MEXICAN CHEF REVEALS WE HAVE BEEN DOING IT WRONG

Just in time for this year’s Mexican holiday Cinco de Mayo (5th May), Mexican chef and blogger Karla Zazueta has teamed up with Mexican snack brand Sanissimo to reveal the secrets to authentic Mexican cooking.

From the common culinary mistakes we make when preparing fajitas or dips at home, to tricks for creating an authentic taste, Karla reveals the misconceptions of Mexican cuisine.

Karla’s little tips that will make a big difference:

COOK FROM SCRATCH

Cooking from scratch can be super simple and is the best way to learn about Mexican flavours.  You may be used to cooking Mexican style food with lots of spices, sauces and dips that are readymade and found in the supermarkets, but many of these are not traditional, and can be expensive.  You can often achieve the same results at home using very few ingredients!

USE FRESH VEGETABLES

Using fresh vegetable ingredients when cooking a Mexican dish will give you the most authentic taste.  A good flavoursome tomato will give you a wonderful Mexican sauce for a stew when it is combined with fresh or dried chillies.

KEEP IT SIMPLE

Real Mexican food is not complicated at all. You might be surprised to learn that simply mixing chopped tomato, onion, coriander, fresh jalapeño, with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lime makes the most amazing and delicious Pico de Gallo.  Whilst some ingredients can be found in supermarkets – like Sanissimo Salmas – it can be difficult to find real Mexican ingredients in the UK, but it is fine to use substitutions. For example, I like to use feta instead of queso fresco.  Simple ingredients make the best Mexican food!

LEARN HOW TO USE CHILLIES

Learn to use Mexican dried chillies.  These are easy to find online and last for ages!  To prepare the chillies, clean them with a wet paper tea towel and then take the woody stem off, and the seeds if the recipe mentions it.  Toast them slightly to enhance the flavour, and then soak for 10 minutes in hot boiling water before adding into recipes. These are the most popular Mexican chillies that are easily available online or in shops:

• Chipotle: the favourite chilli to make your dish spicy. Use it with the seeds in to add more heat
• Ancho: perfect for stews, broths and soups. Quite mild
• Guajillo: A very versatile chilli. Perfect for stews, broths and soups. It makes a ruby red sauce. Very mild

BUT REMEMBER, IT DOESN’T NEED TO BE SPICY

It is not true that all Mexicans eat spicy food, and not all Mexican food is spicy!  You may not think of cooking Mexican food for young children, but many Mexican dishes are made without and are great for people of all ages and tastes – there is huge variety!

Five things you may not know about Mexican food:

1. In Mexico, people do not call tortillas “soft tortillas” and we do not have “taco shells”.  Instead, all corn-based tortillas are simply called “tortillas” until they are either fried or baked, when we call them tostadas.
2. Authentic Mexican food is surprisingly simple and rustic and doesn’t need to cost a lot.  We like to use everyday ingredients to make delicious tasting dishes, and don’t tend to buy lots of premade spices and sauces for our cooking.
3. Burritos are from the north of Mexico, but they only have one topping and the wheat flour tortillas are very thin.  The ones you might have tried are more likely to be ‘Tex-Mex’, which is a fusion of Mexican and American cuisine and first came into existence when Americans living in Texas encountered Mexican food culture.
4. Mole is the word Mexicans have for a sauce dish that it is cooked mainly Mexican chillies and other ingredients. There are many of Mole sauces in Mexico, but the most famous and iconic is Mole Poblano, and one of the ingredients is chocolate.
5. Mexicans don’t drink tequila in one sip or ‘shot’. We like to savour it and drink it slowly, without the lime and salt.

Of the new partnership, Karla said: “As Mexican living abroad, I like to cook as authentic Mexican food as I can, but sometimes I need to change the ingredients for a recipe depending on what is available in the UK.  I like to add my own touch to recipes but will always make sure that the recipe doesn’t lose its Mexican essence!

 In Mexico, tostadas like Sanissimo Salmas are used to accompany all sorts of dishes, whether it’s soups, salads and stews, or simply for dipping.  They’re a great option for anyone wanting to bring a flavour of Mexico to their meals or snacks!”

Sanissimo Salmas Authentic Mexican Recipe Oven Baked Corn Crackers are available in Sainsbury’s and Morrisons stores, RRP £1.60.  Available in a choice of two delicious varieties – Original and Chia & Flax – Salmas promises an authentically-delicious taste of Mexico for foodies who want great flavour and simple ingredients at all times of the day.

Using only natural ingredients in their simplest form, each Salmas cracker has been made using ancient grains, before being char-baked over an open flame to lock in the natural flavour and ensure a crunchy texture.  The result is a delicious tasting healthy snack that is low-fat, low-calorie and gluten-free, vegan-friendly, and made without any added sugar, additives, artificial colours or flavours.