Altiplano Central: Especialidades de Aguascalientes

GOT RECIPES?

Arrachera
Skirt steak

Birria de Barbacoa de Carnero (de olla y tatemada)
Barbecued mutton in a manufactured kitchen pot or in a Mexican clay
pot

Cabrito al Horno
Kid, roasted in the oven

Chambergos (pollo con jitomate y rajas) (chicken with tomato and
strips of chiles)
Where is Esteban? Did he get his hat from a Macho?

Chambergos were the broad-brimmed hats worn by the Machos, the working
class Castizos of Madrid who prided themselves upon their illiteracy
as proof that they were not New Christians. The Castizos were not
necessarily northern Europeans, they might have been swarthy skinned
Sephardic Jews or Moors or Gypsies. They could stay in Spain as long
as they were faithful to the Roman Catholic faith.

The Machos' long capes were thought to facilitate the concealment of
weapons, while the large hats were thought to conceal a person's face.
The Machos carried daggers for street fighting and generally appeared
to be criminals. Goya's famous "Naked Maja" is a painting of one of
the Machos' women.

Carlos III, king of Spain, tried modernize the villainous looking
Machos, by getting them to adopt the French short cape and three-
cornered hat. It didn't work. Esteban and the Macho image survives to
this day. How's that for a story?

Chile Aguascalientes
First, take some chiles...

Chilaquiles (Sombreros Viejos)
Casserole of stale tortillas, chile sauce and cheese, frequently
eaten for breakfast ("old hats" from the resemblance of the edges to
the tortillas to the brims of hats)

Codornices a la Pastora
Cleaned but unplucked quail without heads or feet covered with clay
and steamed near an open flame or heat source. The feathers remain
with the clay shell when it is broken.
http://mexico.udg.mx/cocina/aves/CodornisPastora.html

Enchiladas
Anything dipped in a chile sauce, usually a tortilla, is an
"enchilada".

Esmeriles (hechos con masa de maíz y papa cocida)
Esmeril means "emery". Esmeriles were a small cannon used on
shipboard.
This antojito might be cooked potatoes rolled in masa and then
steamed.

Fiambre de Aguascalientes
A salad of cold shredded pork loin with shredded lettuce, sliced
plantains, orange wedges, oil and vinegar
http://www.univision.com/content/con...89& pagenum=2

Flautas (rellenas de rajas con queso, de pollo o de carne de cerdo o
fruta como manzana
Flutes are rolled up tortillas, deftly rolled, and filled with strips
of cheese, chicken or pork or fruit such as apple and then deep fried.

Gallina en Huarache
Hen in a sandal?. A interesting casserole of boneless chicken, ham,
chorizo, pineapple slices, an apple, a pear, a sweet potato, a large
tomato, garlic, cinnamon, cloves, capers, almonds, raisins, sassafrass
and red wine. http://mexico.udg.mx/cocina/aves/GallinaHuarch.html

Gallina en Salsa Envinada
Hen in wine sauce. Is this the same as Gallina en Huarache, Pollo
Aguascalientes or Pollo
San Marcos?

Gorditas Rellenas
Heavy duty taco made of stuffed fat corn cakes with whatever they will
hold, once expertly bent. But don't squeeze the gordita too
tightly...;-)

Lechon al Horno
Suckling pig baked in an oven

Menudo
Tripe soup

Mole estilo Aguascalientes
A thickened chile sauce, Aguascalientes style

Nopales con frijoles Los nopales se cuecen en agua de tequesquite,
cebolla y sal; se fríen en manteca. Se sirven con frijoles bayos
refritos, espolvoreados con queso y adornados con trocitos de tortilla
frita y rabanitos cortados en forma de flor.
Cactus fruit with beans. The nopales are cooked in water with onion
and a mineral salt used since pre-Columbian times, then fried in lard.
They are served with refried beans, sprinkled with cheese, decorated
with fried tortilla chips and radishes cut in the shape of a flower,

Pacholas
A sort of Mexican hamburger steak patty, made of ground beef mixed
with ancho chile, garlic, cumen and fried in hot oil.
http://mexico.udg.mx/cocina/antojos/Pacholas.html

Peneques
An antojito, perhaps filled with cheese, in tomato or chile sauce

Platillo clasico: El famoso Pollo San Marcos se cocina con frutillas
de la región
Classic dish: The famous Chicken San Marcos style cooked with fruits
of the region

Pollo Aguascalientes
Chicken served in a mild tomato sauce (no chiles)
http://www.univision.com/content/con...tml?cid=873789

Pozole
A wet soup made with beef or pork, hominy or corn, and chiles; served
with a variety of toppings such as onions, oregano, cilantro, and
cabbage

Pozole de Lengua estilo Aquascalientes
A wet soup made with hominy or corn and beef tongue. Top it with
shredded onion, Mexican oregano, shredded cabbage. Eat it for
breakfast on Christmas Day.

Puchero, AKA "Cocido" (se compone de carne de res de carnero, jamon,
tuetano, garbanzos, cebolla, elotes, calabacitas, col, nabos,
zanahoria, papas, aguacate y frutas (durazno y pera).
A stew simmered in water. It is made of beef, mutton, ham, bone
marrow, chick peas, onion, corn on the cob, squash, cabbage, turnips,
carrot, potatos, avocado and fruits such as peach and pear.
Without chiles cooked into the stew, it can be rather bland, so
various salsas or escabeches can be provided in separate dishes for
the diners to choose.

Salsa ranchera (Esta salsa es especial por el modo de preparación; los
chiles ya tostados y reposados son despojados de la piel y triturados
con la mano.
Ranch-style chile sauce. The chiles are toasted and then allowed to
rest overnight before being peeled and ground by hand.

Sopa Campesina
Country soup

Sopes embarrados (con frijoles refritos a los que luego se les añade
pollo deshebrado)
Sopes embarrados with refried beans to which is added shredded cooked
chicken.
A sope is a little bowl of masa, baked or fried, and filled with
various toppings. "Embarrados" seems to mean "in clay". Perhaps they
are served in little clay pots, or steamed in clay pots?

Tacos dorados (rellenos de papa, doblados en dos, fritos en manteca de
cerdo y bañados con una salsa de jitomate y oregano, y adornados
finalmente con lechuga, aguacate y crema agria)
White corn tortillas, filled with potato, joyfully folded in half,
fried in pork lard, and bathed in a tomato and Mexican oregano sauce,
finally adorned with lettuce, avocado, and sour cream

Tacos Mineros
Miner's tacos, expertly folded by the man who just dug silver ore out
of the mineshaft

Tacos Tipo Alambre
Tortillas passionately folded and filled with meats and vegetables
that were roasted on a brochette

Tamales de chile rojo o verde, acompanados de zanahorias, chiles
gueros tipicos de la region, cebollas, coliflor y nopales en vinagre,
queso, pata de cerdo o cueritos encurtidos. Otros tamales muy
solicitados son los de dulce, ya sea de pina, de pinon o de nuez.
Tamales made with red or green chile sauce, accompanied with carrots,
blond chiles typical of the region, onions. cauliflower and cactus
fruit in vinegar, cheese, pig's feet, or chnks of pickled meat. Other
tamales often ordered are the sweet, which can be of pineapple, pine
nuts or nuts.

Taquitos Dorados estan rellenos de carne de cerdo, se doran en manteca
y se les agrega salsa. Se acompanan con col, previamente reposada en
jugo de limon.
Golden Tortillas are filled with pork, rolled expertly instead of
bent, and fried until they are light golden brown in lard and the
chile sauce is added. They are accompanied with cabbage, which has
previously "rested" in lemon juice. The lemon juice disinfects the
cabbage and softens it.

Tatemada
Past participle of tatemar, from the Nahuatl "tlatemar" referring to
putting something in or on the fire. Tatemado is cooked in a clay pot.
The ingredients are cubed pork shoulder, mild vinegar for marinating,
garlic, cumin, ground pepper, salt, bay leaves, thyme, guajillo
chiles, ancho or pasilla chiles, lard or corn oil. The pork is
marinated, browned, then cooked in the the blend of marinade and
ground chiles. Tatemada is served directly from the clay pot with
marinated onions and refried beans.

Tostadas de cueritos de cerdo en vinagre. Su elaboracion es similar a
la de las tostadas comunes, con frijoles refritos, lechuga, queso
rallado y cueritos en vinagre; la salsa con que se acompanan esta
preparada de jitomates cocidos en caldo, especias, cebolla, vinagre y
sal.
Tostadas made with little pieces of pickled pork. The thick flour
tortilla takes no great skill to manipulate, it lays flat upon the
plate. The preparation is similar to that of the common tostada, with
refried beans, lettuce, grated cheese, and little chunks of pork in
vinegar; the sauce with which they are accompanied is prepared of
tomatoes cooked in
(beef, chicken, tomato, or vegetable?) stock, spices, onion, vinegar
and salt.

Postres:
Desserts

Cajeta de frutas: Es un delicioso dulce preparado a base de frutas de
temporada, azucar y vainilla; lleva como adorno piñones, nueces o
frutas secas.
"Little box of fruits" is a delicious sweet prepared with a base of
seasonal fruits, sugar and vanilla, decorated with pine nuts, nuts, or
dried fruits.

Ates o cajetas de frutos como membrillo o guayaba
ate: candied fruit; often "ate" is used as a suffix on a fruit's name,
so that a mangate is a mango ate, and a guayabate is a guava ate; in
some places, ates are called cajetas. cajeta: a desert, often a
gelatin, traditionally congealed in a round box four or five inches
across, made of thin wood slivers; there are cajetas de leche (based
on milk), cajetas de membrillo (quince), cajetas de guayaba (guava),
and many others; in some places cajetas are called ates

Cajeta de leche
Caramelized milk and sugar, solidified in a box.

Chambergo
Again, Macho hats. This time, it's a butter cookie topped with colored
sugar

Charamuscas de Aguascalientes Dulces de piloncillo, anis y manteca,
cuyos lados llevan coquito de aceite. Es un dulce muy tradicional.
Charamuscas are melted, twisted brown or white sugar, usually with
peanuts or coconut
Charamuscas de Aguascalientes are sweets made of brown sugar cones,
anis flavor and lard with coquito? of oil. It is a very traditional
sweet

Charrascas colloquial (sable) saber, cutlass (Navaja) jack knife
A sweet made with piloncillo

Condoche:
A gordita made with sweet corn mixed with cinnamon, milk, sugar, and
vanilla

Copitas de leche con guayaba
Little cups of milk? with guayaba fruit
Copitas can also mean "flakes"

Dulces de guayaba que se elaboran en Calvillo
Guayaba fruit turnovers made in Calvillo

Empanadas
Turnovers

Frutas cristalizadas
Sugar covered fruit like in a fruit cake

Galletas
Cookies or crackers

Gorditas de cuajada
Thick corn tortillas expertly folded and filled with something curdled
that is sweet, perhaps cream or flan?
If this was an antonjito instead of a dulce, it might be filled with
fried beef blood

Jaleas
Jellies

Jalea de vino
Gelatin made of packaged gelatin, red wine, lemo juice, jamaica

Jamoncillos (Pasta preparada con leche, azucar y canela; se vacía en
una caja forrada con obleas)
Jamoncillo = confection or candy made from sugar and milk or from
fruits or finely ground pumpkin seeds, pine nuts, peanuts
This is a paste prepared with milk, sugar and cinammon; it is emptied
into a rhomboid-shaped box to solidify

Ladrillo
Puffed crumbly sweet made from flour, butter, and sugar

Membrillate
Paste made of quince boiled with sugar and molded in a wooden box
http://mexico.udg.mx/cocina/postres/Membrillate.html

Mermelade
Marmelade

Rollos de guayaba con cajeta y nuez
Guayaba fruit rolls with caramelized milk paste and nuts

Torrejas con miel de maguey
Slice of bread topped with egg and covered with aguamiel (sounds like
French toast)

Trompadas
Melted, twisted brown sugar with peanuts or coconut

Bebidas:
Beverages:

Aguamiel
The sweet juice of the maguey plant, when fermented, it makes pulque

Aguardientes obtenidos del procesamiento de la uva o de cana de azucar
An alcoholic beverage made from grapes or sugar cane

Brindis
Brandies

Calanche (o Colonche) Colonche: Aguardiente obtenido de la combinacion
de tuna roja y azucar
Aguardiente made from the combinacion of red cactus fruit and sugar.

Pulque
An alcoholic drink made by fermenting aguamiel (the juice of the
maguey pina, after it is stripped of its leaves)

Tequinos Producto del anejamiento del maiz y ocasionalmente puede
acompanarse con una pizca de limon y bicarbonato
Product of the aging of corn and occasionally can be accompanied with
a pinch of lemon
and bicarbonate.

Uvate es un bebida preparada con uvas peladas, sin semillas, azucar y
canela.
A beverage prepared with peeled grapes, without seeds, sugar and
cinnamon

Vinos de mesa: Blanco, Rosada, y Tinto Elaborado con las uvas de mejor
calidad que se producen en la region.
Table wines: White, Rose, and Red, made with the best quality grapes
produced in the region