Lets Cook Mexican
Ensaladas / Salads
This is a delicious salad that you can prepare in advance to have for dinner. I did mine in the morning, left it in the fridge and listo! Dinner was ready in no time. You can either serve it with tostadas or crackers. Continue reading “Ensalada de Cangrejo (Crab Salad) “
There are two ways to make this salad, the first one is to buy fresh cactus and cook them yourself, that would be the best option as the cactus would be more crunchy and fresh, but if you, like me, live in a country where there is no cactus at all then buy the cactus in a jar, I know they won’t taste the same, but it would be ok. I usually remove all the onions and chillies that they come with, then I wash them very well several times and sometimes I even leave them for half an hour to soak in clean water and the taste of vinegar goes away. Try to do these tricks and hope for the best.
Continue reading “Tostadas de Ensalada de Nopal (Cactus Salad Tostadas)”
Another Mexican favourite is definitely Pico de Gallo or Salsa Bandera. It is such a refreshing dish, full of nice and fresh flavours!
It can be use as a side dish or as a nibble or just as a snack with some cold beers.
I am sure that you can find this recipe almost in every Mexican recipe blog or book, so I have to have it in mine. Continue reading “Pico de Gallo (Mexican Tomato Salad)”
Today is the first day of summer and to celebrate this day I decided to cook a lovely recipe with ingredients that are in season and peaches and gem lettuce are so lovely at the moment and if grilled, it intensifies their flavour. I know there are many simmilar recipes like this, but I made it my own by making a tomatillo, also known as Mexican husk tomato, salsa dressing. Continue reading “Ensalada a la Parrilla de Lechuga y Durazno (Gem Lettuce and Peach Grilled Salad)”
I love summer! it is the best season of the year, you can get so many fresh produce and make lots of nice salads, so today I made this lovely courgette flower salad. In Mexico we love to eat courgette flowers when they are in season, there are many delicious Mexican courgette flower dishes that I could eat for a whole week or more cooking with these little beauties. Continue reading “Ensalada de Flor de Calabaza (Courgatte Flower Salad)”
There is no rule that says that you have to starve yourself and eat boring food in order to loose those pounds you put on during Christmas. Here is an example that eating healthy can be very delicious without compromising flavour, my warm courgette and black bean salad ticks all the boxes, it is healthy, packed with nice flavours, easy and it will help you to eat clean.
This is my own recipe, it is inspired by the famous Mexican dish “Calabazitas a la Mexicana” (Mexican Style Courgettes), I really hope you like it as much as I do, normally I would add some fresh courgette flowers, but I couldn’t find this time, so if you have the opportunity to get some, add them to the salad and it will taste even better. Have a very nice evening and enjoy the nice salad.
Serves 2
Prep 15 min
Cook 20 min
Ingredients
For the salad
To garnish
For the coriander vinaigrette
Method
Listo!
Provecho!
While growing up in Mexico one of the things I remember the most about my childhood is going to the countryside to see what we could find, watercress was always the plant that was there growing in the wild, my dad adored to eat it from the edge of the brooks.
Because of all these experiences I had as a child I really think I had a very organic eating childhood without even know it. My dad used to grow lots of things in our garden, we had figs, zapotes, limes, pomegranate, cactus, avocados, olives, herbs and all those trees were organic, he never used any chemicals in his plants. We used to eat a lot of vegetables and a lot of good food, food that children nowadays won’t eat.
Anyway, I decided to pay a tribute to my dad by creating a simple salad that summarises the things he loved to eat, specially the vegetables, so I came out with this amazing watercress salad. It is my recipe, so I really hope you give it a try!
Serves 2
Prep 15 min
Ingredients
Method
Listo!
Provecho!
Today I’m feeling a little bit inspired, so I decided to experiment with some of the Mexican ingredients I brought from Mexico and I came out with this delicious salad. It is very light and with lots of interesting flavours, I added some dried crickets to mine, but you can always avoid this ingredient.
The cucumber and avocado go very well together and the spicy pumpkin and sesame seeds add that Mexican flavour to the salad. It is a very easy salad to make and perfect as a vegetarian option, I am sure “el ingles” is going to love it and after the feast we had yesterday for the Day of the Dead, this salad comes quite handy, so I do not feel guilty.
Serves 2
Prep 15 min
Ingredients
Method
Place the cucumber on a large salad plate and add the avocado on top, then scatter the pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, spring onion and coriander. Make a quick vinaigrette with the lemon juice and olive oil and add salt to taste. Add some crushed dried crickets if you are food adventurer if not, avoid this ingredient.
Tips
Listo!
Provecho!
Today is the evening of Mexican Independence Day and I didn’t know if I was going to go out with El inglés, aka, my husband to celebrate, so I organised to cook a proper Mexican dinner and I bought everything to make “Chiles en Nogada” but at the end we ARE going out, so my plans have changed and l decided to cook something easy, simple and delicious, my Cactus Salad is the perfect dish, you can make it a more filling meal if you grilled some chicken breast and have some rice as well.
There are two ways to make this salad, the first one is to buy fresh cactus and cook them yourselve, that would be the best option as the cactus would be more crunchy and fresh, but if you, like me, live outside of Mexico and there is no way that you could get fresh cactus anywhere, the second option is for you, buy cactus in a jar, nopalitos, yes! I know they won’t taste the same, but it would do the job and if you find one that doesn’t have a lot of vinegar, it would taste nice. I usually remove all the onions and chillies that they come with, then I wash them very well several times and sometimes I even leave them for half an hour to soak in clean water and the taste of vinegar goes away. Try to do these tricks and hope for the best.
Anyway, I will give you the recipe for both, fresh cactus and cactus in a jar.
Serves 4
Prep 10 min
Cook depending if you are using fresh cactus or from a jar
Ingredients
Method
If you are using fresh cactus, chopped them into little cubes, put them in a casserole dish with a small garlic, half an onion and cover them with water, cook them at medium heat for aroun 30 min or when the cactus have change to a pale green colour, there is no need to add salt, as you add the salt later.
If you are using cactus from a jar, drain them very well, remove all the onions and chillies and wash them through very well, then chopped them into little cubes.
Then add all the chopped vegetables, add salt the taste and a pinch of oregano and it is done! Leave it in the fridge for 15 min to rest so all the ingredients mix nicely and enjoy.
So easy, but so tasty.
Tips
Happy Mexican Independence Day! Viva Mexico!
Listo!
Provecho!
Yes! Believe it or not, Cesar Salad is Mexican! There are a few versions about how the Cesar Salad was invented, but I will tell you the version that the Baja California government website says.
In 1940 some pilots were staying in the “Cesar Hotel” located in Tijuana, one of the nights they arrived late and they wanted something to eat, the employees from hotel’s kitchen told the pilots that the kitchen was closed and there wasn’t anything to serve apart from a few lettuce leaves, so the pilots said to the Chef to cook them a simple salad and the Chef Livo Santini, prepared this salad, the pilots were so impressed that they called it “Ensalada Aviadores” (pilot’s salad). Continue reading “Ensalada César Receta Clásica (Cesar Salad)”