festival
Day of the Dead
Mole, tamales, pan de muerto and tres leches: the Mexican feast for the ancestors. Built to honour the dead and feed the living.
Día de los Muertos is the Mexican celebration that meets the dead at the table. Altars (ofrendas) carry photographs and marigolds and the favourite foods of the people being honoured - a tin of beer here, a plate of mole there, a bowl of tortilla soup steaming for someone who used to make it on Sundays.
The food is generous and old: mole poblano with its hours of toasting, blending and simmering; tamales wrapped in corn husks and steamed in stacks; pan de muerto in its bone-shaped braids dusted with sugar. Sweet and savoury share equal space at the table. Atole and champurrado go alongside hot chocolate for the night, and tres leches cake catches the last of everyone's appetite.
Birria, cochinita pibil, slow-roasted meats that take an afternoon - all are appropriate. So is anything the departed loved. The kitchen sits in late-October light, the chillies toast, and the smell of cumin and clove fills the house.
Recipes in this collection
Mole Poblano
Multiple dried chillies (mulato, ancho, pasilla) toast and rehydrate, then blend with toasted nuts, seeds, dried fruit, spices, fried onion and garlic, plantain, dark chocolate and a slice of toasted bread or tortilla into a thick paste. The paste cooks down with chicken stock into a glossy mahogany sauce, served over poached chicken with rice and warm tortillas.
Pork Tamales
Masa harina mixes with lard or butter, baking powder and stock into a fluffy dough. A red-chilli pork shoulder filling has been simmered separately. Soaked corn husks get a layer of dough, a spoon of filling, fold and tie. Steamed standing upright for an hour.
Birria
Birria is a Mexican braise of long, patient ambition. Originally a goat or lamb dish from Jalisco, it has long since adopted beef in much of Mexico and almost entirely in the popular taco version. The flavour comes from a layered chile base: guajillo for fruit and colour, ancho for raisin sweetness, pasilla for earthy depth, and a handful of arbol for a sharper heat. These are simmered with onion, garlic, cinnamon and peppercorns, blended smooth with chipotles in adobo and fire-roasted tomato, then poured over seared chuck and short rib for a long oven braise. Three hours later the meat is meltingly tender, sitting in a rust-red consomme that is the whole point: ladled over the shredded beef in a bowl, scattered with raw onion, cilantro and lime, or used to dip crisp taco shells for the now-iconic quesabirria. The recipe takes time but very little technique; almost everything happens unattended in the oven. Plan ahead and make it a day in advance so the flavours settle and the fat lifts cleanly off the top before you reheat.
Cochinita Pibil
Pork shoulder is rubbed with a paste of achiote, orange and lime juices, garlic, oregano and warming spices, then left to marinate overnight. The pork is wrapped in banana leaves and roasted low and slow until it shreds with two forks. The pibil sits in its own bright red juices; warm corn tortillas and habanero-bright pickled red onions are the only accompaniments needed.
Tinga de Pollo
Chicken thighs are poached with onion, garlic and bay until just cooked, then shredded with two forks. A sauce is built separately: sliced onion is caramelised, then chipotles in adobo and tinned tomatoes are blended in and simmered down with the poaching liquor. The shredded chicken is folded back through the sauce so every shred picks up the smoke and acidity. Spoon onto warm tostadas with avocado, crema and crumbled queso fresco.
Tortilla Soup
A vibrant Mexican soup featuring crispy fried tortilla strips in a smoky tomato broth, topped with fresh avocado, cheese, and herbs. The combination of textures and flavors makes it a satisfying and authentic dish.
Beef Enchiladas
This Tex-Mex-inspired beef enchilada recipe is richly seasoned, easy to make, and always such a crowd favourite. Tender flour tortillas are filled with seasoned ground beef and black beans, rolled, and smothered in homemade red enchilada sauce, then topped with melted cheese and fresh coriander for a comforting, flavourful dish.
Mexican Rice
Long-grain rice (not basmati or jasmine, they're too slim) toasts in oil over medium heat until pale gold and nutty, 3-4 minutes. Diced onion and garlic join briefly. A blender pulses a ripe tomato, garlic clove, ½ onion and a few sprigs of coriander into a smooth red puree; this strains through a sieve to remove fibre and pours into the pan with the toasted rice, along with chicken stock, salt, cumin and a bay leaf. Brought to a simmer, covered, reduced to lowest heat, cooked for 18-20 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender. Off heat 10 min rest; fluffed with a fork; finished with frozen peas and chopped coriander.
Refried Beans
Dried pinto beans soak overnight (or quick-soak: 1 hour after boiling). They simmer slowly with halved onion, garlic, bay leaves and a pork bone (or salt + epazote leaves) until very tender, about 1 ½ hours stovetop, 30 min pressure cooker. The cooking liquid is reserved. Lard (or bacon fat, or oil, but lard is traditional) melts in a wide pan; diced onion fries to deep gold; the cooked beans go in by spoon, with a ladle of cooking liquid. Mashed with a potato masher to a chunky paste (or pureed smooth, depending on preference). Cooked another 10-12 minutes, stirring, until the beans thicken and develop a slight crust at the edges of the pan. Cumin and salt to season. Topped with crumbled cotija or queso fresco, chopped coriander, sliced jalapeño.
Frijoles Charros
Pinto beans are soaked overnight, then simmered with onion and garlic until tender. A separate pan crisps the bacon, browns the chorizo and softens the onion, jalapeño and tomato into a thick base. The two are combined for a final simmer with coriander, and the broth turns smoky, salty and rich. Eaten by the spoonful from a bowl, or set out alongside grilled meats and tortillas.
Guacamole
Avocados halve, scoop out, mash chunky (not smooth, texture matters). Onion finely chops, jalapeño deseeds and chops, coriander chops. Lime juice, salt, mix. Eat immediately or press cling film flat onto the surface to slow oxidation.
Pico de Gallo
Ripe tomato, white onion, jalapeño and coriander are chopped fine and tossed with lime and salt, then left to rest for ½ hour for the juices to draw out and the flavours to combine. Texture matters: each bite should have all four colours. A staple alongside grilled meat, tacos and chips.
Quesadillas
Pre-cook any "wet" filling (mushrooms, chorizo, peppers) and cool. Cheese is grated. A dry, hot griddle or non-stick pan heats over medium heat. A tortilla goes on; cheese scatters over half; filling (if any) over the cheese; folded in half. Pressed gently with a spatula; cooked for 90 seconds until the underside is gold-spotted; flipped; cooked for 90 seconds more. The cheese should be fully melted and just starting to ooze at the edges. Sliced into 3 wedges; served with salsa, guacamole, sour cream, lime.
Churros Mexicanos
A choux-like dough cooks on the stovetop: water, butter, sugar, salt and a touch of vanilla bring to a boil; flour is dumped in all at once; cooked for 2 minutes stirring vigorously until the dough comes together as a ball that pulls away from the pan. Cooled slightly, eggs whisk in one at a time to a smooth thick pipe-able dough. Transferred to a piping bag with a star nozzle (1 ½ cm star tip). Heat oil to 175°C. Pipe directly into the oil, cutting each churro to 12-15 cm length with scissors. Fry for 90 seconds per side until amber. Drain on paper. Roll immediately in cinnamon sugar. Serve warm with hot chocolate.
Tres Leches Cake
A sponge cake separates yolks and whites; the whites whip with sugar to stiff peaks; the yolks fold with sugar, milk, vanilla, flour and baking powder. The two mixtures fold together carefully (don't deflate the whites). Baked at 175°C for 25-30 minutes until golden and just-springy. While still slightly warm, the top is pricked all over with a skewer to make absorption channels. The "tres leches", evaporated milk + condensed milk + double cream whisked together, pours over the warm cake, slowly. The cake drinks the milk; rests in the fridge at least 4 hours (overnight ideal). Topped with whipped cream and a dusting of cinnamon just before serving.
Flan Mexicano
Caramel cooks dry: sugar melts in a hot pan to a dark amber syrup; poured into a 22 cm round cake tin (or 8 individual ramekins) where it solidifies. Custard: eggs blend with sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, whole milk, vanilla and a pinch of salt (no fresh cream, the milk trio is what makes Mexican flan distinct). Strained for smoothness; poured over the set caramel; baked in a water bath at 160°C for 60-75 minutes until just set but with the slightest jiggle in the centre. Cooled fully; refrigerated overnight. Inverted onto a plate the next day; the caramel pools around the dome.
Pan de Muerto
A rich yeasted dough enriched with butter, eggs and sugar, perfumed with orange zest, anise seed and a splash of orange-flower water. The dough is divided: a large ball for the body, four thin strips rolled to look like crossed bones, and a small ball for the centre. After a second rise it goes into a hot oven, then brushed with melted butter and rolled in sugar while still warm. The crust is golden, the crumb is soft and pulls apart in tender threads.
Atole
A pre-Hispanic drink that pre-dates Spanish dairy and chocolate by centuries: masa harina, water, and a sweetener. The modern household version uses milk for richness, piloncillo for the smoky-caramel sweetness, a cinnamon stick for warmth and vanilla for the perfume. Whisked over a low heat until the masa thickens the liquid to the consistency of warm pouring custard. Served in mugs, drunk hot.
Champurrado
Masa harina slaked with water, then simmered into a milk-and-piloncillo base scented with a cinnamon stick. A bar of Mexican chocolate (the rustic, slightly grainy kind, scented with cinnamon and almond) goes in to melt and is whisked through. The result is hot chocolate with body, sweetness layered over a faint roasted-corn note. Pour into mugs and dip a churro or a piece of pan de muerto.