El Chorizo y la Longaniza.

Rev up those spices, cuz we’re makin’ some wieners! >:y

Chorizo and longaniza are both made with pig intestines filled with meat (no surprise there) fat and spices, the one difference being that longaniza is one whole intestine weiner while chorizo is a chain of wieners. And the way to cure and cook it too I guess. Look this isn’t rocket science, people, ok?

Let’s move on -. -

Though these are part of other countries’ cuisines as well, Mexico’s recipes are special because these employ the regional chilli peppers instead of that fancy “smoked paprika” from “Spain”, as well as using minced meat instead of chopped.

The spices differ from place to place, as we can find the spiciest types up north, the green recipes from Toluca, and the aromatic and intense Jabín longanizas of Yucatán.

And because there’s a demand; it also can be found in chicken, beef, venison, kosher, and even vegan varieties; either with intestine or in plastic casing.

La Tortilla.

THE ingredient, the one flatbread to rule them all.

Its presence in Mexican dinnertables is unavoidable; as is its outrageous versatility: tacos, burritos, enchiladas, nachos, tortilla soup, tostadas, chilaquiles, quesadillas, flautas, chimichangas, huaraches…

The nixtamalization of maize significantly enriches the nutritional value of maize as a source of vitamins, minerals and protein, as the limewater used in the process adds its own bioavailable calcium, while it also renders the B vitamins and amino acids in maize far more easily absorbable by the human digestive system.

A true masterpiece of culinary engineering… yes that’s a thing that exists, shut up.

Las Carnitas

A chopped up pig, all of the pig; slowly cooked by simmering it in it lard from the very same animal, seasoned with all 11 of the spices.

It’ a long process that takes a few hours, the smell wafts through the air, way early in the morning. Waking up to it makes you immediately hunger, and sure enough you can buy it fresh out of the pot in time for breakfast.

A tender meat that can be pulled with ease, with that golden crisp full of flavor, to be used as an ingredient in a variety of recipes - A-

Revolution Post #3: El Maderismo.

“Conciudadanos:- No vaciléis pues un momento: tomad las armas, arrojad del poder a los usurpadores, recobrad vuestros derechos de hombre libres y recordad que nuestros antepasados nos legaron una herencia de gloria que no podemos mancillar. Sed como ellos fueron: invencibles en la guerra, magnánimos en la victoria. —SUFRAGIO EFECTIVO, NO REELECCIÓN”

The maderist movement was the first, the one that started it all. Aiming for a nation where the voice of the people would finally be heard, a nation where the men in charge wouldn’t do just as they please, a nation with a true democracy.

The ideologies took the country by storm, and the uprisings gave way to big names such as Fracisco Villa in the north and Emiiano Zapata in the south. The promises of justice and equality would fuel the fire in the hearts of an enraged nation.

Revolution Post #2: La Aristocracia.

Oculta en su ostentosa heredad, la oligarquía gobierna a la sumisa población desconocedora.

Ah, la belle epoque, the arts, the fashion… the complete denial of one’s roots, in favor of the european influence. The complete disregard for fellow humans, in favor of capitalism.

El Porfiriato allowed for the higher classes to exploit the lower ones HARD. The workers were barely paid, what they did make was then taken back by the owners of the land via tiendas de raya, the working coditions were obscenely unsafe; and nothing could be done about it since education was completely denied to them.

It was downright slavery in some places.

I can’t find images I like enough for it, so I'mma borrow illustrations from a children’s card game to do the revolución posts -.-

OK LET’S GET FUCKIN STARTED

Revolution Post #1: El Porfiriato.

Ok so imagine this: a country that has been through one major conflict after another, no real progress is being made and the nation’s political structure is never quite stable.

Enter Don José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori; who, as a veteran of war, liberal, and an avid weaboo for French stuff, stablished a Laissez Faire kinda government that finally stopped paying attention to the conservatives, and instead decided to focus on the real important shit. Like introducing industries, mining and extraction of petrol, railroads, architectural aesthetics, international relationships, outsourced capitalism, and all around just getting shit done.

Guy was damn good at the job ok? We kept electing him everytime, for a whole 34 years from 1876 to 1910.

That’s it for now, gotta keep these abridged to a degree -.-

Mexican Foods: Los Pastes

Y'know what screw it, that trip to La Bella Airosa inspired me to talk about these.

Sometime back in the XIX century, engineers from Cornwall, England, came to the state of Hidalgo, and they brought 3 things to the place: mining, footbooll and the cornish pasty, from which these derive.

They’re these lil’ pastries stuffed with stuff. You know, stuff stuff.

Unlike empanadas, the filling ingredients for pastes aren’t cooked before they’re wrapped in the pastry casing; and while empanadas are light and flaky, pastes are of a thin yet firm layer (shown right). But there’s some layered versions that are like thick empanadas (shown left).
Those’re glorious -A -

And man these things are not only damn good, they're everywhere if you ever visit Pachuca .__.

Book of Life Premiere Countdown: Day T-minus 4: La Catrina

Nothing but bones, yet wearing a french hat.

La Garbanzera started as a social critique, drawn by one José Guadalupe Posada, on those who rejected their race, their origin, the blood of the Mexican; and instead wanted to live by the European lifestyle, to taste the luxury. At the expense of the lower class of the people, BUT WE’LL GET TO THAT NEXT MONTH. IDK MAYBE.

La Catrina, later dressed and given such name in a Posada fan-art by Diego Rivera was later popularized as the representative image of death in Mexico because god knows we love flamboyant shit like that.

To date, the character’s been ingrained deep, and has inspired multiple artisanal figurines, drawings and paintings, cut papel picado arts and many more parafernalia, and has also featured prominently in many a Mexican animations as well.

Book of Life Premiere Countdown: Day T-minus 5: La Ofrenda

El altar de muerto, the prime tradition of the holiday.

It consists of multiple levels covered with patterned paper, upon which the favorite foods and belongings of the deceased are placed. Apart from that, flowers, calaveras and candles are common basic components of the arrangement.

All the elements of the altar represent concepts from the religions of old: levels of the Mictlan, the soul’s traveling needs, the energy that flows through the realms, that kinda jazz.

But in the end most of that is overlooked, since the objective is to show the spirits that we haven’t forgotten them, to show that we still remember their likings with the food, how they lived their everyday lives with their belongings, and the happiness we spent together, reflected by the colors of the altar as a whole.

Book of Life Premiere Countdown: Day T-minus 6: La Calavera.

The most prominent staple of the holiday, present in all kinds of decoration as well as offerings in altars for the muertos.

These skulls are made entirely of cane sugar and decorated with frosting of many colors and sometimes metallic paper, as to represent the joy of life, as a jolly reminder of the times one spent with the deceased. There’s ones made of chocolate instead tho -.-

Some feature the name of a living person, and may be handed as gifts, to remind them that the only guaranteed thing about life is death, and we all have to face it someday. Basically, “spoilers: everyone dies.”