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I bought these chiles at the farmers mkt. My conversation with the seller went like this: "What kind of chiles are these?" "Medium sweet chiles." "They're not hot?" "They're hot." "Are they Thai chiles?" "No, but you can use them like Thai chiles." "How hot are they compared to Thai chiles?" "They're hotter than jalapenos." The chiles are yellow, orange, and red, about 1" to 1 1/2" long at most. I always thought any chiles this small were Thai chiles, but I guess not. Can you identify these chiles?

I will be traveling to Mexico City at the beginning of September to judge a coffee competition and was thinking about staying on a few more days to see if I can join a cooking class in the city. I have some basic experience making simple Mexican fare such as guacamole, tacos, quesadillas, mole almendrado, but I would like to take a class that gets deeper into the cuisine and was hoping someone here might have some recommendations. Ideally, the class would run between 1 to 3 days and be taught in English (my Spanish comprehension is decent but by no means fluent). Group or individual instruction is fine. Thanks!

I have some clients going to London in August and are asking for recommendations for a good Mexican restaurant. They are staying in Kensington, but anywhere in London would work. Thanks Patti

I don't *think* there's a thread devoted to this yet. This looks like it has great potential (from Chicago Dish): Can we just fast forward to April 2009?

howdy folks from mexico im looking at purchasing a combi oven here in guadalajara and would like to hear from combi oven users regarding a few tips and recipes the oven im looking at is made by a mexican outfit called san-son they do have a good reputation im extremly interested in any help whatsoever kind regards bruce byng chef and owner of teatro limon puerto vallarta

Not from the area. Could anyone tell me where it is? Thanks!

Made ropa veja with flank steak and it was deliciously but so tough that my wife joked the ropa obviously means rope. Given that flank steak ain't known for being tender, is this pretty much it? I assume skirt steak would be similar.

I was at my local Fresh Fields (a variant of Whole Foods) today, and saw that they had fresh "Mexican bay scallops" at an amazing $6.99 a pound. They are "in season". The fishmonger said they were fresh, dry scallops when I asked, and they sure look like it. Has anyone ever heard of this seasonal variety before? I tried searching the I'net, and came up empty. And I have not seen them anywhere else. Any info on this variety would be welcome. Thanks.

There are very few places in Texas that continue to make the crispy puffy taco shell that I remember from my youth. In Houston, only Fiesta Loma Linda on Telephone Road is still doing this. I discovered the secret of making these this week. When I was helping Robb Walsh with recipe testing for The Tex-Mex cookbook, we tried to duplicate the taco shell using Maseca without any success. Recently I was enjoying my tacos at Loma Linda and I asked who they bought their masa from. They told me and a week later I went by that facility and asked "I'd like to buy the masa like Loma Linda uses to make their crispy tacos." The guy told me that they "only do the yellow corn masa on Mondays". Here, I finally had my smoking gun. On the drive back down Harrisburg to my home I pulled into another tortilleria and bought 5 lbs of yellow corn fine grind masa. I pressed out some tortillas, deep fried them and they puffed up magnificently. So, the 'secret' of crispy puffy taco shells is preserved for future generations.

We were recently in Mexico City's Colonia Roma for 3 days. I was really hoping to find some Pimentón de La Vera in a shop such as Ultramarinos La Naval or in Delirio, but I was unsuccessful. I was able to find a Pimentón Español picante at La Naval; and in the Mercado Medellín, got some nice pimentón dulce, but none of the deeply smokey stuff. I hadn't tried at Ultramarinos "La Villa de Madrid", on República de Uruguay at Calle Bolívar, Colonia Centro, but it just might have it. Does anyone know where this can be purchased in Mexico City; or better, in Morelia, Michoacán? Mil gracias.

It turns out that a friend just had a birthday the other day and we're having a Cinco de Mayo/Kentucky Derby-themed BBQ this Saturday (Cinco de Derby, of course ). Anyway, I thought it would be great to make some Mexican chocolate cupcakes and serve them at the BBQ in celebration of her birthday. But I need some inspiration on how to go about making these cupcakes. So far, I've had the following thoughts: 1. Make this Martha Stewart recipe for Mexican chocolate-pudding-filled cupcakes. But, with all the other BBQ prep going on, these could be a bit fussy. 2. Add some cinnamon to a regular old chocolate cupcake recipe. (Anyone have a good one?) 3. Locate a tried-and-true Mexican chocolate cupcake recipe. (No luck thus far--anyone have one?) But which one to do? Or is there a better way? Needless to say, any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated!

I bought a pack of dried chillies on Saturday but have looked without success for information about them. They look exactly like this: although some are squatter/rounder And most of them are 4-5cms long. They smell rich and wonderful, almost smoky The packet says: 千辣椒 Dried Chilli 100% Manufacturer: SICHUAN GAO FU JI FOOD CO LTD XINMING INDUSTRIAL PARK OF PIXIAN, CHENGDU --- If anyone can tell me anything about them, or suggest some uses, I'd be very grateful. When I've found information about chillis used in Sichuan cooking, the chillis described tend to be longer and thinner. I'd love to know what kind these actually are.

The reason that I like the Loma Linda taco is the taco shell. They get their masa from Super Lopez on Harrisburg and are able to make a thin tortilla that, when it immediately goes into the deep fat fryer, causes the tortilla to puff up. I tried doing this at home with Maseca and was never successful. Here's hoping that Loma Linda stays in business for a long time as they are one of the last if not the last Mexican restaurants that still serves chile con queso and tacos on a puffed shell. Loma Linda went through a period a couple of years ago when their beef filling wasn't very good (lots of grease). It's really good now.

Welcome to the eGullet Recipe Cook-Off! Click here for the Cook-Off index. A couple of days ago, we were trying to figure out a good cook-off topic for late April/early May, and someone suggested tacos. Shortly thereafter, Mark Bittman of the New York Times decided to weigh in with this article, titled "Sunday Morning, Yucatán:" Bittman shares three recipes, as well, for Taco Filling With Poblano Strips and Potatoes, Mushroom Taco Filling, and Nopales Filling. Meanwhile, over at Bon Appetit, Steven Raichlen writes about the food of the Yucatan, including, naturally, tacos. Finally, someone pointed out that the 5th of May was coming -- you know, Cinco de Mayo. So tacos it is: soft or hard, corn or flour, meat, fish, or veg. As always, we've got a few topics to get us started, including these on tacos al pastor, how to create a DIY taco stand, cabbage in tacos, and fish tacos. There are also tortilla recipes here and a reheating tortillas discussion here. From cheap on the low-down to gussied-up, tacos run the gamut. What are your go-to recipes? Any that you've been dying to try? You can do better than a big fast food chain place, even if you want that ground beef Tex-Mex style of taco. Let's get cooking.

Native Texan here, eating more economically (ie, that giant bag of beans from Costco!) now refering to her Rick Bayless book, needs FRESH MASA for the best homemade tortillas! Any chance someone can tell me where to get fresh Masa? I drove to Woodinville yesterday for supplies at a small Mexican grocery. Masa Harina worked ok for my first shot at making my own tortillas. I didn't see any thread about Mexican food up here (saw the thread on tacos in North Portland/Gresham/Vancouver, WA), so I'm hoping there are some jewels to be discovered closer to Seattle. Anyone?

While not a fan of Taco Bell except for when necessary (sustenance of a sort in a hurry), I was in there the other day and noticed that they were offering some of their standard items prepared "fresco". Mangled mixing of the romantic languages aside (although this is common in Tex Mex land), this is a good idea. What it seems to be is a mixture of diced tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. When added to the iceberg lettuce on top of a cheap taco, it really adds a dash of freshness, texture, and flavor. Makes the thing much more edible. I was also impressed that they had a sign advertising that they'd be happy to make stuff meatless for people during Lent, even this far post Easter. Good marketing and a nice touch.

Browsing around on seamlessweb this evening for dinner, I happened to notice that they had added the Bagel Buffet on 6th ave and 8th street. Back when I attended NYU in the 90s I used to go there all the time for seriously cheap, filling, and decent soup and bagels. So I took a look, you know, to get that old nostalgia back, and noticed that they listed "mexican style" tacos, tortas, and burritos on the menu, filled with real-deal stuff like pollo asado, carnitas, cocina, etc. I figured I'd take a chance, since all the guys working there had always been bourdain's classic latinos from Puebla, and ordered a carnitas torta sandwich and a bistec taco, for a grand total of $7.70. It wasn't the best mexican food I've ever had by a long shot, not up to the quite tasty Pio Maya down the street, but it came out a bit less expensive. Has anyone else discovered mexican food in unlikely places? Spill!

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Made it for the second time tonight, came out good but I think I could make it better. I know some people tinker with the traditional recipie, if anyone has some ideas, I'd love to hear them. I used one lemon and two limes instead of the five lemons. Seemed like it could use maybe one more lemon. Any ideas greatly appreciated.

I need to get a bunch of ingredients for a mole sauce. Which are the best markets in the Philadelphia area to find them. I prefer not to go to Jersey where I always get lost unless it's absolutely necessary.

My grandaughter has tapped me to help her with her 6th grade class project while studying the Maya. She's volunteered to prepare a mole and found a recipe on Epicurius. Alas, I know nothing about Mexican cuisine (beyond a single empanada recipe I often make), but I'm sceptical that that recipe is historically authentic. Are there easily accessible sources (in English) for both the history of Mayan cuisine and for an authentic recipe? Unfortunately there's only a little more than a week til we produce the mole.

Mexican Rice Serves 4 as Side. 1 T olive oil 1 small onion, finely chopped 2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced 1-1/2 c long-grain rice 3 c low-salt chicken broth or stock 2 med-size tomatoes (about 12 oz total), chopped 1 can (4&1/2 oz) chopped green chilies 1 tsp chili powder 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper 1/2 c fresh chopped cilantro 1/2 c pimento-stuffed green olives, sliced Heat oil in 4-quart saucepan over med-high heat until hot. (Make sure you use a large enough pot, I tried to make it fit into a 3&1/2 quart pot and it was very tight). Add onion & garlic, cook until soft. Add rice, and stir well, cook, stirring occasionally, until rice toasts a bit and turns golden, about 3-5 minutes. Add broth, tomatoes, chiles, chili powder, and S&P. Cover, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, until rice is done, about 25 min. You may have some liquid still left. Turn off heat and stir in cilantro and olives, Cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Keywords: Side, Rice, Mexican, Easy ( RG2089 )

We decided it was time to rejuvenate our AeroGarden. This time around we went with the "South of the Border" selection, which gives us globe basil, thyme, two cilantros, parsley, oregano, and epazote. The plants are all doing nicely, and when it was time to feed them I decided I'd better read the book that came with the seed pods. And in at least two different places, there are prominent warnings that pregnant and nursing women should NOT use epazote. This is the first time I've come across a warning for epazote, as though it's in the same category as, say, cat litter boxes, unpasteurized cheeses, or sushi. Is this common practice? Why haven't I seen warnings in any of my Mexican cookbooks? MelissaH

I had this soup for the first time the other day. Delicious! Beef, broth, avocado, radishes, and bacon- what a great combo. The Mexican version of "Jewish Penicillin" maybe?? Does anyone have a recipe? I'd love to make this stuff at home.

Had a few tacos the other day at Pinche Tacos , Mott St., nr. Spring St. Have to say it was the best tasting taco I've had in NYC yet. I find all the tacos I've had in New York city for the past 9 years pretty sh*t. ( I've had the ones on 10th ave. had the taco truck on 14th. La Esquina. made the trek on the F to Jackson Heights. ) I had a chat with the guy who owns it about the state of mexican food in NYC and he felt the same as me that none of them are very good, which is why he opened one here. He apparently owns a couple of taco shops in Tijuana and brought the cook from there to teach the cooks here how they should be made. the tortilla was delicious. I had the carne asada and the pollo asado . I'd give the chicken a big nod. the steak was good. going back to try more...