After thirty years of leading culinary tours throughout Mexico, Marilyn Tausend teams up with Mexican chef and regional cooking authority Ricardo Munoz Zurita to describe how the cultures of many profoundly different peoples combined to produce the unmistakable flavors of Mexican food. Weaving engrossing personal narrative with a selection of recipes, the authors show how the culinary heritage of indigenous groups, Europeans, and Africans coalesced into one of the world’s most celebrated cuisines. Cooks from a variety of cultures share recipes and stories that provide a glimpse into the preparation of both daily and festive foods. In a Maya village in Yucatan, “cochinita de pibil” is made with the native peccary instead of pig. In Mexico City, a savory “chile poblano” is wrapped in puff-pastry. On Oaxaca’s coast, families of African heritage share their way of cooking the local seafood. A range of recipes, from the familiar to the unusual, are included. The foundation of most, however, are still the native corn, beans, tomatoes, and chiles that retain their prominence despite the influences of Europe and Africa.
