Glossary
Glossary
Maduros:
Sweet, ripe plantains.
Mexican crema:
Similar to French crème fraîche, "crema" is slightly sweeter than American sour cream, since it undergoes a shorter fermentation period.
Queso fresco:
Light, white, crumbly cheese. Low acidity, mild, delicious.
Cotija Cheese:
Rustic, aged, artisanal cheese typically made in the Mexican state of Michoacán. Similar to parmesan, but slightly saltier.
Chihuahua cheese:
Also known as "Mennonite cheese," this style of cheese is Mexico's answer to mozzarella: gooey, melty, buttery.
Epazote:
Also known as a type of "quelite," epazote is a strong-tasting herb known to help with digestion — especially useful for cooking beans — but it's also traditionally used to add a slightly bitter, herbaceous, minty flavor to other foods. It's extremely popular in dishes found in certain Mexican states, such as Oaxaca, but also Guatemala, among other Latin American countries.
Valentina Hot sauce:
One of the most popular hot sauces in Mexico, Valentina is much lighter in vinegar compared to other hot sauces – especially American – but heavy on "guajillo" chilis, and cumin.
chamoy:
Chamoy salsa is typically salty, sweet, sour, and spiced with chilies and fruit — notably plumb. It's usually enjoyed over fresh fruit, or even as a michelada topping.
Cilantro macho:
Thicker, hardier, and stronger, cilantro "macho" is the common cilantro's bolder cousin in both taste, and appearance.
Salsa taquera:
There's no single recipe for salsa taqueras, as each "taquero" (taco chef) puts their on spin on what they believe makes the best salsa for their tacos.
Our salsa taquera is made with serrano peppers, tomatillos, onions, garlic, and cilantro.
This salsa is spicy.
Salsa verde:
Our salsa verde is more about flavor than heat, and is made with a few jalapeños, but mostly tomatillos, garlic, onion, and cilantro.
This salsa is lightly spicy.
Salsa roja:
Our red sauce has a tomato base, but is made much more flavorful by the addition of guajillo, usually a non-spicy chili, and a few morita chilis (smoked jalapeños).
This salsa is lightly spicy.
Togarashi Spices:
Known as Japanese "seven spice," this blend has a mix of red chilis, sansho pepper, hemp seeds, sesame seeds, ginger, citrus peel, and nori.
Ibarra Chocolate:
Made with real chocolate, not "chocolate flavor," and cocoa fat – as opposed to vegetable fat, like a certain copycat grandma – Ibarra chocolate is the original Mexican chocolate that's been around for close to a century. It's also vegan-friendly.