Most people assume that Mexican food is just tacos, and they don’t realize how diverse and complex Mexican food is. We’ve all had tacos, burritos, fajitas and guacamole. But have you ever had, or even thought about, chilaquiles, tortas, ceviche, chiles rellenos or caldo de siete mares?
Chilaquiles
Chilaquiles are corn tortillas that are cut into strips or pieces that are fried then sauteed with green or red salsa and then finished off with cheese (crema) and onions. Sometimes cooked chicken is added during the preparation/cooking process. Chilaquiles are usually served for breakfast or brunch and are often served with beef, beans, eggs and avocado. Chilaquiles were actually created as a way to use leftover tortillas.
Torta(s)
A torta is like if a sandwich and a taco had a kid. It is a fluffy bun topped with butter and refried beans, avocado, spicy peppers, meat(s) and cheese(s). Just like tacos, tortas come in all shapes and sizes. The torta has a pretty complicated history. Some say that bakers in Mexico took inspiration from baguettes and made them into small loaves for sandwiches. Some say that it was made by mistake because a vendor in Guadalajara dropped a sandwich into salsa when giving it to the customer, but the customer ate it and loved it and from there the torta was born.
Ceviche
Ceviche is actually Peruvian but is found all over Latin America. The base of ceviche is raw fish, lime juice and chili or hot peppers. Some forms of ceviche have prawns, octopus or ahi tuna. Ceviche is simple, but you need to ensure that your ingredients are fresh. It is said that ceviche comes from the Moche of Peru when they would marinate their raw seafood in fermented juice from banana passionfruit and then the Spaniards modified the dish. Then, it was spread all over Latin America.
Chiles Rellenos
Chiles Rellenos is Spanish for stuffed peppers and it consists of Anaheim or poblano peppers that are stuffed with cheese and occasionally meat or beans. They then are battered and fried, served with tomato sauce on top, and are eaten by themselves or accompanied by rice or beans. This dish originated in Puebla and can be found in Guatemala.
Caldo de Siete Mares
Caldo de Siete Mares is a seafood soup with a light broth. The soup consists of white fish, shrimp, squid, octopus, mussels or clams, crab, vegetables, hot sauce and lime. Some of the vegetables that can be found are potatoes, onions, corn, garlic, chilies and cilantro. It is served all over Mexico in large quantities. Caldo de Siete Mares means seven seas broth, as in the soup of the sea.
I hope the next time you decide to order Mexican food, instead of getting the tacos you always get, I encourage you to get one of these and try something new.