1,000 Foods To Eat Before You Die: A Food Lover's Life List (164 page)

No matter the precise formula, the components are always pounded, blended, and then simmered together. Traditionally, mole is served over poultry, although many other proteins are routinely substituted. Besides patience and an arsenal of ingredients, Mexican cooks claim that the secret to a delicious mole has to do with the proper preparation of the chiles—specifically, the painstaking roasting of their seeds, which become charred bits that act like flavor bombs when mixed into the sauce.

Where:
In Puebla, Mexico
, Fonda la Mexicana, tel 52/222-232-6747; El Mural de los Poblanas, tel 52/222-242-0503,
elmuraldelospoblanos.com
;
in Houston
, Pico’s, tel 832-831-9940,
picos.net
;
in Chicago
, Frontera Grill, tel 312-661-1434,
rickbayless.com
;
in Salt Lake City
, Red Iguana at multiple locations,
rediguana.com
;
in New York
, La Esquina, tel 646-613-7100,
esquinanyc.com
;
in Brooklyn
, La Esquina, tel 718-393-5500,
esquinabk.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Essential Cuisines of Mexico
by Diana Kennedy (2000);
rickbayless.com
(search mole);
saveur.com
(search mole).
Special event:
National Mole Festival, San Pedro Atocpan, Mexico, October,
ferianacionaldelmole.com
.

In 1493, when Christopher Columbus and his crew first laid eyes on
Ananas comosus
in Guadeloupe, they christened it “pine-apple” because its craggy, bronze, and prickly cylindrical form resembled a pinecone. Ever since, its juicy, sweet-and-sour, sun-gold flesh has been cultivated wherever nature permits.

In much of the world, it is known as
ananas
, derived from the name used by the Tupi Indians of South America (
nanas
meaning “wonderful fruit”), who cultivated the pineapple after it was brought to the continent by Brazilian sailors. In northern Europe, it became a symbol of exotic luxury, and was favored as a pricey garnish for steak and fish. The pineapple’s artful form also inspired European furniture designers and architects throughout the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, when it commonly appeared as finials and other decorative elements in wood, iron, and stone.

Eventually, Hawaii emerged as one of the fruit’s largest producers (and the place where pineapple canning was perfected in the late nineteenth century). And the fruit became so closely identified with those islands that, during the “tiki” craze of the late 1940s through the 1960s, it was the star ingredient in everything from cocktails to noodle dishes at so-called Hawaiian or Polynesian restaurants, such as Don the Beachcomber and Trader Vic’s, throughout the U.S.

Today, the delectable fruit is still grown in Hawaii and beloved around the world, but it is a particular favorite in Latin American countries, enjoyed as
agua fresca
(fresh juice) in Mexico, in empanadas in Argentina, and grilled alongside meats in Cuba.

With its stately crown of gray-green, sword-like leaves, the pineapple is in fact a collection of tightly compressed individual berries, which accounts for the husk’s three-dimensional mosaic of rosettes. The varieties of pineapples now most available in U.S. markets are the tapered Red Spanish, grown in Latin America, and the sturdy, cylindrical Smooth Cayenne, which was first cultivated in Hawaii, though it is now grown worldwide.

To check for ripeness, see if one of the top leaves can be easily pulled out (they should offer only a bit of resistance), and examine the husk’s color. If it is entirely green under the buds, it will probably not ripen before it rots; there should at the very least be a yellow-pink blush around the bottom quarter of the fruit. If the husk is deep golden all over and the buds are withered and dry, it is past its prime.

Once you get it home, the pineapple should be stored upside down (or as close as you can manage while leaving the top intact) so its sweet juices permeate the entire length of the fruit.

Mail order:
Melissa’s Produce, tel 800-588-0151,
melissas.com
; Maui Gold Pineapple Company, tel 808-877-3805,
pineapplemaui.com
; Kaua‘i Sugarloaf Pineapple, tel 808-635-0061,
kauaisugarloaf.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Hali‘imaile General Store Cookbook
by Beverly Gannon (2000);
Cracking the Coconut
by Su-Mei Yu (2000);
New World Kitchen
by Norman Van Aken (2003).
Special event:
Lana‘i Pineapple Festival, Lana‘i, HI, July,
lanaipineapplefestival.com
.
Tip:
The pineapple husk provides an attractive and tidy container for serving. Simply quarter the fruit vertically, trim out the woody inner core, and undercut the flesh from the rind as you would with a slice of cantaloupe. Then slice the flesh into ½-to 1-inch-thick slices. The sliced sections can be eaten directly from their boat-shaped shells.

Beneath their spines, nopales reveal a luscious, juicy flesh.

If the thought of eating cactus seems unduly hazardous, you have probably not tried the gently sweet and enticingly pulpy pads known as nopales. The term refers to a large group of thorny plants (genus
Opuntia
) native to Mexico that were favorites of the Aztecs and Incas, who prized their thick, juicy young leaves. The flesh of these leaves, or pads, has a delicious and refreshing flavor that’s a cross between that of artichoke, zucchini, and string bean, with a pleasantly chewy texture. But to get to it, cooks must first strip the pads of their spines, peel off the tough skin, and then cut the flesh into strips, an ordeal often better left to professionals with sturdy gloves and sharp knives. The results are well worth the effort, however. Briefly simmered and topped with the traditional squeeze of fresh lime juice, nopales are a fantastic addition to everything from salads to tacos, sandwiches, and omelets. (If you’re not up to the task of preparing the nopales, you can buy the strips bottled, usually preserved in brine or vinegar, at Latin food shops.)

Where:
In Tijuana, Mexico
, La Fogata, tel 52/664-684-2250,
restaurantlafogata.com
;
in Chicago
, Los Nopales, tel 773-334-3149,
losnopalesrestaurant.com
.
Mail order:
Melissa’s Produce, tel 800-588-0151,
melissas.com
;
mexgrocer.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Cuisines of Mexico
by Diana Kennedy (1986);
rickbayless.com
(search nopales).
Special event:
Festival del Nopal, Santa Cruz, CA, July,
festivaldelnopal.com
.

Among the many delicious ways to enjoy tortillas, one of the very best is in a fragrant and bracing broth. A specialty of Mexico City, tortilla soup at its simplest and most authentic is a heady, golden chicken broth enriched
with sautéed onions and roasted tomatoes, ancho chiles, epazote (a popular Mexican herb whose flavor suggests tarragon), and fried strips of tortillas to bolster the mix. Thick, rich, and altogether satisfying, it’s a mix that benefits from the contrasting flavors and textures that characterize Mexican soul food at its best.

Tortilla soup started popping up on California menus and in American cookbooks in the mid-twentieth century, and its popularity stateside has never ebbed. Expectedly, it has sprouted countless variations and can now commonly be found made with beans (both pinto and black) and loaded with garnishes such as sour cream, avocado, diced fresh tomatoes, and various Mexican cheeses. Although perhaps not “authentic,” these embellishments enhance the soup’s complexity and flavor, whether in a version as elegant as Dean Fearing created in Dallas for his own Fearing’s restaurant or as rustic as the one devotees line up for on Saturdays at lunchtime at the San Antonio café, El Mirador.

Where:
In San Antonio, TX
, El Mirador, tel 210-225-9444,
elmiradorrestaurant.com
;
in Dallas
, Fearing’s Restaurant, tel 214-922-4848,
fearingsrestaurant.com
;
in Los Angeles
, Loteria Grill at multiple locations,
loteriagrill.com
;
in CA and Las Vegas
, Border Grill at multiple locations,
bordergrill.com
;
in Chicago
, Frontera Grill, tel 312-661-1434,
rickbayless.com
.
Further information and recipes:
The Whole World Loves Chicken Soup
by Mimi Sheraton (1995);
Rick Bayless’s Mexican Kitchen
by Rick Bayless (1996);
The Texas Food Bible
by Dean Fearing (2014);
fearingsrestaurant.com
(click Dean Fearing, then Recipes, then Dean’s Tortilla Soup with South of the Border Flavors);
epicurious.com
(search tortilla soup).

The essential hallmark of Mexican cuisine.

Warm and embracing, with just enough chew to be convincing, tortillas are the hallmark of Mexican cuisine, whether eaten alone as a snack, served alongside a bowl of soup, or used as the wrappers for tacos, enchiladas, burritos, and quesadillas. Though often made with wheat flour, which offers a softer texture and milder flavor, they are best when made of the traditional masa (cornmeal), which imparts a subtle, rustic corn flavor and a rough-and-chewy texture that contrasts nicely with soft fillings. Cut into triangles and deep-fried, they become the ubiquitous and addictively snackable tortilla chips, best when freshly made, and indispensable as vehicles for salsas and guacamoles.