The Snowlady Chronicles: The Aroma, Taste and Love of Zapotec Cooking

November 3, 2010

Oaxaca, Mexico

Cloudy and Cool after an Overnite downpour

Today was a pretty laid back and special day. We took a cooking class at Tiotitlan with Reyna Mendoza. Reyna is an enterprising young woman who is a fantastico cook. She learned all her cooking from her charming mother. Her family are weavers in Tiotitlan(the weaving village) and her brother is a very famous weaver where his rugs go for thousands of dollars. Reyna is becoming well known as a chef as the infamous Rick Bayless, the most famous Mexican chef and Iron Chef, highly recommends taking a class with her. I loved the cooking class and cannot recommend it enough. It is not for everyone though as it is authentic and rustic. The kitchen is an outdoor kitchen in her spacious family house where the cooking is done on a gas stove and outdoor wood fire oven. Her sisters get involved in helping with the cooking. Her house also consists of a herb and fruit garden where we got many of the ingredients.

But first, another fabulous breakfast at our B&B Casa Ollin, served in the traditional Atzompa green pottery

Our first project was to go to the local market which was quiet because it was the day after Dia de Los Muertos. While Reyna, picked up some ingredients, Sandra and I shopped for more aprons that the Zapotec women where. They make excellent gifts!

The Cheese Lady at the market: Too the left is Oaxaca Queso Fresco and to the right in the plastic bag is Oaxaca string cheese

Epazote: A common herb used in Mexican cooking

Queso Fresco

The very nice Herb Lady in Zapotec attire

Oaxacan Chilies

Reyna, invited us inside their house where their family altar for Day of the Dead is displayed. It is quite a grand altar.

A photo of Reyna's family from over 30 years ago (from left to right): Reyna's aunt, her grandmother and mother.

Reyna's charming mother standing before their "sauna" which they use 1-2 times per month

After shopping it was time to start the cooking. We made Pippian which is a traditional Zapotec pumpkin sauce with chicken from their chicken farm. She did a lot of the cooking in the green pottery from Atzompa which I really really like. I’m kicking myself for not buying more! We made everything the traditional way, were the pippian paste was made using a traditional mortar and pestle which required a lot of strength. While the pippian was cooking, we made a salsa with roasted tomatillo and Oaxacan pablano chilies which are smaller than the Mexican ones we get in California. We also made a cactus salad with jicama in an avocado dressing which was SO GOOD!

But the best was to come and we were going to help the sisters make fresh tortillas. The Mendoza family makes the masa from scratch. They mill corn and add lime rock to make the masa. Our job was to use the tortilla press to make the tortilla and place them on the comal (ceramic plate that goes on the fire). It was more difficult than it seems! But after a few tries we got good at it but had Reyna made the big tortilla that was cooked until crisp so it becomes similar to a cracker. Fun!

The outdoor kitchen where we made our meal

Herbia Santa: a common herb used in Oaxacan cooking. Reyna's garden is filled with herbs, fruits and vegetables.

Reyna's passion fruit vine

Ingredients for cactus salad

Ingredients for Pipian

Reyna making the pipian paste with a special mortar and pestle (at home, we'll use a food processor)

Me, having a go at it. It's not that easy and requires strength. Check out my apron!

The finished product

Cooking the chicken in the Atzompa green ceramic pot.

Adding water to the pipian paste to thin and finishing it by gently boiling in another beautiful Atzompa green pot

Boiling the cactuc with Avocado leaves and Epazote for the salad

Roasting tomatillos on the comal for the salsa.

Preparing the outdoor "stove" for making tortillas.

Reyna's sister, making the masa for tortillas.

Corn used for tortillas

Lime or Calcium Hydroxide which is used for making tortillas. It adds calcium to the tortilla and breaks down the corn so it is easier to digest.

Reyna making the "big tortilla" . Its grilled until it's crispy like a cracker.

Grilling the dried chilies.

Soaking the dried chilies in water to soften them for the salsa.

Salsa

We enjoyed our meal together and also got a tour of the weaving area. Reyna then brought the only 2 rugs that her father made that was available for us to see. One was just exquisite and Sandra bought it. We also learned while talking to Reyna that her family makes their own chocolate from cacao beans! So she actually brought some cacao beans out for us and explained how they make chocolate. The cacao beans are first roasted and then peeled ONE by ONE! It is a lot of work. It is then ground by hand, mixed with their secret amount of sugar and cinnamon , cooked and then cooled to bars. Her mother gave us 3 chunks of their homemade chocolate for us to enjoy! Can’t wait to try it.

Our really nice driver that Reyna arranged for us - Frederico, came to pick us up, and we picked up a family of 3 (4 year old girl, her mother and grandmother) also along the street to take them to the highway. The 4 year old girl thought I was from outerspace as I was so white and kept touching my leg! So cute.

After getting back to Oaxaca, we walked around town a bit and ended up at the Zocalo where we shared a bottle of wine and had a fun conversation with the waiter who lived in Monterrey California for 12 years and came back to Oaxaca with his American wife and daughter to take care of his father and mother. He said life is tough as he only gets paid 65 pesos for 8 hours of work per day. That’s is 6.5 dollars, so he relies on tips. But what a nice gentleman as he plans on going back to the US, as his wife finished her degree at Mill College and once she starts earning, he will also like to go to university to study.

After the bottle of wine, we walked to the wine store near our bed and breakfast where we bought 2 bottles of Mexican wine. They were both from Baja California. One was a tempranillo and the other a sauvignon blanc. We finished the bottle of tempranillo and called it a nite around 930pm!

Cactus Salad