Tag: markets

Posted on

Exotic dish of Chiapas: Zats, a very nutritious caterpillar 🐛 🐛🐛 Zats, un platillo exótico de Chiapas y con alto grado nutricional | nvinoticias.com

Zats- considered an exotic food, are only available during the months of June, July, and August. Zats are caterpillars living in the cork tree on the hottest days and that presents its larval stage between the aforementioned months.
The municipalities where this rich delicacy is mainly eaten are Chilón, Ocosingo, Huitiupan, Simojovel, and Yajalón. Prepared with the clean, boiling with salt and ending with frying in oil. Seasoned with ground chile and lime to taste.
In the municipality of Simojovel, many families are dedicated to collect, cook and market a worm that the locals consider a delicacy: zats that in the Tzotzil language means worm.
Its collection can be dangerous because the person must climb more than four meters on very thin branches, work that falls on children or very thin people because they must climb the tree and detach the caterpillar.
In an interview with the seller of the Ocosingo market, Mrs. Mari Trejo, who is originally from Tzotzil-Maya and has dedicated herself for years to the preparation of this worm, offers her recipe.
“First I wash it, then I put it in the pot with water, prepare the fire and for an hour’s cooking I add salt, wait an hour to remove it from the heat, drain it in a colander and cook it again with lemon and chili until that broth is consumed,” she said.
Zats preparation is thorough. First, the bowels are removed, then cooked in water with salt and lemon for about two hours. Later they drain to brown them in oil or lard and finally eat it in a very Mexican way, with a tortilla in a taco.
The zats are not alive when eaten, as with other insects, such as jumiles and maguey worms, which are very popular in all the indigenous peoples of Chiapas.
The tradition of eating insects is part of the diet of the indigenous communities of Mexico since prehispanic times since, according to specialists, insects contain a high nutritional level, with between 15% and 75% of proteins.
Throughout Mexico, indigenous groups such as the Zapotec, Tzetzales, Huicholes, Nahuas, Tzotzils, Tarascans, Mayas, consume more than 200 edible species of insects.
Source: Zats, un platillo exótico de Chiapas y con alto grado nutricional | nvinoticias.com
quick translation by me with the aide of el señor google
Posted on

Custom explorations of the Yucatan coast!

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.

Send a whats app by clicking on the icon on the lower-left corner or a send me a message for pricing & availability!

The dusty paradise of a fishing village. Progreso, Yucatan

Here’s what our tour looks like:

  • michelada beer cocktail
  • how salt is harvested
  • laguna rosada
  • beachside eating
  • handmade sorbets
  • botanas at a cantina
  • fishing village
  • salbute y empanada


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.)

Post mudbath float at Xtampu.

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.)

Our all-day tour includes sunset at no additional charge!

Send a whats app by clicking on the icon on the lower-left corner or a send me a message for pricing & availability!

Posted on

Salbute y Empanada

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.

Posted on

Bolsas de Mandado: a Life Long Obession with Mexican Shopping Bags

colorful plastic woven bags
colorful hand woven shopping bags in merida market

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!)

Posted on

Making Mole from the Market

mole paste with tasting spoons
Let’s talk about making mole from paste from the market. What’s your technique?

I love taking advantage of all the small production salsas moles offered in Mexican markets. You can usually find mole pastes- solids sold in ceramic cazuelas or plastic buckets- or mole en polvo (powdered). Ask for 1/2 kilo, and it will be given to you in a plastic bag- sometimes double bagged. 1/2 kilo is usually a good amount for 4-6 people. I LOVE leftover mole to serve over rice or as enchiladas!

Be careful where you store it. I have had oily Mole de Xico stain the contents of my suitcase through 3 layers of bags! Now I store my plastic bags of mole in a glass jar or plastic tub. A friend recently sent me a kilo of mole from Puebla VACUUM SEALED. That is just above & beyond & I love it!

Mole en Polvo generally needs to be fried in lard or oil (try coconut oil) and then reconstituted with chicken broth. Mole en Pasta doesn’t need to be fried, you can just start adding broth & stirring it until you have dissolved all the chunks. The sauce will thicken when it starts cooling.
  • mole poblano en polvo
  • this mole has a special touch: candied sesame seeds!
  • mole with chicken broth
  • mole poblano con arroz y platano
Proudly powered by WordPress