Our good friends Sherry and Jay Rosenberg came to Merida for a short visit last week ... one of the reasons last week’s blog update didn’t happen. (That’s right, I'll even throw two of our closest friends under the bus to eradicate my blog guilt!)
They were here Wednesday through Sunday – walking the sidewalks of Merida, hanging out with John, Ce and I, checking out local handicrafts, and generally getting to know the city a bit. Plus, as Jay is obsessed with beer, we managed to try most every brand Mexico has to offer. My favorite is still the light-bodied Sol. John's is Superior. Jay's is Bohemia. Sherry's typically is Negra Modelo, though she also enjoyed Sol for Merida's warm evenings.
One of the trip highlights for all of us was a cooking school we attended on Thursday, their first full day here. It was a day-long affair, starting at 9 am, lasting till 4. (Our nanny gladly agreed to stay longer so we could experience Yucatecan cuisine; she loves it when we learn about the culture here and she is very proud of her Mayan heritage.) We actually learned quite a bit about Yucatecan food, and Yucatecan history as well. It was a truly delicious day, both food and experience-wise.
Here are a couple of the more interesting things we gleaned from our day in David's beautiful talavera-covered kitchen.
Don't Call it "Mexican Food!"
First off, our chef/instructor/tour-guide, a charming and knowledgeable ex-pat named David Sterling, was very adamant about the difference between Mexican food and Yucatecan food. For starters, they are NOT the same thing. In fact, Yucatecans go out for Mexican food much like we do in the States ... just once every so often, and it certainly isn’t what they eat on a daily basis. They eat strictly “Yucatecan” here, a cuisine which is very regional to the peninsula and often difficult, if not impossible, to find in other Mexican cities. Yucatecan food has a history and flavor to it that is irresistibly delicious, and in fact, is now my very favorite food from Mexico. (But whatever you do, do NOT call it Mexican food!)
Pib-Cooking
Yucatecan food is very traditional and has been cooked the same way for centuries. Pork, turkey and chicken are very popular meats here -- and a lot of the actual cooking is done, still today, in “pibs” (pronounced "peebs"). Pibs are large pits dug in the ground containing hot coals and even hotter rocks, which are covered up after the meat is lowered in. The meat, typically wrapped in banana leaves, ends up simultaneously steamed and smoked; the juices that leak from the banana leaves hit the hot rocks to create the steam, and the smoldering mesquite embers create the smoke. The smoky, flavorful, and tender meats that results from this process are absolutely to-die-for, and go very well nestled inside corn tortillas, or soaking in a soft baguette.
Hot, Hotter, Hottest
Habaneros (the hottest pepper in the world) are the Yucatecan version of salt and pepper. The Yucatan is also the largest producer and exporter of habaneros in the world. On every table in every restaurant in the Yucatan there exists some form of habanero salsa. Sometimes, the habaneros are blended into a fiery paste. Other times, habaneros are simply sliced sliver thin and put in lime juice. But they are always at the table, and they are always used liberally. Jay was a huge fan of the habanero salsas and added a healthy dollop to every bite of food he put in his mouth, causing him to sweat substantially during every meal. (At one point in our cooking class, one of our fellow students looked at him very concerned and said, “Are you OK?! Are you sure you are OK?!”)
On the tip of your fingers
Handmade tortillas taste completely different from machine-made tortillas, even if the exact same “masa” (tortilla dough) is used. We went to the market in Merida, and bought a kilo of tortillas, hot off the tortilla press machine, for a buck. We also bought a big chunk of masa from the same booth, the very same dough that was used to make the tortillas. We took the glob of masa back to David’s kitchen, and formed our own tortillas by hand, then grilled them on a hot cast iron skillet. Of course, the handmade tortillas were thicker than their machine-made counterparts, but they also tasted completely different. The reason? The slight imprints from our fingers on the handmade tortillas created ridges and lower spots in the tortilla, causing it to cook unevenly, charring and caramelizing in some places. The machine-pressed tortillas all cook completely, utterly and boringly uniformly. No more store bought tortillas for this family, by the way. After you've tasted handmade tortillas, going to the refrigerated section to pick up tortillas seems criminal!
The cooking class was truly a great way to spend the day, and a perfect way for Sherry and Jay to start their Merida adventure, as David imparted vast amounts of knowledge about the Yucatan and its people, the proud Mayans, to us all. Often times, a culture's food can give you a lot of insight into the people who comprise it, and this was certainly the case for us. Yucatecan food is very distinctive, unique and proud -- and the many different flavors are bold, never apologetic. But it is also good natured and traditional. Just like the Yucatecans themselves. If you visit Merida and enjoy cooking, the Los-Dos Cooking School is a must.
My goal is delve a bit deeper into Yucatecan food and learn more about the cuisine and the culture and history that created it.
John's goal? Since learning about "pib-cooking," John is trying to talk Sherry and Jay into digging a “pib” at their house in Golden Valley. (They have a very large yard, you see, and they both really liked the smoky, tender meat we cooked that day.) So, if you happen to live in Golden Valley and just can’t put your finger on that utterly delicious smoky smell permeating the air? Try swinging by the Rosenberg house. It could very well be John and Jay, cooking meat in their Golden Valley “pib.” And if you bring them a couple Mexican beers, I’m sure they'll share a taco or two with you ... especially if the beer happens to be a Bohemia or Superior.
www.los-dos.com
They were here Wednesday through Sunday – walking the sidewalks of Merida, hanging out with John, Ce and I, checking out local handicrafts, and generally getting to know the city a bit. Plus, as Jay is obsessed with beer, we managed to try most every brand Mexico has to offer. My favorite is still the light-bodied Sol. John's is Superior. Jay's is Bohemia. Sherry's typically is Negra Modelo, though she also enjoyed Sol for Merida's warm evenings.
One of the trip highlights for all of us was a cooking school we attended on Thursday, their first full day here. It was a day-long affair, starting at 9 am, lasting till 4. (Our nanny gladly agreed to stay longer so we could experience Yucatecan cuisine; she loves it when we learn about the culture here and she is very proud of her Mayan heritage.) We actually learned quite a bit about Yucatecan food, and Yucatecan history as well. It was a truly delicious day, both food and experience-wise.
Here are a couple of the more interesting things we gleaned from our day in David's beautiful talavera-covered kitchen.
Don't Call it "Mexican Food!"
First off, our chef/instructor/tour-guide, a charming and knowledgeable ex-pat named David Sterling, was very adamant about the difference between Mexican food and Yucatecan food. For starters, they are NOT the same thing. In fact, Yucatecans go out for Mexican food much like we do in the States ... just once every so often, and it certainly isn’t what they eat on a daily basis. They eat strictly “Yucatecan” here, a cuisine which is very regional to the peninsula and often difficult, if not impossible, to find in other Mexican cities. Yucatecan food has a history and flavor to it that is irresistibly delicious, and in fact, is now my very favorite food from Mexico. (But whatever you do, do NOT call it Mexican food!)
Pib-Cooking
Yucatecan food is very traditional and has been cooked the same way for centuries. Pork, turkey and chicken are very popular meats here -- and a lot of the actual cooking is done, still today, in “pibs” (pronounced "peebs"). Pibs are large pits dug in the ground containing hot coals and even hotter rocks, which are covered up after the meat is lowered in. The meat, typically wrapped in banana leaves, ends up simultaneously steamed and smoked; the juices that leak from the banana leaves hit the hot rocks to create the steam, and the smoldering mesquite embers create the smoke. The smoky, flavorful, and tender meats that results from this process are absolutely to-die-for, and go very well nestled inside corn tortillas, or soaking in a soft baguette.
Hot, Hotter, Hottest
Habaneros (the hottest pepper in the world) are the Yucatecan version of salt and pepper. The Yucatan is also the largest producer and exporter of habaneros in the world. On every table in every restaurant in the Yucatan there exists some form of habanero salsa. Sometimes, the habaneros are blended into a fiery paste. Other times, habaneros are simply sliced sliver thin and put in lime juice. But they are always at the table, and they are always used liberally. Jay was a huge fan of the habanero salsas and added a healthy dollop to every bite of food he put in his mouth, causing him to sweat substantially during every meal. (At one point in our cooking class, one of our fellow students looked at him very concerned and said, “Are you OK?! Are you sure you are OK?!”)
On the tip of your fingers
Handmade tortillas taste completely different from machine-made tortillas, even if the exact same “masa” (tortilla dough) is used. We went to the market in Merida, and bought a kilo of tortillas, hot off the tortilla press machine, for a buck. We also bought a big chunk of masa from the same booth, the very same dough that was used to make the tortillas. We took the glob of masa back to David’s kitchen, and formed our own tortillas by hand, then grilled them on a hot cast iron skillet. Of course, the handmade tortillas were thicker than their machine-made counterparts, but they also tasted completely different. The reason? The slight imprints from our fingers on the handmade tortillas created ridges and lower spots in the tortilla, causing it to cook unevenly, charring and caramelizing in some places. The machine-pressed tortillas all cook completely, utterly and boringly uniformly. No more store bought tortillas for this family, by the way. After you've tasted handmade tortillas, going to the refrigerated section to pick up tortillas seems criminal!
The cooking class was truly a great way to spend the day, and a perfect way for Sherry and Jay to start their Merida adventure, as David imparted vast amounts of knowledge about the Yucatan and its people, the proud Mayans, to us all. Often times, a culture's food can give you a lot of insight into the people who comprise it, and this was certainly the case for us. Yucatecan food is very distinctive, unique and proud -- and the many different flavors are bold, never apologetic. But it is also good natured and traditional. Just like the Yucatecans themselves. If you visit Merida and enjoy cooking, the Los-Dos Cooking School is a must.
My goal is delve a bit deeper into Yucatecan food and learn more about the cuisine and the culture and history that created it.
John's goal? Since learning about "pib-cooking," John is trying to talk Sherry and Jay into digging a “pib” at their house in Golden Valley. (They have a very large yard, you see, and they both really liked the smoky, tender meat we cooked that day.) So, if you happen to live in Golden Valley and just can’t put your finger on that utterly delicious smoky smell permeating the air? Try swinging by the Rosenberg house. It could very well be John and Jay, cooking meat in their Golden Valley “pib.” And if you bring them a couple Mexican beers, I’m sure they'll share a taco or two with you ... especially if the beer happens to be a Bohemia or Superior.
www.los-dos.com
2 comments:
At present, I am actively researching the design & construction of a "Pib" (pronounced peeb) in a Northern latitude.
Expect "El Pib de Jay" to be open by mid-summer--Labor Day latest.
Neighbors and city administrators be damned.
John
How fantastic that Jay & Sherry visited! The cooking class sounds like a blast. Build the Pib!
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