, stirred with egg and cooked in guajillo chili, árbol chili or serrano chili sauce, with garlic and cilantro. it can be made of beef or venison meat, dried and salted, or cecina. it is accompanied with rice and beans for breakfast or dinner. the aporreadillo can be red or green, depending on the color of the sauce. it is traditional in the states of guerrero and michoacán.

Main

Aporreadillo

Aporreadillo or aporreado is a typical dish from southwestern mexican cuisine. this dish consists of meat beaten with a stone, salted, shredded, stirred with egg and cooked in guajillo chili, árbol chili or serrano chili sauce, with garlic and cilantro. it can be made of beef or venison meat, dried and salted, or cecina. it is accompanied with rice and beans for breakfast or dinner. the aporreadillo can be red or green, depending on the color of the sauce. it is traditional in the states of guerrero and michoacán.

Main

Arroz con camarones

Rice with shrimp

Dessert, Sweet

Arroz con leche

Rice pudding is a dish made from rice mixed with water or milk and other ingredients such as cinnamon, vanilla and raisins. variants are used for either desserts or dinners. when used as a dessert, it is commonly combined with a sweetener such as sugar. such desserts are found on many continents, especially asia where rice is a staple. some variants are thickened only with the rice starch; others include eggs, making them a kind of custard.

Drink

Atole

Atole (spanish: [aˈtole] (listen), from nahuatl ātōlli [aːˈtoːlːi]), also known as atolli and atol de elote, is a traditional hot corn- and masa-based beverage of mexican origin. chocolate atole is known as champurrado or atole. it typically accompanies tamales, and is very popular during day of the dead (observed november 2) and las posadas (christmas holiday season).

Main

Bocol

Corn masa cake, served plain, filled with cheese, beans, chili peppers, meat

Dessert, Sweet

Buñuelo

A buñuelo (spanish: [buˈɲwelo]; alternatively called bimuelo, birmuelo, bermuelo, bumuelo, burmuelo, or bonuelo; catalan: bunyol, ipa: [buˈɲɔl]) is a fried dough fritter found in spain, latin america, israel, and other regions with a historical connection to spaniards or sephardic jews, including southwest europe, the balkans, anatolia, and other parts of asia and north africa. buñuelos are traditionally prepared at christmas, ramadan, and among sephardic jews at hanukkah. it will usually have a filling or a topping. in mexican cuisine, it is often served with a syrup made with piloncillo.buñuelos are first known to have been consumed among spain's morisco population. they typically consist of a simple, wheat-based yeast dough, often flavored with anise, that is thinly rolled, cut or shaped into individual pieces, then fried and finished off with a sweet topping. buñuelos may be filled with a variety of things, sweet or savory. they can be round in ball shapes or disc-shaped. in latin america, buñuelos are seen as a symbol of good luck.

Main

Carnitas

Carnitas, literally meaning "little meats", is a dish of mexican cuisine that originated in the state of michoacán. carnitas are made by braising or simmering pork in oil or preferably lard until tender. the process takes three to four hours, and the result is very tender and juicy meat, which is then typically served with chopped cilantro (coriander leaves), diced onion, salsa, guacamole, tortillas, and refried beans (frijoles refritos).

Drink

Charanda

Charanda is an alcoholic spirit derived from sugarcane, similar to rum. typically the beverage is associated with the central portion of the state of michoacán in mexico, particularly the purépecha-populated areas in the vicinity of the prominently agricultural city of uruapan. named after a hill range in the area called 'cerro de la charanda' where the first distillery was built in the region. charanda is a term in purépecha language meaning 'red-colored soil'.obtained through the distillation and rectification (double distillation) of sugarcane cold-extracted and then fermented juices. the result is a colorless crystalline spirit. when stored and aged in oak or encino barrels the spirit acquires hues of amber. certain tonalities of blue are seen in premium distillations from handpicked sugarcanes when a maceration process is added. buttery sweet in taste, similar to vanilla. it is usually served at room temperature. charanda was granted protection with a declaration of 'denominación de origen protegida' in 2003 (in english: protected designation of origin or pdo), following the normatives regarding the quality of the sugarcanes used in the production, the characteristics and types of the final product, as well as the methods of extraction and production. it also norms and specifies the geographical region where the name of the spirit can be used for commercial use. charanda comes in many brands just like any other distilled spirit. some of the most popular are "tres extra", "tarasco" (three varieties: blanco, reposado and añejo -premium-), and "uruapan" (three varieties: blanco, plata -premium- and real de uruapan -premium-).

Dessert, Sweet

Chongos zamoranos

Chongos zamoranos is a mexican dessert made of curdled milk. it is typically prepared with rennet tablets, milk, sugar and cinnamon. the result is a dish of soft cheese-like consistency on a sweet brown milky syrup. its origin is attributed to colonial-era convents in the city of zamora, michoacán.

Main

Churipo

Meat stew flavored with cactus fruit

Dessert, Sweet

Cocada

Cocada are a traditional coconut confectionery found in many parts of latin america. they are particularly popular in argentina, bolivia, brazil, colombia, chile, dominican republic, mexico, panama, venezuela and ecuador. they are oven baked but are served at room temperature to provide their chewy and soft texture. made with eggs and shredded coconut, cocadas come in a variety of colors due to the modern use of food coloring, however the traditional variations are golden brown. they are often garnished with almonds, either whole or chopped. there are hundreds of cocadas recipes, from the typical hard, very sweet balls to cocadas that are almost the creamy texture of flan. other fruit, often dried, can be added to the cocadas to create variety, which will also lend to a wide spectrum of cocada colors. cocadas are mentioned as early as 1878 in peru.

Drink

Colonche

Colonche is an alcoholic red coloured drink made by mexicans for thousands of years with tuna, the fruits of "nopal" (opuntia cacti), especially with tuna cardona, the fruits of opuntia streptacantha. it is prepared in the states where wild nopal is abundant (aguascalientes, san luis potosi and zacatecas). it is a sweet, fizzy beverage. for preparation, the cactus fruits are peeled and crushed to obtain the juice, which is boiled for 2–3 hours. after cooling, the juice is allowed to ferment for a few days. sometimes old colonche is added as a starter. another possible starter is "tibicos". tibicos are gelatinous masses of yeasts and bacteria, grown in water with brown sugar.amongst other microorganisms responsible for the spontaneous fermentation of colonche, a yeast, torulopsis taboadae (syn. torulaspora delbrueckii?), has been isolated. in 2003, teófilo herrera suárez, a mexican mycologist, published a book titled más allá del pulque y el tepache (“beyond pulque and tepache”), in which he writes about traditional mexican alcoholic beverages such as “pozol”, “tesgüino” and “colonche”.

Main

Corundas

Triangular tamales

Side, Snack, Appetizer

Cotija cheese

Cotija is an aged mexican cheese made from cow's milk and named after the town of cotija, michoacán. white in color and firm in texture, its flavor is salty and milky. "young" (or fresher) cotija cheese has been described as akin to a mild feta, while aged (añejo) cotija is more comparable in flavor to hard, aged cheeses like parmesan. cotija softens when exposed to heat, but does not melt.

Main

Enchiladas potosinas

Half moon-shaped corn tortillas made with guajillo chile powder and filled with a savory filling

Main

Huarache

Huarache (sometimes spelled guarache; [waˈɾatʃe] (listen)) is a popular mexican dish consisting of masa dough with smashed pinto beans placed in the center before it is given an oblong shape, fried, topped with green or red salsa, onions, potato, cilantro and any manner of protein such as ground beef or tongue, then finished with queso fresco. huaraches are also often paired with fried cactus leaves, or nopales. this dish is most popular in its hometown of mexico city and is also sold in cities with mexican-american populations such as los angeles, san diego, chicago, minneapolis/st paul, new york, san francisco, san antonio, dallas/fort worth, and houston, but have yet to become widely available across the entire united states. still, huaraches and other mexican dishes have increased their presence in the midwest due to increasing numbers of latinos in rural america. the name "huarache" is derived from the shape of the masa, similar to the popular sandals of the same name. the word huarache is originally from purépecha and the nahuatl word for huarache is kwarachi. huaraches are similar to sopes and tlacoyos but differ in shape.

Main

Mole ranchero

Pork in a sauce made with chili peppers, tomatoes, onion, sesame, cloves, peppercorns, corn flour, also made with chicken

Side, Snack, Appetizer

Mole ranchero

Pork in a sauce made with chili peppers, tomatoes, onion, sesame, cloves, peppercorns, corn flour, also made with chicken

Main

Mole rojo

Red mole made with chili peppers, nuts, tomatoes, sesame seeds, raisins, chocolate, cinnamon, broth, bread

Side, Snack, Appetizer

Mole rojo

Red mole made with chili peppers, nuts, tomatoes, sesame seeds, raisins, chocolate, cinnamon, broth, bread

Main

Morisqueta

Rice topped with, for example, sausage, beans, salsa, queso fresco

Side, Snack, Appetizer

Moronga

Moronga, rellena, or morcilla is a kind of blood sausage. it is found in argentina, cuba, colombia, puerto rico, central america, and mexican cuisine. spices, herbs (such as ruta, oregano, and mint), onions and chili peppers are added and then boiled in the pig's large intestines for casing for several hours. it is served in a sauce, either "chile rojo" or "chile verde". it is also served in central mexico as a filling in gorditas and tacos after it has been pan-fried with fresh onions and jalapeño peppers. this sausage is called "morcilla" in the yucatan peninsula, and it is almost always served along with other sausages (buche) and a mix of pickled onion, cilantro, and spices.

Side, Snack, Appetizer

Nopalito

Nopalitos is a dish made with diced nopales, the naturally flat stems, called pads, of prickly pear cactus (opuntia). they are sold fresh, bottled, or canned and less often dried. they have a light, slightly tart flavor, and a crisp, mucilaginous texture. nopalitos are often eaten with eggs as a breakfast and in salads and soups as lunch and dinner meals.