Mexican Dinner Menu

[G-rat]

Folks -

I am putting on a pay for dinner party for some friends the beginning of next week. My cooking roots are mexican. I grew up in Ft. Worth Tx and lived in Austin for 10 years. Now I live in St. Louis and love introducing midwesterners to mexican flavors.

Below I've posted the menu I jave planned up to this point and was wondering if you guys had any feedback. I'm looking to add one course possibly a braise like a spin on Zarela Martinez' estofada de peurco con frutas. But there will be a number of vegetarians present and so I've come up with a few options for them that would appeal to both crowds, like the soup and like the appetizers (minus the totopos de vieira).

What could I add as a course?

What dessert should I do?

Here's the menu:

Cocktails:

The White Mexican: Horchata, Kahlua, Rye Vodka

Mexican Greyhound: Ruby Red Grapefruit, Plata Tequila, Salt and Lime

Modelo Especial

Appetizers:

Sopes:

Squash Blossom, Charred Poblano, Caramelized Onion, Salsa Verde, Queso Anejo

And

Cinnamon Black Beans, Salted and Spiced Tangerines, Pasilla Chile Puree, Queso Anejo

Totopos De Vieira: Pan Seared Scallop, Bacon Avocado Mousse, Pineapple Mignonette

Botanas de Jicama y Cacahuate: Jicama, Fried Peanuts, Grapefruit and Tangerine, Cilantro, Chile powder and Salt

Table Salsas:

House Made Totopos

Fogata: Charred Vegetable and Chile, Smoked Pasilla De Oaxaca

Salsa Verde: Tomatillo, Green Mango, Guajillo Chile

Salsa Mexicana: Beefsteak Tomato, Jalapeno, Cilantro, Onion, Garlic, Lime Charred Chilaca Chile

Soup:

Toasted Chick Pea Soup: Tomato Mint Relish, Fried Green Tomato, Queso Anejo

Main Course:

Tacos al Pastor: Sous Vide Lamb Belly, Smoked Pineapple, Cilantro Shallot Gremolata

Tacos de Frutas y Verduras: Pickled Pan Fried Cauliflower, Blood Orange Cumin Ranch, Fennel and Chile Pico De Gallo

Dessert:

Mexican Ice Cream Sundae: Caramelized Banana, Avocado Ice Cream with Cajeta, Burnt Milk Ice Cream with Prickly Pear Syrup, Pimpo (Dent Corn Sugar Cookie)

or perhaps

Pan De Chocolate: Cinnamon Chile Buttercreme, Nata and Pecan Sorbet

Sorry for all of the explanations if you read this before I edited it. I had sent this to some folks I do some catering with and needed to explain some things.

Thanks

Edited June 14, 2010 by G-rat (log)

[Chris Hennes]

My first reaction is that I would not serve tacos as a main course: if you are trying to "introduce Midwesterners to Mexican flavors" I'd try to avoid falling into the stereotype that all Mexicans eat are tacos. In fact, I'd be inclined to very deliberately avoid the "big three" commonly-genericized Mexican foods: tacos, enchiladas, and tamales. Which is not to say those cannot be fantastic foods, or that they are not regularly eaten in Mexico, but if you are trying to broaden people's minds about what is "Mexican" I think you should go further outside their expectations. What about a chicken with molé? Or a fish course? It's always struck me as odd that growing up in the midwest we would never associate seafood with Mexican cooking, despite their huge coastline.

[G-rat]

I would love to do Seafood...but aside from really great dry scallops there isn't much good seafood that wouldn't be cost prohibitive. I could do ceviche I guess but I'd have to do it with like tuna or something because saltwater white fleshed fish is relatively expensive in st louis unless I go with tilapia which sounds boring.

I wanted to do tacos because I'm making masa for chips and sopes and thought I could make a little more and have a main course basically done. But you're right tacos aren't really all that interesting. These could get moved to the front with the rest of the antojitos or before the soup and then I just do three large main courses. Soup and two others.

I was thinking about doing a Pork Shoulder braised in a pipian that has lots of pepitas (obviously), epazote and dried shrimp and then serving it with white beans and chochoyotes. But I would have to make two separate pipians because of the vegetarians.

Edited June 14, 2010 by G-rat (log)

[Darienne]

No help here, but I am fascinated reading this topic. I am just learning to cook Mexican...mostly Tex/Mex I fear...but I'll get there.

Next things I am going to try is a pipian from Rick Bayless' book and also Horchata.

Good luck with your dinner!

[heidih]

Hhhmm. I have ideas but my concern is the vegetarians and balance. Will the vegetarians identify as such and be served differently? Will the meal be served plated or buffet style? The problem with well done vegetarian options is that in a buffet the meat eaters will dig into the vegetarian and then the portions get skewed.

[Jaymes]

For the main course, how about Huachinango a la Veracruzana? Easy to do and fabulous. One of the most famous and classic dishes in all of Mexico.

You'd need one whole red snapper, which might be a little pricey, but the rest of the ingredients are not particularly expensive and the presentation is stunning.

And I'd definitely do rajas with onions and creme as a side. Everybody loves it and it always surprises people that are not accustomed to authentic Mexican.

A pork shoulder isn't costly. Along with the snapper, you could do carnitas.

As for your tortillas, everybody in Mexico serves them as the bread along with the main course, no matter what else they're serving. So certainly you should serve your tortillas, and they won't be "for tacos."

I know you've already got your soups planned, but if you're still considering, I've got a terrific recipe for Sopa Tarasca, the best soup I've ever had in Mexico. And it's bean-based, so it's not expensive.

________________________

Edited June 14, 2010 by Jaymes (log)

[Darienne]

Hhhmm. I have ideas but my concern is the vegetarians and balance. Will the vegetarians identify as such and be served differently? Will the meal be served plated or buffet style? The problem with well done vegetarian options is that in a buffet the meat eaters will dig into the vegetarian and then the portions get skewed.

Now that is an interesting point I had never thought of... Must keep that in mind this summer when we do our own modest Mexican feast. So often the vegetarians go almost hungry. And we do have a couple of vegetarians in the crowd.

Edited June 15, 2010 by Darienne (log)

[Jaymes]

Hhhmm. I have ideas but my concern is the vegetarians and balance. Will the vegetarians identify as such and be served differently? Will the meal be served plated or buffet style? The problem with well done vegetarian options is that in a buffet the meat eaters will dig into the vegetarian and then the portions get skewed.

Been thinking about this.

I've had lots and lots of buffet-style dinners throughout the years, and haven't really found this to be a problem. For one thing, I always make extra of the vegetarian dishes - which is made even easier because they usually call for less-expensive ingredients. And then after I've collected everyone by saying "Dinner is served," announce that this and this and that are the vegetarian options. It's been my experience that when the guests know there are vegetarians present and that those dishes are all they'll be eating, nobody is so crass as to eat more than their share. In fact, it seems to me that usually the meat offerings are the more popular overall. I think that there are many folks that still equate "vegetarian" with "boring."

But even if not, I don't know what you could do about it. Obviously, you can't just offer only meat dishes. And I don't think it would be wise to offer only vegetarian options, either.

So my suggestion to you would be not to worry about it. Make a little extra of the vegetarian dishes and things should turn out just fine.

___________________________

Edited June 15, 2010 by Jaymes (log)

[kalypso]

G-Rat, what a great menu, wish I was coming to dinner. I agree with Chris' point about the tacos and I think Jaymes' suggestion for Pescado Veracruzano is excellent...in fact when I read your thread yesterday afternoon, that's exactly what I was going to suggest. Doing a whole fish makes a great presentation. If you're not up for doing that, you can use almost any firm flesh fish with the sauce.

I also have a couple of other suggetions for you in the entree category. You mentioned Zarela Martinez, if you've got her Veracruz cookbook there are a couple of recipes in there that are really good...well, actually, everything I've cooked out of that cookbook has been good, but I think these two would fit your bill nicely. One is easy the other is easy but requires some time and a little skill with Mexican techniques.

Check out the Mole de Xico recipe. It is absolutely fabulous and it's vegetarian, or can be made vegetarian pretty easily. I served it to a vegan this past weekend. The recipe is time consuming, no doubt about it. I made it earlier this year and it took 4 hours from start to finish. When it's done you've got a mole paste, tho' for your purposes, you could probably use it before it cooked down to that consistency. You can split the sauce and use some of it with chicken or pork for the meat eaters, and use the other part of the sauce with an assortment of steamed vegetables (chayote, carrots, green beans, potatoes) for the vegetarians and it will even work for vegans if you don't use lard to fry the ingredients or chicken stock as added liquid. This is a really good mole recipe, it's very regional and somewhat sweeter than moles from central Mexico or Oaxaca due to the large volume of fruit used in it. It is well worth the effort to make. What you don't use freezes extremely well and will hold in the freezer for a long time if well sealed.

The easier recipe is Pebre de Pollo, which appears to have some antecedents in the Spanish/Moorish culinary tradition. Like the Veracruzana sauce for fish, this one uses stuffed olives and capers, but veers off into a much different flavor profile with apples, onions and other savory ingredients. The thing that impressed me with this recipe was how well balanced the sauce was. All the ingredients really came together to create something delicious and unique with no single ingredient or flavor standing out or over powering the others.

Good luck with your cooking and your party. Sounds like you're on the right track

[Tri2Cook]

I don't really have any input on your menu, I just think it's awesome that you have burnt milk ice cream on there. That's one of my all-time favorite flavors from Mexico.

[JAZ]

You can split the sauce and use some of it with chicken or pork for the meat eaters, and use the other part of the sauce with an assortment of steamed vegetables (chayote, carrots, green beans, potatoes) for the vegetarians and it will even work for vegans if you don't use lard to fry the ingredients or chicken stock as added liquid.

Those modifications would also be necessary for a vegetarian dish -- not just vegan.

[rancho_gordo]

My new mantra is that the foundation for good Mexican food is chiles, corn and beans. \

CHILES - CORN - BEANS

I think if you have these things covered, the rest just falls into place.

[G-rat]

Guys -

Wow. thanks so much for the thoughtful input. I knew all of you would have great ideas (including Chris by the way even though I already responded to you). The only Zarela cookbook I have is The Food and Life of Oaxaca...which i'm stealing a lot from and sort of modifying things from. Like the chick pea soup is her recipe the only thing I'm doing is adding a really thinly sliced green tomato or tomatillo slice rolled in milk, egg, masa harina and pan fried...sort of like a crouton. Same thing with the desserts and and the Jicama peanut fruit cup...there's no citrus in her recipe.

I think either she or Diane Kennedy have a recipe for Mole De Xico. I need to go back and re read that one. Or it could be in Freida's Fiestas...

Great idea with the Pescado Veracruzano. One of the best mexican dishes I ever ate was Huachinango a La Veracruzana in Santa Fe. I didn't even think of it. Just have to see what the cost for whole redfish or snapper is right now. I just want to keep it down to like $20 a person or so.

In response to how the dinner will work, normally I would plate everything individually. This time some elements will be plated but some will be family style. This dinner crowd will be a relatively close knit group of people who I would be trying to introduce to another relatively close knit group of people. And there are vegetarians on both sides so I think most people will respect the boundaries. But the only time that might be an issue will be with either the Pipian braise I do (Mole Zapoteco, pork shoulder, canary beans and chochoyotes) as a main...unless I do Pescado Veracruzano which sounds awesome.

Everybody will get two tacos. Vegetarians: two cauliflower. Omnivores: one of each the cauliflower and the lamb. These vegetarians are cool folks who won't feel slighted by that. I've only done one of these before but I 'try' (as though I do this all the time...) to draft up a menu where I make the vegetarian options tasty enough that an omnivore would have to think twice before simply choosing whatever had meat on it. I'm not a vegetarian but I think vegetables are so AWESOME and highly undervalued in general.

Thanks again everyone for the great and very helpful suggestions.

[G-rat]

That my friend is most certainly the trinity of mexican cooking. Chiles Corn and beans...whew!

[MReichle]

Chiles en nogada? But I don't think it can be made vegetarian (but some other form of stuffed chile could)

or Carne Asada a la Tampiquena?

[prasantrin]

I think I'm the only one who thinks tacos are a fine idea. If your goal is to introduce Mexican flavours to your friends, then it's nice to have something familiar, yet different. The first time I had a "real" taco, I was surprised at how small they were and overwhelmed by the options I didn't know could be had in a taco.

My only concern would be your filling. "al pastor" refers to grilled meat, does it not? I always thought it did, but you are cooking your lamb sous vide. Last I checked, sous vide wasn't a traditional Mexican cooking method. And last I checked, in Mexico "al pastor" usually refers to pork, not lamb (although it's based on grilled lamb).

So, just to clarify, your goal is to introduce your guests to Mexican flavours, but not necessarily food as it is traditionally cooked in Mexico (i.e. "authentic" Mexican food)? If that's the case, it might be a good idea to clarify that to your guests, particularly the part that "al pastor" is usually pork, not lamb, and it's usually grilled, not sous vide. Not that lamb sous vide can't be served somewhere as Mexico, but I would guess most Mexicans have probably not eaten lamb cooked that way.

[Jaymes]

I think I'm the only one who thinks tacos are a fine idea. If your goal is to introduce Mexican flavours to your friends, then it's nice to have something familiar, yet different. The first time I had a "real" taco, I was surprised at how small they were and overwhelmed by the options I didn't know could be had in a taco.

My only concern would be your filling. "al pastor" refers to grilled meat, does it not? I always thought it did, but you are cooking your lamb sous vide. Last I checked, sous vide wasn't a traditional Mexican cooking method. And last I checked, in Mexico "al pastor" usually refers to pork, not lamb (although it's based on grilled lamb).

So, just to clarify, your goal is to introduce your guests to Mexican flavours, but not necessarily food as it is traditionally cooked in Mexico (i.e. "authentic" Mexican food)? If that's the case, it might be a good idea to clarify that to your guests, particularly the part that "al pastor" is usually pork, not lamb, and it's usually grilled, not sous vide. Not that lamb sous vide can't be served somewhere as Mexico, but I would guess most Mexicans have probably not eaten lamb cooked that way.

That's a great point, Rona. For somebody that thinks tacos are hard-shelled yellow things that contain seasoned hamburger meat and American cheese, their first real taco is a revelation.

And you're right about "al pastor." In Mexico, it's usually pork or beef marinated in something (invariably including chiles and often fruit juices to tenderize the meat) and then either cooked on a grill or rotisserie or over an open flame.

Of course, you can put anything you wish into a taco, but if you are going to use lamb sous vide, you probably shouldn't call it "al pastor."

I know if I ordered a taco "al pastor" someplace and that's what showed up, I'd be beyond puzzled.

_________________________________

Edited June 16, 2010 by Jaymes (log)

[G-rat]

Ok here's the deal with lamb, sous vide and al pastor.

I want unctuousness. I want dirty brisket style, pork belly style fat...but I want the flavor of lamb.

This dish is a play on words. Pastor in spanish means shepherd or sheepherder. I know that it traditionally refers to pork shoulder slow roasted with adobo, served with grilled pineapple and cilantro and onions on corn tortillas. Although typically it is cooked like a gyro on a rotating spit with the pineapple above it slowly giving up its sweetness all down the slowly roasting spiced pork. In my opinion Tacos al Pastor is the benchmark for whether or not a restaurant makes good tacos. They might have something else that is good but if they screw this one up...ahh well then they are messing with a classic.

But recently when i ate some lamb belly in NYC it blew my mind away. It was cooked sous vide and then seared on a griddle. It was unbelievable. Unctuous. Rendered crispy lamb fat. Gooey silky meat.

I thought Tacos 'al pastor' Tacos to the shepherd...or tacos of the shepherd. Well he would eat lamb.

So they will be cooked sous vide in adobo with a little bit of pineapple juice (just a touch. hard to seal the bags with very much.) Then I will sear them. Smoke a little pineapple. Finely mince some cilantro and onion (yes I know it isn't normally minced as fine as gremolata but I wanted the texture to really come from the lamb fat and pineapple)

Also I didn't explain this. These folks all know I love to cook and that it is my creative outlet. They are sort of expecting something special and I aim to give it to them. Plus this is the sort of menu I always am dreaming of anyway. I want to give them mexican flavors but make them ones they would never even dream of encountering. Plus I like to stretch the idea of mexican while not making something that is completely out of keeping with tradition. Mexican fine dining is something I dearly love. Just as much as mexican cheap dining is also something i dearly love. Some of my first food memories are mexican. It is my comfort food. My death row meal would be: tacos al pastor. Cucumber lime aguas frescas. Tamales de frijol y salsa verde and probably some sort of rich mexican vanilla ice cream...of course if i'm ever on death row i'd never get any of that.

[Jaymes]

My death row meal would be: tacos al pastor. Cucumber lime aguas frescas. Tamales de frijol y salsa verde and probably some sort of rich mexican vanilla ice cream...of course if i'm ever on death row i'd never get any of that.

Unless perhaps if you've bumped somebody off in Mexico.

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Edited June 16, 2010 by Jaymes (log)

[Darienne]

My death row meal would be: tacos al pastor. Cucumber lime aguas frescas. Tamales de frijol y salsa verde and probably some sort of rich mexican vanilla ice cream...of course if i'm ever on death row i'd never get any of that.

Speaking of Mexican inspired ice cream, today with our basically Tex/Mex meal, we had David Lebovitz's Aztec "Hot" Chocolate Ice Cream with Dulce de Leche on top. Oh my! Talk about death row ice cream. My tongue was frozen and my throat was scalded. So good.

________________________________

[rancho_gordo]

I'm sure you don't want another opinion at this point but....I'm all for your experimenting with traditional Mexican ingredients and dishes and mixing things up but I think you should call it "a la G-Rat" instead of "al pastor". it's like Taco Bell calling one of their "treats" a chalupa when a chalupa is something very different that already exists in Mexico.

And if you like mixing things up, I hope you make it to Pujol in Mexico City, if you haven't already. Chef Enrique Olvera is turning things on their head. It's clever without being silly or precious and I still dream about the meals I've had there.

Finally, anyone interested in entertaining should look into the new Rick Bayless book. Fiesta at Rick's is the name and it could have been an indulgent mess (and there are some minor wincing moments) but it's one of those books that makes you want to pick up the phone and call your pals over for a dinner party. There's lots of new stuff and it's a substantial book.

[kalypso]

Finally, anyone interested in entertaining should look into the new Rick Bayless book. Fiesta at Rick's is the name and it could have been an indulgent mess (and there are some minor wincing moments) but it's one of those books that makes you want to pick up the phone and call your pals over for a dinner party. There's lots of new stuff and it's a substantial book.

Big - BIG - B-I-G second to RGs suggestion. I received this book in the mail earlier this week and finally had some time last night to sit down and go through it. All I can say is WOW, I think Rick has outdone himself with this book. It's smart, sophisticated, witty and the recipes made me want to start cooking right away. Loved some of the ideas for melding Mexican flavor profiles with contemporary dishes and trends. I also liked that he included a music play list for most of his fiesta menus.

[Chris Hennes]

And here's an eGullet-friendly link to Bayless's book, if you are interested in buying a copy there.

[rancho_gordo]

I also liked that he included a music play list for most of his fiesta menus.

This for me is cringe-worthy. It's not very good, deep or representative. And it's too cute. The endless photos of "Rick at play" are also borderline but there's so much else good that you can overlook it.

At first, the photos, music lists and drinks made me regret the purchase, but only for a moment. It gets better and better.

[kalypso]

This for me is cringe-worthy. It's not very good, deep or representative. And it's too cute. The endless photos of "Rick at play" are also borderline but there's so much else good that you can overlook it.

At first, the photos, music lists and drinks made me regret the purchase, but only for a moment. It gets better and better.

I don't disagree with you on the abundance of Rick photos...shameless self promotion on his part. But...I also know you are way into Mexican and Latin music and that your knowledge of it runs pretty deep. I can see where you might think his play lists were shallow. OTOH, most likely the vast majority of people cooking out of this cookbook probably don't have your level of experience with Mexican/Latin music and may appreciate the suggestions. Yeah, some of them are somewhat trite, but hey, it's his party and most of the suggestions are readily available.

The recipes themselves all look pretty solid. I can hardly wait to try the Mezcal or Champagne Margaritas. TGIF

I also don't think we should hijack G-Rats party thread.

Edited June 18, 2010 by kalypso (log)