Mexican cuisine 101: how to get started at home

Walking past a taquería in Mexico, you first smell the corn: tortillas puffing on a hot comal, with meat sizzling on the griddle beside them. Mexican cuisine begins with that corn, with dried peppers that you roast and rehydrate, with a pot of beans gently simmering, and with a bowl of salsa that is always on the table. It is street food and family food at the same time, with recipes that vary by region and often by household. In our shop in Amsterdam, there is a large Mexican section, and in this guide you will learn what to get from it to get started yourself. These are the brands that Mexican families themselves have in their pantry, such as Maseca, La Costeña and Herdez: the same bags, cans and jars that you see in supermarkets in Mexico.

What makes Mexican cuisine so recognizable?

Corn, chili and beans are the three pillars of Mexican cuisine, and salsa, lime and fresh cilantro complete almost every dish.

• Corn and nixtamal: corn originally comes from Mexico and has been eaten there for thousands of years. To make tortillas, you first cook the dried kernels with lime, so the hull comes off and the corn can be ground into a smooth dough: this is called nixtamalization, and the dough is called masa. Masa harina is dried and ground masa, so that you can make dough from it with just water.
• Chili, fresh and dried: fresh ones include jalapeño, serrano and poblano, and dried ones often get a new name. A dried poblano is an ancho, a smoked jalapeño is a chipotle. You use dried peppers for their smoky, fruity, or raisin-like flavor, not just their heat.
• Beans: black or pinto, straight from the can with their cooking liquid or fried into refritos, and almost always on the table.
• Salsas: from raw pico de gallo to cooked salsa roja and salsa verde made from tomatillo, a green fruit with a papery skin and a fresh, tart flavor.
• Lime and cilantro: a squeeze of lime and some chopped cilantro with white onion, and a taco is complete.

Around this revolves the play of contrasts: fatty meat against tartness, the smoke of the peppers against fresh onion, soft against crunchy. From the south comes achiote, the orange-red paste made from annatto seeds that gives meat its color and an earthy flavor, and a sprig of epazote, a herb with a strong, distinctive aroma, often goes into the southern bean pot.

How does Mexican cuisine differ by region?

Mexico is large and every region cooks differently: in Yucatán you taste achiote and habanero, in Oaxaca and Puebla much revolves around mole, and Jalisco, Michoacán and Mexico City gave rise to many of the tacos you know.

• Yucatán: on the southeastern peninsula you eat the cuisine of the Maya, with achiote, bitter orange and habanero. Cochinita pibil from Yucatán is traditionally roasted in a pit in the ground; pib is the Maya word for that oven.
• Oaxaca: known for its moles, including the almost black mole negro, and for tlayudas, large thin tortillas that are crisped on the comal.
• Puebla: this is where mole poblano comes from, the dark sauce made from dried peppers, nuts, seeds, spices and a little chocolate, as well as tinga de pollo.
• Jalisco and Michoacán: birria comes from Jalisco, once made with goat and now often with beef, and Michoacán is the home of carnitas, pork cooked in its own fat.
• Mexico City: the capital of street food, with a taquería on every corner. Tacos al pastor trace their origins back to the vertical spit brought over by Lebanese immigrants.

What is the difference between Mexican and Tex-Mex?

Tex-Mex is the cuisine that developed in Texas, with what was available there, and therefore revolves more around wheat tortillas, yellow cheese, ground beef and cumin. Hard taco shells, chili con carne and fajitas come from that tradition.

In Mexico itself, you mainly eat soft corn tortillas, fresh white cheese instead of cheddar, and much more dried peppers and fresh salsa. Both are delicious, but anyone who wants to discover the Mexican side should start with corn and a good salsa.

What products do you need for Mexican cuisine?

Maseca masa harina, corn tortillas (for tacos the 12 cm, otherwise 15 cm), dried ancho and guajillo, chipotles in adobo, black beans, salsa verde and salsa roja from a jar, Valentina, Tajín, achiote and canned tomatillo: with these products you can cook a large part of Mexican cuisine. Almost everything has a long shelf life, so you can gradually build up your pantry.

Masa harina harina de maíz · Maseca whiteMix with water and salt to make tortillasCorn tortillas tortillas de maíz · 15 cmWarm up briefly and fill for tacosAncho chile ancho · dried poblanoSmoky and slightly sweet, for sauce and moleGuajillo chile guajilloDeep red and fruity, for salsa roja and pozoleChipotle in adobo chipotles adobadosSmoked jalapeño in sauce, for tingaBlack beans frijoles negrosWhole beans in their broth, ready to useSalsa verde salsa de tomatilloFresh and tart, for enchiladas and chilaquilesSalsa roja salsa casera · tomatoMild red table salsa for tacos and eggsValentina salsa picanteThe hot sauce for chips, fruit and tacosTajín chili, lime and saltOver mango, cucumber and cornAchiote recado rojo · annattoFor cochinita pibil and al pastorTomatillo tomate verde · cannedThe base of every green salsa

Mexican oregano should also be part of it; if it is not in stock, use regular oregano, although you will miss its citrusy note. Which dried pepper to use for what, you can read about in Dried Mexican Peppers, and how to make tortillas yourself with masa harina in Tortillas and Masa. About Valentina, Cholula and the habanero sauces from Yucatán, read Mexican Hot Sauce.

View all Mexican cooking ingredients →

Which Mexican dishes should you know?

Tacos al pastor, carnitas, carne asada, cochinita pibil, tinga de pollo, birria, barbacoa and pozole are the Mexican dishes you will encounter first, and with the recipes below you can make them all at home.

Tacos de carne asadaFlank steak seared quickly and served hot, sliced against the grain.Tacos al pastorPork marinated in achiote and served with caramelized pineapple.Tacos de carnitasPork confit that becomes tender in its own fat and then fried until crispy.Cochinita pibilPork marinated in achiote and orange, with pickled red onions.Tinga de polloPoached chicken thigh fillet in a smoky chipotle and tomato sauce.BirriaBeef chuck or short ribs slow-cooked in guajillo and ancho, with consommé for dipping.Tacos de barbacoaBeef cheek slow-cooked in ancho and pasilla until tender and falling apart.Pozole rojoPork shoulder and pozole hominy in a red broth made from guajillo and ancho.

If you prefer to start small, first make a salsa roja, salsa verde or pico de gallo and serve with guacamole. For breakfast, there are chilaquiles verdes, tortilla chips in green salsa with a fried egg, and frijoles de la olla go well with almost everything. You can also make do without meat, with quesadillas with flor de calabaza and huitlacoche, rajas con crema or enchiladas verdes in tomatillo sauce. If you are short on time, there are ready-made fillings such as Itacate Tacos al Pastor and Itacate Cochinita Pibil that only need to be heated up.

What almost all Mexican dishes have in common is that the tortilla is served warm. Heat corn tortillas one by one in a dry, hot pan or on a comal until they have soft brown spots and puff up a little, then stack them together in a clean tea towel so they stay warm and pliable until everyone is at the table.

View all Mexican recipes →

Where can you find Mexican products by category?

You can find Mexican products from us by category, from tortillas and masa harina to dried peppers, salsas, beans and chili candy. Choose below where you want to look further.

Tortillas and masa tortillas · masa harinaCorn tortillas and MasecaShop nowDried peppers chiles secosAncho, guajillo, pasilla, chipotle and árbolShop nowSalsa and hot sauce salsas · hot sauceSalsas in jars and table salsasShop nowSpices and blends spicesCumin, chili powder and spice blendsShop nowBeans frijolesBlack, pinto and refriedShop nowCooking ingredients ingredientsTomatillo, nopales, chipotle and moleShop nowReady-made comida listaTaco fillings and tamalesShop nowCandy and snacks dulces · botanasTamarindo with chili, chamoy and chipsShop now

Read more about Mexican cuisine

Dried Mexican peppersAncho, guajillo, pasilla, chipotle, and chile de árbol: which pepper to choose for what.Tortillas and masaCorn or wheat, what masa harina is, and how to make tortillas yourself.Taco night at homeFillings, salsas, and toppings for a taco night with friends.Mole explainedMole poblano, verde, pipián, and almendrado, and how to use the paste.Mexican beansBlack, pinto, and refritos, canned or cooked yourself.Mexican snacksCandy with chili, chamoy, Tajín, and what to drink with it.Mexican hot sauceFrom Valentina and Cholula to the habanero sauces from Yucatán.

Frequently asked questions

The best way to get to know Mexican cuisine is simply to start, with a pack of tortillas, a few dried peppers, and a jar of salsa, and after cooking a few times you will naturally notice that you toast the peppers by scent, that there is always a lime in the house, and that you no longer serve tortillas cold at the table. If you are in the toko in Amsterdam in front of the Mexican shelf and do not know which pepper or which salsa you need, feel free to ask us, because we are happy to help you think it through. All the recipes are together in our Mexican recipes, and the entire selection can be found in Mexican cuisine.