Would like Authentic Mexican recipes.

[Animal Lover]

wife was with a mexican for many years,spent time in mexico and is a excellent authentic mexican cook. she wouldnt dream of using lettuce in place of cabbage..

too bad your hubby wont allow it, it really makes a mexican dish,you aint never had a taco or tostada till ya have had it with fresh cabbage on it..

Ask her for her spice recipes please (none of that stuff in a pkg.) Plus...I might sneek a wee bit of cabbage through the door Thanks AL

[MinnesotaSmith]

Now What about SPICES??? AL

The grease and the hot stuff are expected to suffice. Don't see much garlic, oregano, thyme, rosemary, saffron, curry, etc. in Mexican dishes that I've ever eaten AFAIK...

[dilligaf]

Ask her for her spice recipes please (none of that stuff in a pkg.) Plus...I might sneek a wee bit of cabbage through the door Thanks AL

i will try an get her in here to elaborate sometime today, shes pretty busy as she just went back to school and its gardening season.. speaking of which, i gotta get my lazy butt in gear as well.

i will nudge her into posting this evening..

[Disastercat]

Most Common Mexican spices:

Good chili powders, made from a variety of ground chilies. Everything from Ancho peppers to jalapeños and quite a few in between. The deep, dark taste of ancho peppers is one of the "missing" ingredients in a lot of dishes.

Cumin seeds and/or cumin powder - I mostly use powder, a little goes a long way, but again without it, a spicy sauce is not likely to taste right.

Cilantro - herb that can be used fresh or ground, overuse by some Mexican restaurants in the 1980's gave this one bad press, but again it is something that should be missed if not there, but not totally dominate the dish. I like using fresh from the garden when it is in Season.

MEXICAN oregano, which is different from the Italian stuff, you can use the Italian if you simply can't get Mexican, but it will not taste the same.

Sage - the fresher the better, a lot of families use this instead of oregano in their chili sauces or at least do this some of the time. I like sauces made either with sage or Mexican oregano, but using both in the same dish did not work well, at least not for me.

Garlic - in powder form this is in nearly every commercial chili mix (along with cumin) add your own for better flavor control and/or use fresh but cook it a little first.

Achote (Anneto) (sometimes called Rojo in Central and South American) - a red spice sold both as a powder and in bits, it is used to both flavor and color many dishes (including home made cheddar cheese if you want it red-orange). It gives a slight sweet taste to food, but it is another one you notice when it is gone, rather than taste that it is there. Best way to use it is to stir fry it in a bit of cooking oil (olive oil is fine) to bring out the color, this is often used in Mexican rice in place of saffron.

Saffron - expensive and ancient European spice used in a lot of Mexican and South American cooking, probably came in from Moorish cooking via Spain. It is used in some breads as well as saffron rice and some desert dishes.

Nutmeg- used in Mexican custards and some other dishes.

That's a quick update until Dillgaf's wife has a chance to chime in, I can go check the labels on some of mine later if we need me to. My mother-in-law brings them to me from Dallas, so I have a pretty big collection. Though if they run out, I'll have to fall back on the home grown combinations of hot chilies, onions, garlic, oregano and whatever cumin I can find.

[Animal Lover]

Thanks so very much!! I use all of them except two...I cannot get the Mexican variety of Oregano in plant form. I have not used Achote. All the others, I have and use. Thankfully now, we can get all the peppers fresh and I grow my own cilantro. So, I am not missing too much. I will have to try another garden center for the Mexican variety of Oregano. I had read that it is much different. I have the greek kind in my herb garden. I know it is far different in taste. I try to make something each week for variety. One of our favorites, when I can find the gorgeous peppers are stuffed and baked Big ones. We love them. I don't know all the names only the dishes themselves. My Grandaughter In Law is in the Azores and I am trying to beg her to get some authentic Portugese recipes there. She isn't into cooking much tho' and she is shy so she is having a hard time asking. I love it when someone likes what I have made and wants to know how I did it. Most women are like that I guess. So thanks to all of you. It is still too cold to plant gardens here except for peas. AL

[Disastercat]

Forgot to add that cinnamon and bitter chocolate are also used a great, the first in sweets and the second in Mole's and other savory dishes. I forget because I can't eat much chocolate so I don't tend to make moles very often.

Besides tortillas, a common bread is a very hard roll, made using a sponge lasting long enough (about six to eight hours) to add flavor but not get really sour either. Cook rolls in a hot oven with a pan of water beneath them or spritz them with a water bottle for a very crisp outside.

[lilfarmchic]

some regional dishes also use cinnamon and chocolate in the sauces and such. DC got most all of the spices that I normally use in recipes.

here is the enchilada sauce I make. A few others that I use on occasion. I adjust them to our taste. A baja sauce

[Animal Lover]

Thanks a bunch everyone. Lilfarmchic, I just saved Rockin Robin and the baja sauce too. Looks like I will have fun this week. I think I have everything I need. I never made Mole sauce because of the chocolate...but I have read that it isn't always in Mole sauce either. Anyone have a comment on that?? I have not tried it either way. AL

[packyderms_wife]

wife was with a mexican for many years,spent time in mexico and is a excellent authentic mexican cook. she wouldnt dream of using lettuce in place of cabbage..

too bad your hubby wont allow it, it really makes a mexican dish,you aint never had a taco or tostada till ya have had it with fresh cabbage on it..

Hmmmmmmmm will have to try that for dinner, forgot the avocado's for dinner may have to go to the store and get some!

[packyderms_wife]

i will try an get her in here to elaborate sometime today, shes pretty busy as she just went back to school and its gardening season.. speaking of which, i gotta get my lazy butt in gear as well.

i will nudge her into posting this evening..

btw is she heating up the cabbage or just using it raw? Either way we LOVe cabbage in this house!