Decisions, Decisions, Decisions!
By Dick Avery
Photos by Janet Avery
Ever wonder how to know which wine would best complement your dinner choice when you are out and about? Let’s abandon old ideas of Mexican cuisine as being tacos, enchiladas, and the ubiquitous refried frijoles, all smothered in melted cheese, and check out truly interesting Mexican recipes from diverse cultures. While we’re at it, we’ll explore some of this country’s best wines to enhance authentic regional dishes.
A great starter would be a bowl of Sopa de Huitlacoche, a rich soup made from corn that has acquired a fungal growth (huitlacoche) due to humidity. It has its origins in Aztec cuisine. Its smoky flavor and almost black color blends beautifully with the companion soup -- cream of squash blossom. Add chicken broth, onions, celery, salt and pepper and you have an appetizer that could hold its own as an entrée! A robust white wine is called for here, with full figured fruit flavors that can stand up to the earthy sweetness of the soup, so pull the cork on a bottle of Monte Xanic’s Chenin Blanc/Columbard.
Try a plate of “pacholas” next time you have a meat craving. “Pacholas” involve mixing high grade beef with ancho chiles, chile guaillo, salt and pepper, and blending on a “metate”, a slab of volcanic stone, using a stone roller with the same rough surface to knead the mixture into a tender-as-a- mother’s-love consistency. The mixture is then pan fried briefly. Add some frijoles negro, roasted spring onions and you’re in business! It’s a simple but rich dish, so a dry, smooth red wine such as the Casa Madero Shiraz with its slightly spicy, fruit forwardness holds its own with the meat flavors.
Let’s travel to Tabasco and enjoy the entrée of kings! Actually, in the Olmec era (1800 -400 BC) of the Mayans, only THE king could partake of “Potze”. A blend of beef brains, kidneys, and veal tongue in a light tomato sauce, all steamed in a banana leaf. It’s good to be king! Potze’s intensity needs an offset of a starch such as rice or potatoes. A full bodied “tinto” needs to be in the glass here as a foil to the richness of the Potze. The Casa Madero Cabernet Sauvignon (10% Merlot) with hints of cut olives, spices, and oak aging is up to the task!
While we’re in a Mayan cuisine mood, another delicious dish is “Queso Relleno”. Stuff some Edam cheese and mincemeat into a Relleno pepper and smother in a tomato sauce. The dish we had was further enhanced with the chef’s “secret” dressing. After we made some admiring oohs and aahs, the chef did tell us the dressing blended a sauce of flour and butter with turkey bouillon, to which was added a blend of onions, raisins, olives, chopped almonds, and capers. Hoo- boy! Outstanding! Only thing left to do is to pull the cork on a bottle of, say, Echelon Pinot Noir. It’s silky, dark cherry flavors with hints of clove wrap around the palate and get it on with the flavors of the sauce!
If you’re serving “tapas”, try a Pibxcatic chile stuffed with “Cochinita Pibil”, a Yucatan style shredded pork with annatto axiote spices mixed with olives, onions, and tomatoes!
Delicious as an appetizer, but substantial enough to be an entrée. The Echelon Pinot Noir comes to the rescue again! A glass or two of will hit the spot with this dish!
The French boast of their béarnaise. Indians are known for tantalizing curry, and Italians for rich, thick marinara, and everyone knows about the U.S. and their barbeque sauce! But in Mexico, the undisputed national sauce is mole, an intoxicating blend of chocolate, sometimes peanuts, chilies, garlic, onions, and nuts and upwards of thirty different spices!
Mole, which comes from the Aztec word “molli”, meaning concoction or stew, is believed to have been created in the late 1600s by a nun in a convent in Puebla de Los Angeles, outside Mexico City, to honor the archbishop for building a nearby convent. We are forever in her debt! Today, it’s Oaxaca that has the reputation as Mexico's best state for mole, followed by Puebla and Veracruz.
Sooo, if you’ve never enjoyed a tasty mole sauce, now’s the time! Stuff a tender chicken breast with a confit of dried fruits such as lemons, oranges, pineapple, and guava. Bake, and top with a traditional Oaxacan mole sauce. Hey now! A medium weight red wine that will let all these flavors sing needs to see some action here. A good bet would be the Montevina Tinto, a slinky, sensual blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Buen Provecho!
Another delicious meat dish is grilled or roasted venison in a guajillo sauce. Made from a puree of dry guajillo chiles, tomatoes, garlic, onion, cumin, and oregano, to which is added a healthy portion of Oaxacan mole, the sauce really brings out the flavors of the meat! Mix in some grilled corn, and drizzle generously over medallions of venison, and you are good to go! It’s a marriage made in heaven with a bottle of full bodied red wine such as the San Lorenzo Tinto, a robust blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo. The dark flavors of blackberries, raisins, and black pepper, with hints of chocolate stand up to the intensity of this dish!
Serve both entrees with perfectly al dente veggies and mixed rice with slivered almonds. The palate will be in heaven!
I’m indebted to Jorge Levario of Woolis Kaban (Mayan for “circle of prosperity”), Pedro and Ana of the late Gallo, and Juan Carlos Escalante of Nirvana for describing the nuances of true Mexican cuisine. Their help and information was essential in writing this article!
Dick Avery is a free lance writer and head sipper at VinoClubSMA, a wine club devoted to the joys of boutique Mexican wines. He can be reached at vinoclubsma@gmail.com.
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