MIXIOTES: WHAT IT IS AND HOW IT IS PREPARED - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The mixiote or mexiote is a typical dish of the delicious Mexican gastronomy, whose name is due to some plates that are detached from the stalk of the pulquero maguey (agave salmiana), a plant that grows in various areas of Mexico.

These layers wrap different foods that shape the dish, such as lamb, mutton, rabbit, cow, chicken or pork enchilada, but there are also versions with vegetables for vegans or vegetarians, and even sweets, filled with fruits.

Mixiote of meat. Koffermejia

Beyond its great smell and exquisite flavor, mixiotes are very healthy because they have a low fat content due to the fact that they cook in their own juices (something that we will see later).

Like any typical dish, mixiotes have different ways of preparing depending on the area where they are cooked. The most common is that lamb or mutton meat is used, accompanied by a sauce composed of chili peppers and aromatic herbs, such as avocado leaf, bay leaf, thyme or oregano, among others.

Its preparation may seem simple, but it is laborious and slow, ideal to accompany pasta or rice. In addition, it is a very protein and hot dish, so it is ideal to taste it in winter times.

His story

The origin of the mixiotes is pre-Hispanic, that is, before the arrival of European man to America, which makes it a symbol of Mexican cuisine. Its name comes from the Nahuatl metl "maguey" and xiotl "film or membrane of penca".

The use of the maguey cuticle for steam cooking was well known and dominated by the Aztec, Mayan and Otomí civilizations, although expansion did not occur until after the arrival of the Spanish colonizers.

It is believed that in 1678, the first Spaniards to taste this traditional dish were Duchess Catalina de Aragón y Montealbán and her husband, Carlos Arsillaca y Albarrán.

Both were spending a day in the field in the Huasteca hidalguense (region near the center of Mexico), and the hosts entertained them with some rare wraps from which an appetizing smell was given off, and after tasting them they succumbed to the delight that was presented to them.

Where is the mixiote obtained from?

We already told you that the name of this dish comes from the sheet that is obtained from the maguey pulquero plant, which can be bought in different stores. It is 100% Mexican and the alcoholic drink pulque is also obtained from it, which usually accompanies the main dish of this article.

Source Pixabay.com

This plant has only 136 species, 26 subspecies, 29 varieties and 7 forms of maguey in Mexico. The mixiotes are native to the region known as the Mexican Plateau, which ranges from the Anáhuac Valley to the Huasteca of Hidalgo. In other words, it includes the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, Mexico, Morelos, Tlexcala and Puebla.

In fact, the popularity of this dish was so great that the use of mixiote to wrap the dish had to be restricted, since the process by which it is obtained damages the maguey stalks and makes it impossible to use it to later obtain the drink. cited alcoholic.

That is why the mixiote is now being replaced by plastic bags or aluminum foil, something that clearly goes against the original flavor.

How to prepare the mixiote

This is a typical dish from Hidalgo, so we leave you a recipe so that you can prepare it in the original way, although later we will tell you what the other customs are according to the different regions.

Ingredients

- 100 gr. of boiled guajillo chili.

- 100 gr. of boiled ancho chili.

- 100 gr. from chile pasilla.

- 25 gr. Morita chili (less quantity because it stings).

- 1 white onion

- 3 garlic cloves.

- 5 bay leaves.

- 5 cinnamon sticks.

- 4 fat peppers.

- 1 clove.

- 5 gr. oregano.

- 2 gr. cumin.

- Beef broth.

For the assembly of the mixiotes

- 2 pieces of mixiote paper

-200 gr. of cubed lamb pulp.

- 50 gr. of pig skins.

- 150 gr. of nopales already cooked.

Sauce to accompany

In a blender place 500 gr. of green tomatoes, 100 gr. white onion, serrano chili, coriander, avocado, salt to taste, and two cloves of garlic. Finally, cook rice to accompany the mixiotes.

Other ways of preparation

In the state of Mexico, the mixiotes from the towns of Texcoco and Chalco are very famous. More than anything, those that contain pork are popular, to which they add tomatoes and green chilies, onions, nopales and epazote.

In Tlaxcala, chicken or rabbit are in high demand. The meat is marinated for a whole day with guajillo chili, ancho chili, cumin, garlic, cloves, pepper, cinnamon, oregano, thyme, onions, avocado leaves, water, vinegar and salt.

In the Valley of Mezquital the mixiotes of tender nopales are prepared, cut into small squares and mixed with onion; both are fried in lard and chipotle peppers, bay leaf, thyme and oregano are added before wrapping and cooking.

Now you know what mixiote is, perhaps the most traditional dish of Mexican culture, above other world famous ones, such as tacos, burritos or fajitas.

References

1. Laraousse Kitchen (2019). Mixiotes. Recovered from: laroussecocina.mx
2. The origins of the mixiote. (2019). Government of Mexico. Recovered from: gob.mx
3. Food and Travel Mexico. (2019). History and origin of the mixiotes. Recovered from: foodandtravel.mx
4. Autonomous University of Aguas Calientes. (2016). Center for agricultural sciences and department of Food Technology. Recovered from: fcb.uanl.mx
5. Agave Salmiana (2019). Autonomous University of Queretaro. Recovered from: uaq.mx