Recipes

Mixed Vegetables, Mexican Style

Mixed Vegetables, Mexican Style

Verduras Mixta Mexicana Serve Mexican-style mixed vegetables with grilled or roasted meat, poultry, or fish.
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Equipment

  • large saucepan

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • In a large saucepan of boiling salted water cook the zucchini, cauliflower, and corn until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes.
  • Drain and transfer to a platter.
  • Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium heat and cook the onion until limp, about 4 minutes.
  • Add the remaining ingredients, except the cilantro.
  • Cook, stirring, until the tomato is hot and bubbling, about 2 minutes.
  • Spoon over the vegetables.
  • Sprinkle with cilantro.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Grilled Green Onions

Grilled Green Onions

Cebollitas Asadas
Fresh Mexican green onions with larger bulbs than our common supermarket variety are often grilled whole and served with carne asada. Mexican markets in the United States sometimes carry the Mexican variety, but our regular green onions work fine. Nowadays grilled green onions like this sometimes appear with fajitas in the United States.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Prepare an outdoor grill or stovetop grill pan.
  • Cut about 2 inches of the green ends off the onions, and trim the shaggy root ends, leaving a tiny bit to hold the onion together.
  • Brush the onions all over with vegetable oil and place them on the hot grill.
  • (If the green part starts to burn, put a piece of foil under them.
  • ) Cook the onions until tender, turning once or twice, about 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Sprinkle with lime juice and season with salt.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Grilled Fresh Cactus

Grilled Fresh Cactus

Nopales Asada
It's usually the texture of nopales that people object to, but chefs Rick Bayless and Mark Miller made me aware of grilling whole cactus paddles as a way to eliminate the sticky juices. I've found that if an outdoor grill is not available, a stovetop grill pan works well for cooking whole cactus paddles. For grilling, purchase thin, firm paddles about 5 to 6 inches long. If the thorns are still attached, they must be carefully removed. (See Preparing Cactus Paddles.) Cactus paddles are found in the vegetable section of Mexican markets and many supermarkets.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Makes 4 servings
  • 4 medium cactus paddles, 4 to 6 inches long
  • 2 teaspoons vegetable oil or olive oil
  • ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
  • ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, or to taste
  • Prepare an outdoor grill, if using.
  • If the cactus paddles still have thorns, with gloves on, remove all the thorns from the cactus by scraping them off with a sharp knife (but don’t remove the skin); then trim off about ¼ inch all around the edge of the paddle.
  • Rinse and dry with paper towels.
  • Brush both sides of the cactus with oil.
  • Season with salt and pepper.
  • Preheat a stovetop grill pan if using.
  • Grill the cactus paddles until they are tender and marked by the grill, about 3 to 5 minutes per side, depending on the size.
  • Serve 1 grilled paddle to each person, or cut into strips and serve from a plate as a side dish.
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Course; Side Dish
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Plantains Stuffed with Beans

Plantains Stuffed with Beans

Rellenos de Plátanos Machos
Starchy "cooking bananas," plantains, or plátanos machos, are used extensively in the southern coastal regions of Mexico. In the states of Tabasco and Veracruz, we ate plantains in some form almost every day. Serve these little patties as a first course or side dish. For this recipe, the plantains are not yet ripe, and still firm to the touch. The skins should be partly yellow and mottled with a little brown.
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Ingredients

Makes 12 small patties

  • 2 plantains peeled and sliced crosswise in 2-inch pieces
  • 1 large egg beaten
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup Basic Refried Beans or canned
  • Vegetable Oil for frying
  • 1½ cups shredded lettuce
  • ½ cup Mexican crema or sour cream

Instructions

  • Put the plantain pieces in a medium pan and add hot water to cover.
  • Bring to a boil and cook, partially covered, until tender, about 10 minutes.
  • Drain and cool.
  • When cool, purée in a food processor.
  • Add the beaten egg, flour, and salt.
  • Pulse 3 to 4 times to blend.
  • If the mixture is sticky, add a little more flour.
  • Form the mixture into 12 balls.
  • With a thumb, poke a hole and fill each ball with about 2 teaspoons refried beans.
  • Mold the batter to enclose the beans into fat cigar shaped patties.
  • Heat oil to a depth of about 1-inch over medium heat in a medium nonstick skillet until it shimmers.
  • Fry the patties, turning once, until golden brown on both sides.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot on a bed of lettuce and top with a dollop of crema.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Refried Beans

Portobello Mushrooms Stuffed with Refried Beans

Rellenos de Hongos Grande con Frijoles Refritos
All kinds and sizes of mushrooms grow in Mexico and Mexicans are experts at preparing stuffed vegetables. Mushrooms are a natural with their ready-made depression to hold the filling. Serve as a substantial starter course.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Prepare the refried beans.
  • Heat 1 cup in a saucepan, cover, and keep warm.
  • The beans should be thick and quite dry.
  • In a skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of oil over medium heat and cook the onion, stirring, until it softens, 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Add the tomato, chile, and oregano.
  • Cook until the tomato juices reduce and the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes.
  • Season with salt.
  • Transfer to a bowl and reserve.
  • Remove the stems from the mushrooms.
  • With a melon-baller, scoop out the black gills.
  • Wipe the mushrooms with a damp paper towel.
  • Rub the mushrooms all over with olive oil.
  • Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat and place the mushrooms, cavity side down, in the pan.
  • Add the broth, cover and cook for 5 minutes, then turn and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender when pierced with a small sharp knife.
  • Drain the juices from the mushrooms and save for another use, if desired.
  • Preheat the oven to 375°.
  • Place the mushrooms, cavity side up, on a baking sheet.
  • Sprinkle with salt.
  • Stuff each mushroom cavity with about ¼ of the refried beans.
  • Top each with ¼ of the tomato mixture and ¼ of the cheese.
  • Bake until heated through and cheese is melted, 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Sprinkle with cilantro.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish
Cuisine; Mexican

mushrooms, Tomatoes, and Chiles

mushrooms, Tomatoes, and Chiles

Hongos, Jitomates, y Chiles
A tasty trio of sautéed mushrooms, tomatoes, and fiery little serrano chiles can be spooned over steaks, chickens, or hamburgers as a terrific topping, or served on the side to accompany enchiladas. For a traditional flavor, a good-quality lard lends authenticity to the dish.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or lard
  • ½ medium white onion chopped
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano Mexican variety preferred, crumbled
  • 1 pound mixed mushrooms cremini and white, thinly sliced
  • 2 medium tomatoes peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
  • 2 serrano chiles minced with seeds
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh epazote leaves if available
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste

Instructions

  • In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil or lard over medium heat and fry the onion and oregano.
  • Cook, stirring until the onion begins to brown, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the mushrooms and cook, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and starting to brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
  • Add the remaining ingredients.
  • Raise the heat and cook until completely heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Green Beans with Mushrooms from Marge Poore

Green Beans with Mushrooms from Marge Poore

Ejotes con Hongos
Green beans are often put into soups and stews in traditional Mexican cooking, but here is one of the newer ways to present fresh green beans as a side dish.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

  • 1 pound small fresh green beans ends trimmed
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ medium white onion thinly sliced
  • ½ pound fresh white mushrooms thinly sliced
  • 1 small garlic clove finely chopped
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 2 plum tomatoes cored and finely diced

Instructions

  • In a medium saucepan of boiling water cook the beans, uncovered, until crisp-tender, about 6 minutes.
  • Drain and rinse with cold running water to stop the cooking.
  • Reserve.
  • In a large nonstick skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat and cook the onion, mushrooms, and garlic, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms start to brown, 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Add the reserved green beans and salt.
  • Cook, stirring, until completely heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Transfer to a serving bowl.
  • Scatter the diced tomatoes on top.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Eggplant Stuffed with Shredded Chicken

Eggplant Stuffed with Shredded Chicken

Berenjenas Rellenos con Pollo Deschebrada
Eggplant is grown in Mexico and available in many markets for home cooks. A few restaurants offering nueva cocina—creative dishes combining old and new Mexican food traditions—have begun adding Mexican-style eggplant to their menus. In Puebla, I had small thin pieces of fried eggplant served with a green salad. In Guanajuato, baked eggplant halves were stuffed with tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, onions, and shredded chicken, as in this dish.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Prepare the shredded chicken.
  • Cover and refrigerate.
  • Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise.
  • With a sharp knife, score the cut side of the eggplant, but do not cut through the skin.
  • Sprinkle the cut sides with ½ teaspoon of the salt, turn cut side down and let sit for 20 minutes.
  • Rinse the eggplant and pat dry with paper towels.
  • Preheat the oven to 375°.
  • Rub 2 tablespoons of the oil all over the eggplant and place on a baking sheet.
  • Cover with foil and bake in preheated oven until tender, about 30 minutes.
  • Remove from the oven and cool.
  • When cool enough to handle scoop out the eggplant pulp, leaving the skin and about ½ inch of pulp intact.
  • Reserve the eggplant shells.
  • Finely chop the pulp with a knife and reserve.
  • Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a skillet and cook the onion, stirring, until it starts to brown, about 4 minutes.
  • Add the tomato, jalapeño, oregano, cumin, and reserved chopped eggplant.
  • Cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens, 12 to 15 minutes.
  • Stir in the reserved shredded chicken.
  • Fill the eggplant halves with the chicken stuffing.
  • Place on a foil-lined baking sheet.
  • Mix the cheese, bread crumbs, and parsley.
  • Sprinkle on top of the eggplant shells.
  • Bake in preheated oven until the eggplant shells are soft and the filling is hot and golden brown on top, about 25 minutes.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot or at room temperature.
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Course; Chicken / Main Course
Cuisine; Mexican

Broccoli with Onions and Sweet Potatoes

Broccoli with Onions and Sweet Potatoes

Brocoli con Cebollas y Camotes Proving that simple can often be best, this stunning vegetable combination of only three ingredients, plus salt, pepper, and olive oil ranks right up there as one of the prettiest and tastiest vegetable dishes I’ve ever eaten. In Mexico huauzontle, a vegetable with a taste similar to broccoli, might be used, but it’s still a rarity in this country. Serve the vegetables next to Stuffed Chicken Breasts with Black Bean Sauce, and you’ve got a winning dinner.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Half fill a large deep skillet with water and bring to a boil, over medium-high heat.
  • Add the sweet potatoes and cook, uncovered, until tender, about 10 minutes.
  • Drain and put the hot sweet potatoes into a bowl.
  • Add 1 tablespoon of the oil, ½ teaspoon of the salt, and ⅛ teaspoon pepper.
  • Toss gently to coat.
  • Cover and keep warm.
  • In the same skillet, again pour water to about half full, and bring to a boil.
  • Add the broccoli and onion.
  • Cook, uncovered, until crisp tender, about 5 minutes.
  • Drain.
  • Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil, the remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and ⅛ teaspoon or more pepper.
  • Turn gently to coat.
  • Arrange the broccoli and onion on one side of a shallow bowl or serving plate and snuggle the sweet potatoe pieces next to them.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Broccoli with Red Onion and Cumin

Broccoli with Red Onion and Cumin

Brocoli con Cebollas y Comino
Huauzontle is an ancient green vegetable with a flavor similar to broccoli that grows in Puebla and other adjacent areas in central Mexico. Huauzontle is unavailable or very rarely marketed in this country. However, broccoli is grown in Mexico and is frequently used in Mexican cooking, sometimes as a substitute for huauzontle and works well in this dish.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • In a skillet heat the oil over medium heat.
  • Cook the onion and garlic, stirring, until the onion is limp, about 4 minutes.
  • Add the remaining ingredients and cook for 1 minute.
  • Reserve in the pan off heat.
  • Bring a large skillet or wide deep saucepan of water to a boil.
  • Add the broccoli and cook, uncovered, until crisp-tender and still bright green, 6 to 7 minutes.
  • Drain well and transfer to a serving platter or shallow bowl.
  • Spoon the onions on top.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian