48 replies to this topic

[Suzanne F]

I meant to ask but forgot: in the third photo, are the colored mounds to the cook's left different versions of masa? White, blue, yellow, and . . . purple? What makes for the different colors, and do they taste different?

[rancho_gordo]

I found some more photos on my Droid.
this is an omelette with chapulines and quesillo. Chapulines are crickets.



Inside Sto Domingo:



Oh, the stories from inside this place. I remember get totally wasted with a group of lawyers who insisted on singing boleros to me. This was many years ago. Now I am sensible and no one sings sweet boleros to me.



I bought this rug and this is the family that made it. All of the yarn is made there and then hand dyed from natural sources and then woven. I have no real interest in textiles but you can't help but get into it when you see it.



Different masas at Itanoni:



Delicious black beans. These were called Negro Delgado Santanero:

[SFJoe]

I bought this rug and this is the family that made it. All of the yarn is made there and then hand dyed from natural sources and then woven. I have no real interest in textiles but you can't help but get into it when you see it.

That is Jose Buenaventura-Gonzalez!! (yes?) I have 2 rugs by him.

Could you hurry up already with the chilhuacles and the chilcostles? I have to make a mole negro de Teotitlan in a couple of weeks and I can't find them anywhere on your website.

[SFJoe]

Exceptionally pretty rug, btw.

[prasantrin]

May I ask how much a rug like that would cost? I think I need some!

[foodie52]

These photos are beyond gorgeous. The colors of the masas are so striking. Nature hits a home run yet again.

[Jaymes]

I bought this rug and this is the family that made it. All of the yarn is made there and then hand dyed from natural sources and then woven. I have no real interest in textiles but you can't help but get into it when you see it.

The rug is beautiful, of course.

But my personal favorite thing in this photo is the unabashed pride shining from the faces of its makers.

[Limelate]

Ay Steve it is all so beautiful. A while ago I asked a PBN how to tell Chinese grown quajillos from Mexican grown but the PBN said it was nearly impossible to tell, except to watch out for those that are very long. Do you have a clue? I dutifully buy short guajillos but still often they grind up very easily (no need to strain) which is creepy. And, aside from Chile de Arbol, what other chiles are being imported from China? The Pinotepa pottery is beautiful; how's it compare to San Marcos? And I do cook from Oaxaca Al Gusto and would do more, together.

[rancho_gordo]

I bought this rug and this is the family that made it. All of the yarn is made there and then hand dyed from natural sources and then woven. I have no real interest in textiles but you can't help but get into it when you see it.

That is Jose Buenaventura-Gonzalez!! (yes?) I have 2 rugs by him.

Could you hurry up already with the chilhuacles and the chilcostles? I have to make a mole negro de Teotitlan in a couple of weeks and I can't find them anywhere on your website.

I have to find the business card but it could be!
They were very sweet and the boy is even in on the fun and had several pieces he'd done himself.

We were told over and over that the chilcostles were really a substitute for when there were no chilhuacles. You have a recipe asking for both? I met with farmers who grow all the chilhuacle colors and costeños. The pasilla de Oaxaca, which is like a chipotle only made with a more guajillo style chile and much larger, was elusive and the growers don't want people to know their smoking secrets. We did find a guy who can get them for us but I'm not sure if I want to without knowing the grower. His pasillas were incredible and he had three sizes, however.

[rancho_gordo]

These photos are beyond gorgeous. The colors of the masas are so striking. Nature hits a home run yet again.

And the Droid X takes pretty good snaps!

[rancho_gordo]

May I ask how much a rug like that would cost? I think I need some!

It was about $180 us. It strikes me as expensive but you have to remember the dyes are all natural and they dye all the yarns and then weave the damn thing.

I have three from various trips and I have to say they are hard to work into my existing home, which is somewhat Mexican. It's a very particular look and it's not easy to adjust. I almost want to hang them but I tried it and it's kind of hippie dippy. Eventually they've all found homes within my beautifully appointed hacienda.

[rancho_gordo]

Ay Steve it is all so beautiful. A while ago I asked a PBN how to tell Chinese grown quajillos from Mexican grown but the PBN said it was nearly impossible to tell, except to watch out for those that are very long. Do you have a clue? I dutifully buy short guajillos but still often they grind up very easily (no need to strain) which is creepy. And, aside from Chile de Arbol, what other chiles are being imported from China? The Pinotepa pottery is beautiful; how's it compare to San Marcos? And I do cook from Oaxaca Al Gusto and would do more, together.

I wish I knew. The good news is that all chiles coming into the US need to be tested, no matter where they come from. If you buy bulk from a Mexican store, usually they sell them out of the boxes and they say Hecho in Mexico and I think you just have to hope it's true. I think anchos are just as likely as being from China as the guajillos. And the arbols, too.

The pots are lighter and not as pretty as the San Marcos pots. I have come to the conclusion that for cooking I'm not in love with the Sn Marcos pieces. They cook hot and can burn easily, which is something I've never experienced with clay. I thought they also had a slight mineral flavor, which I was ready to believe was my imagination, but a cocinera in Oaxaca said the same thing! I don't care as they are so pretty. Their comales however are without compare and I'd use them in an instant. And I do!

[Limelate]

"The good news is that all chiles coming into the US need to be tested, no matter where they come from. If you buy bulk from a Mexican store, usually they sell them out of the boxes and they say Hecho in Mexico and I think you just have to hope it's true. I think anchos are just as likely as being from China as the guajillos. And the arbols, too.

The pots are lighter and not as pretty as the San Marcos pots. I have come to the conclusion that for cooking I'm not in love with the Sn Marcos pieces. They cook hot and can burn easily, which is something I've never experienced with clay. I thought they also had a slight mineral flavor, which I was ready to believe was my imagination, but a cocinera in Oaxaca said the same thing! I don't care as they are so pretty. Their comales however are without compare and I'd use them in an instant. And I do!"


So the USDA is testing? & then removing those chiles with high levels of heavy metals? that's a reassuring, if far out, thought. I've tried calling the companies that package chiles (often my only choice) as a PBN Instructed me to do but that is a loooong and largely useless process, nothing like calling Rancho Gordo. Also I 've noticed a ton of Mulato now often packaged as Anchos, the reverse of how things were just a bit ago. Please Import. Sad to hear about the Pasilla de Oaxaca, the one I need the most.....

My San Marcos bean pots get very hot too, enough so that I have rigged up a way to get them further from the flame. Gloria, the potter, told me to use fewer beans than my experience suggested for the size of the pot, and more water; the result is great beans and a lot of broth so I'm happy. I'd love to hear how the Pinotepa pots work out. And yes the San Marcos comal is the best, meaning higher heat is better than we normally think?

[rancho_gordo]

I thought i'd add an update on the chile importation. I don't have to be coy about my PBN being Diana Kennedy as she's been telling people about the project at well. So if you know me, you can imagine how incredible it was for me to go on a two week road trip to Oaxaca with Diana Kennedy. It was just the four of us (Diana, the telenovela star, her husband cinematographer and me) and a driver in another car with the equipment. I have stories! All good.

It now turns out the FDA has even stricter demands on the chiles. Traditionally, you like them out in a field to dry but you are going to get a certain amount of animal feces and insects no matter how careful you are. My partners have solar powered tricks to dry without any contact with trouble so we're going to be buying the chiles green in Oaxaca and drying them in Hidalgo. It's a total pain but it's how we can get them through customs. The FDA is right in a way but the chiles are cooked and millions of Mexicans would be getting sick it it were a real danger. Anyway, we're becoming experts on chile importation and we should have them this winter.

[cristina]

Ay Steve it is all so beautiful. A while ago I asked a PBN how to tell Chinese grown quajillos from Mexican grown but the PBN said it was nearly impossible to tell, except to watch out for those that are very long. Do you have a clue?

It's been a long time since I had time to check in on Mouthfuls, but if you still need this information, here's what the chile vendors at Mercado de la Merced in the DF tell me: dried chiles from China, no matter what the variety, will have two things in common. First, they either will not have stems or will have very few stems compared to the quantity of chiles. The Chinese remove the stems to save on shipping weight. Second, they will be flat from being packed and compacted. This is a dead giveaway.

Look for rounded chiles with stems and you can be about 95% sure they are from Mexico.

Also beware of dried jamaica blossoms, which can be from Mexico but are more and more often imported from the Sudan. The Mexican ones are a slightly lighter color and are more expensive. The agua de jamaica made from Mexican blossoms is better, IMHO.