Questions for those of you who cook Mexican dishes

Shelly,
Thank you for starting this thread late in the day!  I don't eat after 7:00 p.m. & now I am starving & craving tacos.  On a better note, I think that I may have to try some of these suggestions.  I love Mexican food as well.

jjsmom - what's a skirt steak? Does it go by another name? ...

I have also heard it called "flank steak' because it is from the same general area, but yet it really it isn't quite the same location. I bought some tonight at the store (it is pretty easy to find) and it is marinating right now with cumin and lime juice, garlic, onions and a dash of salt. I can't wait for dinner tomorrow![]    Here is  some info about it.. it is very tough unless you  marinate it

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skirt_steak

Where in LA do you buy the ready mixed masa? I would LOVE to find some...[]

Jennie- thanks for the cornbread recipe... DH will be so happy if I make this for him.. actually if I make him that and some of these great mexican recipes folks are giving me.. then he is gonna have to do something special for me...[8|]

Are you talking about flour tortillas? Its really weird seen Mexicans eating something with flour tortillas, i would say 99% of them rather corn tortillas and in Mexico if you dont ask specificially for flour they will always bring you corn

I'm talking about NEW Mexican food. It's sorta like Mexican but different. I find some Mexican food a little strange compared to what I grew up eating, it's slightly different. We eat flower tortillas with everything and corn tortillas are not really used for anything other than cooking enchalatas. Here you ask for tortilla and they bring you flower tortilla. Thats why I call it "New Mexican" because it's not Mexican but so very close.

Thats why I call it "New Mexican" because it's not Mexican but so very close.

The food is WAY different there i have found.. good, but NOT the same as a lot of border cities...

  Shelly,
Thank you for starting this thread late in the day!  I don't eat after 7:00 p.m. & now I am starving & craving tacos.  On a better note, I think that I may have to try some of these suggestions.  I love Mexican food as well.

Amanda- do you eat meat? If you do and have a BBQ then I will let you know how tomorrows skirt steak or (tacos al carbon) go... it is super easy and if it is like I get at many local restaurants it should be outstanding! []

I do eat meat!  I use skirt steak to make fajitas on the grill. 

ORIGINAL: jjsmom06

Espence.. any ideas where one might find this?[]  I don't think I have seen in any of our regular grocery stores but I would LOVE to find it somewhere.. I can get a tortilla press for very cheap at cost plus imports...

Well i just buy them at the grocery store (in the international aisle) [], i have found some good corn tortillas there that are not bad at all for not being fresh

Now if you want to make them from scratch you can do 2 things

1.-Going to a place where they make fresh tortillas an ask where you can get the dough
2.-Buy it online:http://www.mexgrocer.com/2440.html (you can find a lot of mexican ingredients in this website)

To know how to make them this website explains it the best and even has pics to see how it should be done

http://www.myhomecooking.net/mexican-food-recipes/corn-tortilla-recipe.htm

I do eat meat! I use skirt steak to make fajitas on the grill.

[]What do you marinate the meat in?

To know how to make them this website explains it the best and even has pics to see how it should be done

http://www.myhomecooking.net/mexican-food-recipes/corn-tortilla-recipe.htm

WOW that is GREAT website, thanks for posting!.. Ok, so I really want a press now and I am seriously craving homeade corn tortillas... [8D]

ORIGINAL: jjsmom06
[]What do you marinate the meat in?

 
I use this recipe & marinate overnight.  You may not like it because of the cilantro.
 
1/3 cup lime juice
1/4 cup tequila
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon of cilantro leaves, minced
1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
 
I use the blender to mix everything & then just put the meat & marinade in a ziplock bag in thr fridge overnight.  If I don't burn the meat, it tastes really good.[]

CARNE ADOVADA.


SIGH.

Miss it SO MUCH!!! Amanda, I'll meet you at Los Cuates this summer for sure!! I hear ya on the flour tortilla thing. I eat those more than I eat bread. Much prefer them to bread, actually.

Carne Adovada is meaty pork cooked in red chile sauce. You put it in burritos, or just eat it like it is....YUM.

They have this one "Mexican" restaurant here that is basically Texas style. [:'(] Their idea of posole (the traditional October food, which happens to be made with posole, which is hominy) is this sick, watery stuff with almost no chile in it, about a teaspoon of posole, and a huge pile of shredded pork. Blecccchhh.

Then the same people opened up a California-style (like El Torito for those of you who go to chain restaurants) place, and it's okay, but not great. The other so-called Mexican restaurants here aren't even worth going to.

I MISS food from New Mexico, which will always be a home to me.

I make my own version of posole every year with pork. I go back to NM and bring home the chile to do it! [8D]

Way up here the cilantro has to come so far that you buy it, and if you don't use it within two days, it's already mush. []

ORIGINAL: jjsmom06
Where in LA do you buy the ready mixed masa? I would LOVE to find some...[]

Little Latino markets, the ones where no one speaks english and all the goods are handwrapped and not labeled []
I'm in Silverlake, there are lots of markets like that nearby.

Are you in LA?

And ditto, thanks for starting this thread ... good stuff!

Ahhhh, cooking Mexcian. I wish I could help. But I learned everything by just watching my grandma. She never had a recipe, she just cooked.
 
Tacos took at least an hour...letting the meat and spices simmer. I can make enchaladas but they aren't really 'authentic'. I love my moms Aros compoyo, but I haven't mastered that one either. Alot of the mexcian dishes my grandma made were meat and some type of vegetable simmered with jalapanos, garlic, salt, tomato sauce and water. Like hamburger and green beans. Or pork and asparagus.
 
Homemade tortillas....OMG those are the best. I haven't made them yet, but the ingredients are crisco, flour, warm water, salt and baking powder. No 'exact' measurements...but you use alot of flour, about 1/2 the amount of crisco, a smidgen of salt and maybe a tablespoon (give or take) of baking powder. Oh and then you add the water until it is the right consistancy. []
 
Tamalies are a special affair. Everyone gets together around Christmas time and we make about 20 dozen or more. This takes hours upon hours. The meat start cooking about 4am and then finallly we can start making them around 9am or so. And this goes on until about 6 or 7pm at night. Quite fun but let me tell you, you do not want to see another corn husk in a very long time!!!
 
 
 
 

I use this recipe & marinate overnight. You may not like it because of the cilantro.

Amanda- with the exception of the tequila and cilantro the rest is what I used to marinate tonights dinner.. so if it is good then next time I will add in TEQUILA![] Sounds delish!

Carne Adovada is meaty pork cooked in red chile sauce. You put it in burritos, or just eat it like it is....YUM.

Jeano.. do you have  a recipe for this? It sounds really good.. I may have to find a recipe and try it.. is it usually really spicy?

I hear ya on the El Torito.. I have one a block from me and they are only "OK".. not great BUT better than what most of the country has, just not better than southern california and many border states. Anyone who has lived here knows that some of the best mexican food is actually the "Albertos" taco shops (albertos, robertos, humbertos, alibertos.... and the list of "bertos" is endless..[8D].) but they are great, cheap and fast. We do have a few other restaurants within a mile or so of us and they are sitdown places that are very good, but they have a long wait usually..

Little Latino markets, the ones where no one speaks english and all the goods are handwrapped and not labeled
I'm in Silverlake, there are lots of markets like that nearby.

Are you in LA?  

Ixas girl- I am in San Diego. We have a lot of Latino markets but they are within a few miles of the border and with the traffic it isn't a fast trip... I will totally keep my eyes out though for some places that perhaps are a bit closer to me....[]

ORIGINAL: jjsmom06

Carne Adovada is meaty pork cooked in red chile sauce. You put it in burritos, or just eat it like it is....YUM.

Jeano.. do you have  a recipe for this? It sounds really good.. I may have to find a recipe and try it.. is it usually really spicy?

I had that last week [], it can be as spicy as you want depending the amount of chile you put on it

2 1/2 pounds pork roast
1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons all-purpose flour
2 quarts red chile sauce

 
Cut pork roast into cubes. Cook in a large saucepan, until the pork is browned. Add the garlic and salt and cook for 30 seconds. Sprinkle with the flour. Pour the red chile sauce over meat and boil over a low heat for about 20 minutes. Take off stove and serve with any potatoes or vegetables of your liking.

Has anyone tried the "Cochinita pibil" before?, its a receipe from the south of Mexico and maybe thats why not a lot of American people know it, the more south the receipe is the harder to find in USA, that thing is the sh*t i tell ya!!! I would put it avobe Carne adobada in the "best Mexican dishes" list. It takes a long time to cook so i would recommend to eat it in a restaurant first (hard to find in restaurants too) but you can buy it pre made here: [linkhttp://www.mexgrocer.com/15130.html]http://www.mexgrocer.com/15130.html[/link]