- Traditional dishes from Aguascalientes
- Chicken from Aguascalientes
- Spanish shank
- Chubby stuffed
- Roast pork
- Cheese and guava flan
- References
The typical food of Aguascalientes stands out for dishes and recipes such as San Marcos chicken, stuffed gorditas, roast suckling pig or cheese and guava flan.
Aguascalientes is a Mexican state located in the geographic center of the country. By extension, it occupies one of the last places in the list of regions of Mexico, being the third smallest and one of the least populated.
Aguascalientes Cathedral
The region owes its name to the hot springs reserves discovered in the area by the first explorers who came to it. These, along with museums, architecture and the National Fair of San Marcos, in April, are its main tourist attractions.
The gastronomy of Aguascalientes is very varied, as is its agricultural production. It combines traditional Mexican elements with other indigenous or typical of the region.
In other cases, we find dishes that are due to the legacy of other peoples and cultures, adapted in time and form to modern cuisine. In addition, there are subregional varieties in the different municipalities, which enriches the whole.
Traditional dishes from Aguascalientes
Chicken from Aguascalientes
Also known as San Marcos chicken, for being a typical dish of that fair. Once the different parts of a whole chicken are sautéed, it is cooked in a sweet fruit sauce.
Sugar, cinnamon, pear, peaches, apricots and tomatoes make up the broth where the meat is cooked. It is, perhaps, the most characteristic and recognized dish of the region.
Spanish shank
A version of the Galician broth to which xoconostles, the fruit of the cactus, are added. Like the original from Spain, it is based on the cooking of beef with bone and legumes.
Chickpeas are, as in Galicia, essential in this recipe. Other ingredients used are carrot, potato, zucchini or cabbage to get an ideal dish for winter.
Chubby stuffed
A simple and versatile dish typical of street food, the elevation of the fast food concept to the gourmet category.
It consists of crunchy corn bread filled with any meat - pork, beef or chicken - accompanied by tanning.
The tanning is a cabbage salad - reminiscent of the British coleslaw - with onion, carrot and vinegar. To create the perfect chubby, sweet or spicy sauce is added to the meat and the tanning to the taste of the diner.
Roast pork
Oven-roasted suckling pig is served in the form of shredded meat, almost always inside a taco or a traditional bread roll from Aguascalientes.
You cannot miss the guacamole as a condiment, mixed with the juicy meat of the young pig. It is a typical late-night snack, when it is time to go to sleep.
Cheese and guava flan
Sweets are also part of the Aguascalientes recipe book. Here we have a new example of the historical influence of other cultures in the region.
It is a very typical dessert from Spain, reinvented with the addition of one of the most characteristic and abundant fruits of Aguascalientes: guava.
This is added to eggs, caramel, condensed milk and cream cheese to provide a characteristic fruity flavor.
References
- Aguascalientes (Mexico), documentary by History Channel.
- "Tourists flock to the city from all corners to see the incredible San Marcos Fair, which is one of the most important cultural events in the country." BestDay.com.
- Karen Hursh Graber. Mexican Spanish style beef and vegetable stew: Spanish chambarete. Mexconnect.com, 2008.
- Lauren Rothman. How to make gorditas with masa. Seriouseats.com, 2014.
- Sucker. Vivaaguascalientes.com.