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Posted by R Shelton

The Taste of Mexico by Patricia Quintana and Photographed by Ignacio Urquiza


 

The Taste of Mexico is an excellent cookbook for authentic Mexican cooking taking the reader into 8 different regions of Mexico.

Patricia Quintana wrote this classic Mexican cookbook in 1986. All the recipes are relevant today, and if “lush” and “grand” were terms for a cookbook then these would be perfect for this book. Photography was done by Ignacio Urquiza and the photos give a glimpse of each region as well as capture the flavor of the recipes.

I picked up this copy in used bookstore for a dollar, and it was a great find. The pages are thick and glossy, and the photos are excellent. The recipes are all long and are wonderful to read through. Quick and one step recipes definitely have their place, but enjoying a morning cup of coffee reading through the many recipes in this cookbook is both informational and inspiring.

The cookbook makes you want to cook. The recipes have all been broken down into parts making it easy to prep and assemble, and some of the recipes have 5 parts in the recipe – the Felete Relleno de Cabrilla (Stuffed Cabrilla) for example includes parts for the fish, for the sauce, for the stuffing, for the batter, and for the garnish. Some recipes have quite a long list of ingredients – the Mole Negro Oaxaqueno (Black Mole from Oaxaca) has 20 ingredients.

The Taste of Mexico goes into these regions of Mexico: The North (Baja California to the Gulf of Mexico); The North Pacific Coast (Mexico’s pacific shoreline of Sinaloa, Nayarit, Jalisco, and Colima); The South Pacific Coast (Guerrero, Oaxaca, and Chiapas); The Bajio (the mountainous region bordered by the Bajio mountains); The Gulf; Mexico City; Central Mexico; and The South (which includes the Yucatan Peninsula). Quintana details each region with its people, its food, and its different cultures and histories.

All the recipes are richly flavored, and the pictures that accompany some feature the local surroundings. Enclosed is a recipe adapted from the book. It’s a fully flavored shredded crab appetizer recipe that would make any family and friends outdoor meal worthy of a get together.

Salpicon de Jaiba (Shredded Crab)

Serve the shredded crab on a platter with freshly grilled, or made, corn tortillas. Eat by rolling some of the shredded crab inside the tortillas.

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 6 tablespoons butter
  • 6 cloves garlic chopped
  • 2 each white onions chopped
  • 4 each whole canned jalapeno chiles chopped
  • 1/2 cup chile juice (reserved from the jalapenos)
  • 1/3 cup canned pickled carrots chopped
  • 4 each medium tomatoes chopped
  • 1/2 cup parsley chopped
  • 1/2 cup cilantro chopped
  • 2 1/2 pounds crab meat, cleaned
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  • Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan. Add in the garlic and onion and saute until softened.
  • Add in the chiles, chile juice, carrots, tomatoes, parsley, and cilantro. Season with salt and pepper. Cook over low heat until the mixture is thickened, about 25 minutes.
  • Stir in the crab, and cook until thickened. Adjust seasonings if needed.
  • Serve as an appetizer with tortillas, or place inside cleaned crab shells, sprinkle with bread crumbs and melted butter, and bake until browned.

Book Info


 

Enjoy,

Renee Shelton
Succotash Reviews
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