travelogue
Masa-based foods cooking on a comal
Esquites
EXPLORING THE STREET FOODS OF MEXICO EDITOR’S NOTE: A few months ago, I read about a tour that took visitors on a culinary journey to explore the street foods of Puebla. Since el Restaurante contributing writer Joseph Sorrentino is our resident writer in Mexico, I tapped him to explore the topic by taking his own personally designed tour. Here, he shares a “menu” of his discoveries from Chipilo, Atlixco, San Pedro Cholula and Santa Maria Tonantzintla, all in the state of Puebla; San Gregorio Atlapulco and Santa Cruz Acalpixca in Xochimilco; and Villa Milpa Alta in Milpa Alta. (Xochimilco and Milpa Alta are municipios or boroughs of Mexico City).
at 20 different locations and, happily, have no horror stories to regale you with. Here’s some of what we enjoyed:
MAIN MEALS
stands, taquerías, and hole-
TAMALES In the early morn-
in-the-wall restaurants. Street
ing, heavy three-wheeled
food is really just home-made
bicycles loaded with silver
food that’s extremely inex-
containers jammed with
pensive and very tasty. Many
tamales appear on corners in
items served in Antojitos
virtually every Mexican city
Mexicanos (tiny restaurants,
and pueblo. Most stands offer
someone’s front room or
several types, including rajas
a large tent) typically are
(queso fresco, and strips of
cooked on a comal, a large
chiles, typically poblanos,
metal griddle and start with a
that have been cooked with
cook taking a handful of masa,
tomatoes); dulce (a sweet, red
passing it through a tortilla
tamale made with strawber-
press to flatten it and then
ries, raisins and vanilla); mole
| BY JOSEPH SORRENTINO,
to them or someone they knew
shaping it into circles, ovals
(some type of mole, chipotle
writing from Mexico | I avoided
when they ate food sold on the
or other shapes depending on
and pork); verde (tomatillos,
street food during my first
street. I took their warnings to
what’s been ordered.
cilantro, chile, pork or chick-
couple of trips to Mexico
heart. What a mistake. I missed
mainly because whenever I
out on a lot. People across Mexico sell
was heading there, some friend
There’s an almost infinite
en). Although tamales may
variety of street food options,
be eaten any time, they’re
and each location has its
typically sold as a breakfast
would inevitably tell me a hor-
food from baskets attached
own take on Mexican favor-
food on the street and carts
ror story about what happened
to their bicycles, carts, small
ites. I and a companion ate
disappear by mid-morning.
28 el restaurante | APR/MAY/JUN 2021
