Lindsay's Tips : Mamasota Vintage for the love of Mexico
Vintage Merchant & Mexico Lover
When I was working at Mexican restaurants in NYC, I always assumed one’s *cilantro allergy* was a desire of keeping cilantro from getting stuck in one’s teeth.
Are you regularly cooking for loved ones who hate cilantro? Use a combination of other fresh herbs. Over time, you may be able to conquer the aversion.
Source: How to manage — or even conquer! — your cilantro hatred – The Washington Post
Lonchería de 3 Compadres in Chicxulub Puerto
Adjusting to living in a pueblito, things aren’t what they seem! In the Yucatan, villages can appear abandoned during the heat of the day. Businesses may appear rundown. Stores look empty. It might take you some time to get into the local groove. Asking locals for their recommendations is your best bet. Don’t bother with google maps.
For example, Chicxulub Puerto, a fishing village on the coast of about 13,000 residents spread along a barrier island between the Gulf Coast & a brackish swamp, is full of vacation homes and business that only open during the high seasons.
I found the local market on my first day and ate a a couple of the loncherías in the plaza. In this part of the world, these eateries stick to masa based antojitos: panuchos, salbutes, and empanadas. They may also we offer soup & tortas. I tried maybe 3 of the morning places and they were all kind eh. Greasy masa, canned tomato sauce, canned beans, sloppy salsas, dirty tables…no gracias! Better to enjoy the local bounty of my own kitchen.
One Sunday, I asked the plant vendor where was good to eat. He gestured to Los Tres Comadres, “Alli se come rico.”
Dios Mío! The ladies running this kitchen take pride in their antojitos. One was grating cabbage for the ensalada de repollo, occasionally stirring the tomato sauce on the stovetop. The other managed the masa & the frying pan. Another handled orders & payment, also running hot panuchos, salbutes & empanadas to the outdoor tables. I
The masa, or tortilla dough, for my antojitos was tender & light, not greasy-even through it had just been removed from bubbling oil. Both the relleno negro atop my salbute & the ground pork filling of the empanada were complex & flavorful. The traditional accompaniments were bright & fresh, totally complementing the fried masa with ensalada de repollo, made from grated cabbage, grated tomato, and tiny slivers of red onion dressed in lime juice; a mild roasted tomato sauce; and a gorgeously picante roasted habanero salsa.
Around Merida & the Yucatán coast, cantinas are mandatory stops in the afternoon when the heat get to be too much! Cold beers, served as cheladas or in cubetas, accompany small plates (don’t drink on an empty stomach!) If you are lucky, you can choose your soundtrack with a rockola or video jukebox, or if you are luckier, classic cumbias will play from the kitchen where cooks will dance as they prepare your botanas.
Botanas aka mexican apertivos:
Cantinas in Merida & the Yucatan coast offer healthier fare than found in Mexico City. Typical botanas are cooked potato or beets dressed with salt, cilantro & fresh lime juice, Sikil P’aak- a tomato & pumpkin seed purée, scrambled egg & chaya leaf, squash fried in lard, potatoes fried in a suggestion of chorizo, a paste of refried black beans, a stuffed cabbage leaf…And always hot dog salad: sliced hotdogs served cold in a dressing of ketchup, mustard or mayonnaise with onion or jalapeno.
From Dave Cook’s long-running Eating In Translation: what barbacoa tacos look like en el otro lado. Check out the flower oilcloth! Look at that salsa caddy!
Yep, that’s the place that was on Chef’s Table! Who else cried buckets during this episode?
Where I’m living, the daily market borders the central plaza. With only 3 vendors selling food, the market offers a wonderful introduction to local, seasonal cooking in this part of the world. It is spacious & unhurried. There’s plenty of time to ask questions, and share recipes.
My haul this morning includes aromatic sour oranges, tiny plum tomatoes, fresh chaya greens, 2 kinds of chiles, juicy mangos, fresh cilantro, mint & chives, and a fat papaya. Today I didn’t wake up early enough for fresh pork.
After my shopping, I went across the street to the best loncheria of the 6 on the plaza for an empanada and a salbute, both garnished with cabbage salad, fried tomato sauce, & a pureed habanero chile salsa
The coastal villages lining the Gulf of Mexico in Yucatan state possess a sleepy, timeless vibe. Arriving at the wrong time, it may seem everyone has deserted this dusty paradise. Other times will reveal a vibrant community of fisherman and families, bustling with activity between the pier & the plaza. Looks can be deceiving for any traveler, but especially here in the hot Yucatan.
Constant sea breezes take their toll on buildings, signs, and furniture. Locals are accepting of the slow deterioration. They know where & when to eat & shop. Where to find the most delicious ceviche when the octopus is abundant. Village residents know what time the wood-fired ovens cool & the bakers put out crusty pan frances. Home cooks know that the butcher rises before dawn to harvest only 2 pigs each day, and shoppers must make their purchase well before 9 am.
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BEACH TOWN FOOD TOUR (3 hours)
Our first stop will be Chicxulub Puerto, a small fishing village east of Progreso. We will visit the tiny Municipal Market, to learn about coastal Yucatan’s cuisine & ingredients. Then we will walk across the street to a tiny loncheria selling incredible empanadas, panuchos & salbutes. We will hit up a roadside coconut stand to fuel ourselves for the next leg of our journey.
Then we will travel 30 minutes by car to visit an active Mayan salt-making operation at the picturesque Laguna Rosada. We can see how salt is extracted manually, in a method virtually unchanged in 1300 years, & talk with a few of the 50 people who have the skills to extract it. A salty mudbath & the opportunity to take incredible photos are offered at no extra charge.
This stop will be followed by a quick tour of a nearby archeological zone, that a served as a local business center for traders who traveled to the region to purchase salt starting in the Late Preclassic period (100 BC-250 AD). The combination of the salt-making center side-by-side with the ruins really give you a perspective on Mayan life over the past millennium.
We will return to Chicxulub to take a short walk around town to enjoy some swimming, cold beers, a ceviche tasting & tropical fruit sorbet, before heading back to Progreso (15 min by car.)
BEACH TOWN FOOD TOUR (full day)
Our first stop will be the historic shipping port of Progreso. We will visit the 90-year-old Municipal Market, to learn about coastal Yucatan’s cuisine & ingredients. We will share a typical local breakfast, Lechon (roasted pork on french bread) from a restaurant opened in 1937. Lechon is traditionally paired with Coca-Cola, but we will try several tropical fruit juices and agua frescas instead.
Then we will travel 40 minutes by car to visit an active Mayan salt-making operation at the picturesque Laguna Rosada. We can see how salt is extracted manually, in a method virtually unchanged in 1300 years, & talk with a few of the 50 people who have the skills to extract it. A salty mudbath & the opportunity to take incredible photos are offered at no extra charge.
This stop will be followed by a quick tour of a nearby archeological zone, that a served as a local business center for traders who traveled to the region to purchase salt starting in the Late Preclassic period (100 BC-250 AD). The combination of the salt-making center side-by-side with the ruins really give you a perspective on Mayan life over the past millennium.
Then we will have lunch across the street from the beach at a family-owned seafood restaurant in Telchac Puerto. Cooling off, hydrating with ice-cold beers, and swimming in the sea will be on our agenda for the next couple of hours. We will sample ceviche & choose from a plethora of fresh seafood. Before we drive back west, we will visit a typical sweet shop that sells the most amazing cheesecake I have ever tasted!
Our last stop will be in Chicxulub Puerto, a fishing village located 30 minutes away. We will drink fresh coconuts & take a short walk around town to enjoy tropical fruit sorbet & sunset on the pier before heading back to Progreso (15 min by car.)
Yucateca craft beer
On the road to Progreso, just past Merida’s mallandia, you’ll find the most successful of Cerveza Patito’s brewpubs.
I’m constantly looking for a comfy bar for solo drinking and a cool modern brew pub vibe with a/c
I like their beer ok & I love that it’s yucateco & independiente. I think Patito tastes best when consumed quickly because it doesn’t have a lot of carbonation.
The full menu includes local specialties like castacan, carne Ahumada de Temozan, Chile Xcatic & Sikil Pak are along with trendier dishes tuna carnitas, fried octopus, croquetas de cochinita pibil. A 3 beer sampler is $70 a growler to go would set you back $140. apps are $75-155. Mains are $165-265
Salbute (a fried corn tortilla) topped with relleno negro (turkey and hard-boiled egg cooked in a charred chile sauce), an empanada (turnover made of masa) filled with carne molida (ground pork) served with shredded cabbage salad, habanero salsa, and fried tomato sauce (not shown). This is one of my favorite A.M. spots. They usually run out of food around noon.
I have loved these woven bags as long as I can remember. Indestructible, waterproof & colorful; great for carrying caguamas, laundry, many kilos of fruit…available in sizes from wallet toting to queen sized comforter hauling. I remember a snooty wine sales rep claiming that she would use one for her samples once she got on the street (jajajaja! nice thought!)