Cooking from "Fiesta at Rick's" by Rick Bayless

[Chris Hennes]

I've found that in this book the various quantities are all over the map. Most of the multi-part recipes have disproportionate quantities: for example, with tamales I tend to run out of filling way before I run out of batter, even though I am mostly measuring it and using the quantities he calls for (there's a bit of slop in those measurements, of course). I didn't even notice how many corn husks he called for, I just softened up as many as I needed. But the recipe I used was supposed to make 25 tamales, and made 35. For the Huaraches I had a lot of bean filling leftover, even though I used exactly the quantities he called for in the recipe. So I'd say that in general you can't worry if you don't nail his yields exactly, or if you have leftovers, that's just the way this book is.

[kalypso]

Couple of other thoughts on why the variance in corn husk quantities

1) Corn husks in Mexico are not exactly the same as those in the U.S. Mexican corn husks are trimmed at the stem creating a nice natural bowl, or belly button effect, and are fairly large and wide. U.S. corn husks are trimmed at the base of the cob and have no natural bowl and they tend to be smaller and narrower. It sometimes takes 2 U.S. corn husks to do the same thing that you can do using only 1 husk in Mexico. Sometimes you need to overlap the base (end-to-end) of 2 U.S. corn husks to create a husk that's big enough to fill.

2) Are the extra husks in the recipe(s) needed to line the steamer before you put the tamales in and then cover the top layer once you've filled the steamer? I tend to use a generous number of husks on the bottom of my steam to create as fairly well sealed floor for my tamales to sit on. I also tend to use a generous number of husks on top and around the sides so that the steam will be deflected back into the steamer rather than escaping at will.

[Chris Hennes]

Wow, some of the timings in this book are WAY off. I'm sitting here waiting for my rack of lamb to finish. I should have known better, but when I was planning dinner I just went with Bayless's timings. Make a note in your copy: it takes more than five minutes to get a rack of lamb to medium rare!!

[Chris Hennes]

Rack de Borrego al Pasilla (Grilled Rack of Lamb with Honey-Pasilla Glaze) (pp. 270–271)

Ok, Bayless, I forgive you, but just this once ! I have no idea what kind of monster grill he uses, or what kind of skimpy-ass lamb he gets, but it took my lamb a good 35 minutes to come to 150°F (medium or thereabouts) after searing off. The recipe says this will take five minutes. Five minutes!! However... the lamb was worth the wait. What a fantastic dish, and I bet this glaze would be excellent on beef or pork as well. Slightly spicy, slightly sweet (he calls for a dark honey: I used buckwheat, about as dark as it comes!), with a nice complexity and layering of flavors, but never overpowering the taste of the lamb. Hard to imagine a better glaze, really. Served with a cilantro-lime rice and Vaquero beans (from Rancho Gordo, naturally).

[Chris Hennes]

Pozole Blanco Clásico con sus guarniciones (Classic White Pozole with all the trimmings) (pp. 170–171)

While I usually make the full quantity listed in these recipes, both so I have leftovers and so I don't inadvertently screw up a conversion, in this case I made an exception. The recipe as written makes 18 quarts of pozole, enough for 25 people: a little too much leftovers, I think. All told there's not much to criticize in a Pozole Blanco: it has few ingredients, a simple cooking technique, and is primarily assembled at the table by each diner. If you like pozole, this one is good, and I'm sure it would make fun party food in cool weather, since guests can completely customize their food. Of course, this only works if your guests have some sense of proportion: a little too much of that árbol chile powder could leave them breathless.

You can't see them all in the photo, but this is served with a freshly-ground árbol chile powder, dried Mexican oregano, sliced radishes, finely diced white onion, lime wedges, and Napa cabbage.

(As an aside: he doesn't have instructions on how to make tostadas, so I just made tortillas and fried them. This did not work very well, they varied widely in crispiness. If you are going to make your own, make sure you know how to do it before you have guests over, there must be a trick that is not so obvious.)

[Alcuin]

(As an aside: he doesn't have instructions on how to make tostadas, so I just made tortillas and fried them. This did not work very well, they varied widely in crispiness. If you are going to make your own, make sure you know how to do it before you have guests over, there must be a trick that is not so obvious.)

In Authentic Mexican he does have a recipe for tostadas. Basically he says you should buy stale, storebought tortillas or dry them out until they are leathery. Then you just fry at normal temp (375).

[Chris Hennes]

Ah, stale! That was probably my problem, these were very fresh, still warm from the griddle. I need to make them ahead, I guess. A full day ahead, you suppose?

[Alcuin]

When I make them (from Maseca) they get pretty stale overnight (say 12 hours) but I've never used fresh masa so that might change things. I even went out today and paid an outrageous price for tortillas to save time on staling them which Bayless also says is possible if you very lightly toast them on a dry skillet. They were out of my local so I had to go for pricey organic stuff from California. Oh well, I'm sure they'll be good.

[LindaK]

Ceviche Verde con Pepino (Herb Green Ceviche with Cucumber) (pp. 98-99)

I feel like I hit the jackpot last weekend w/ my first recipe from this book, which was also tried and given a thumbs up by Dana at the beginning of this topic.

The seasoning here is an herb paste, a mixture of cilantro, parsley, roasted garlic and chili peppers. I’ve dubbed it “Mexican pesto” and it’s delicious—-flavorful, well-balanced with just the right amount of heat (I used 2 serranos, seeded). You should think about making this herb paste even if you have no intention of making ceviche. Rick recommends it with all sorts of other food, and he isn’t kidding. I’ve already tried the leftover paste with broiled fish and tonight used the last tablespoon in a vinaigrette on a tomato-green bean salad. Outstanding.

So here is my version of the ceviche, using halibut and sea scallops:

The combination is wonderful, the fish, avocado, and herb paste rich and lush, the cucumber providing crunch and lightness, and the chili bite cutting through it all.

The instructions are straightforward and easy to follow, but I tweaked a few small details—scraping the charred skin from the roasted chili peppers, peeling and seeding the cucumber—that were not called for in the recipe but that I though were needed.

[snowangel]

This paste sounds absolutely spectacular. I've put the cookbook on hold at the library, and when I return from our cabin next Tuesday, it will be waiting for me. Which brings me to a question: does Mexican food use cilantro roots? I use them all of the time for Thai food.

[cadmond]

I made the Impossible Cake (pg 291) for a party last night, and while I didn't take pictures I have a few thoughts on it

1) This isn't Rick's fault, but don't make the mistake (or be lazy + cheap like me) of baking this in a springform pan. It's a good thing that I didn't take a picture, because it sure wasn't pretty. Actually, the problem is actually less with aesthetics, and more with leaking.

2) I'm not sure if I personally don't like cajeta, or if the stuff I bought was funky. Most of it leaked out of the springform though, so I replaced it with dulce de leche and everything turned out fine. Does anyone else feel that cajeta has a very un- dulce de leche flavor? I was expecting otherwise is all, but I suppose the more you concentrate the flavor of goats milk the more apparently goaty it would be...

3) I would have baked this just for the novelty of watching a cake "crust" congeal on top of a flan. Oh, and to say the name. "Chocoflan!"

The cake was well enjoyed (though I'm a self critical cynic when it comes to these things, and question whether drunken revelers are the best judges of quality), and I think I would definitely make it again but...

Maybe just not Rick's version. He's not really known for being a pastry chef, and honestly it was good, but not spectacular in my mind. The coffee addition certainly upped the game however... Does anyone know of any books on Mexican baking out there?

[kalypso]

I made the Impossible Cake (pg 291) for a party last night, and while I didn't take pictures I have a few thoughts on it

1) This isn't Rick's fault, but don't make the mistake (or be lazy + cheap like me) of baking this in a springform pan. It's a good thing that I didn't take a picture, because it sure wasn't pretty. Actually, the problem is actually less with aesthetics, and more with leaking.

2) I'm not sure if I personally don't like cajeta, or if the stuff I bought was funky. Most of it leaked out of the springform though, so I replaced it with dulce de leche and everything turned out fine. Does anyone else feel that cajeta has a very un- dulce de leche flavor? I was expecting otherwise is all, but I suppose the more you concentrate the flavor of goats milk the more apparently goaty it would be...

3) I would have baked this just for the novelty of watching a cake "crust" congeal on top of a flan. Oh, and to say the name. "Chocoflan!"

The cake was well enjoyed (though I'm a self critical cynic when it comes to these things, and question whether drunken revelers are the best judges of quality), and I think I would definitely make it again but...

Maybe just not Rick's version. He's not really known for being a pastry chef, and honestly it was good, but not spectacular in my mind. The coffee addition certainly upped the game however... Does anyone know of any books on Mexican baking out there?

I reported on this cake upthread, tho' the problems I had were somewhat different. I did take pictures and they did turn out well. Unforutnatley, they were too big to load and are stuck in my computer as I've got some export problems at the moment.

1) I did cook mine in a 10" springform pan and had minimal leakage. The easiest thing to do is tear off a big sheete of aluminum foil, place the springform pan in the center of it and fold the foil up around the bottom of the pan to seal it. That said, I did not wrap my springform pan but probably will next time.

2) I am not especially fond of cajeta that is 100% goats milk so I made my own caramel using a recipe from a cookbook called Dulce by Jose Luis Flores. That worked well for me. You can get (or make) cajeta that is half goat and half cow milk that is pretty good. The Coronado brand that RB recommends is decent. I didn't especially care for the coffee hit in the cake batter. It was too strong and dominated the chocolate, and I generally love the chocolate/coffee/mocha flavor!

3) It took my chocoflan 20 minutes longer to cook than the recipe said it would. Not sure if it was an issue with my oven or with his instructions. It did result in the cake being perfectly cooked, but the flan was a little overcooked

4) The cake stays fresh for several days

We liked this dessert. The flavor was nice, tho' a bit heavy on the coffee. It's actually quite an impressive novelty dessert.

[kalypso]

I made the ChocoFlan again yesterday to take to a function after work tonight

It still took longer to cook than the recipe indicates. Last time it took 20 minutes long than the recipe cooking time. This time I used the convection oven and it still took about 10 extra minutes.

I use my own caramel, not the bottled cajeta called for in the recipe. The center of the cake cratered a bit this time, (that did not happen last time) hence the "pool" effect on the top of the cake. It'll be fine once cut.

[Florida]

Roasted beat salad w/ red onion, poblano and lime (p159)

This was probably one of the most “non-Mexican” Mexican dishes I have ever made. Overall, it turned out to be a very familiar tasting beet salad with the addition of poblanos. Rather sweet and a bit earthy, though it just so happens the poblanos I purchased for this dish were abnormally hot, spicier than your average jalapeno, which was a bit unexpected in the end product. Enjoyable, but nothing spectacular.

All of the vegetables were roasted on the grill and I ended up adding the optional goat cheese to tame the poblanos a bit.

[Florida]

Horchata “Colada” (p 67)

Tastes just like a pina colada except it takes 4 times as long to make. If you like pina coladas, you’ll probably like this, though if you like pina coladas you can save yourself some time and just make a pina colada. While I’m not a huge fan of pina coladas I do like horchata and I thought this would be a nice variation on the drink. I was wrong and, in all actuality, I felt this was a waste of the horchata that is required to make it.

[Chris Hennes]

Easy Yucatecan-Style Tostadas with "Pickled" Chicken and Black Beans (pp. 204–205)

I used store-bought tostadas for these to make sure they were actually crunchy this time: I think that was probably wise, the texture was needed here. These are a layer of beans with a chicken and onion escabeche on top. The escabeche was easy to make, but I didn't find it particularly well-flavored. I'm not sure I could pin down what was lacking, but this dish didn't really work for me; it just seemed sort of uninteresting. There are a lot of other things in this book I'd make again before I returned to this recipe. I have a lot of leftover escabeche, any suggestions for what to do with it?

[heidih]

Easy Yucatecan-Style Tostadas with "Pickled" Chicken and Black Beans (pp. 204–205)

I have a lot of leftover escabeche, any suggestions for what to do with it?

Did the tostada and beans overwhelm the chicken maybe? Since it appears to be horridly hot where you are, I would treat the leftovers like ceviche - maybe adding more chopped herbage to brighten and offset the tang, plus add some chile to spark it if it is not already included. I might also fold it into some potatoes with a touch of mayo to offset the tang and call it a chicken potato salad (again adding herbs and chile if needed).

[Chris Hennes]

Yeah, Heidi, that seems to be it exactly (I just ate two more of them...). When I tried without the beans they were better, you could actually taste the escabeche. I should also point out that my wife liked this considerably more than I did, in particular without the beans.

[Florida]

Easy Yucatecan-Style Tostadas with "Pickled" Chicken and Black Beans (pp. 204–205)I used store-bought tostadas for these to make sure they were actually crunchy this time: I think that was probably wise, the texture was needed here. These are a layer of beans with a chicken and onion escabeche on top. The escabeche was easy to make, but I didn't find it particularly well-flavored. I'm not sure I could pin down what was lacking, but this dish didn't really work for me; it just seemed sort of uninteresting. There are a lot of other things in this book I'd make again before I returned to this recipe. I have a lot of leftover escabeche, any suggestions for what to do with it?

Yeah, Heidi, that seems to be it exactly (I just ate two more of them...). When I tried without the beans they were better, you could actually taste the escabeche. I should also point out that my wife liked this considerably more than I did, in particular without the beans.

I made this dish last week. I'll admit I found it a little odd myself, but for different reasons.

First of all, I thought the escabeche tasted out-of-place without the beans. For me, the beans added a roundness to the spice and vinegary tartness of the chicken and I found the two not only complemented each other, but really needed each other. I was not of the opinion the beans overwhelmed the chicken, but rather I thought the beans help balance out the tartness. Overall, I enjoyed the dish, but wasn't overly impressed by it as I just felt the chicken had an odd flavor: primarily cinnamon, clove, and vinegar. I would say the flavors were more "carribean" than what you'd normally expect as "Mexican," but I also understand this is Yucatecan-Style.

Much like yourself, I had a lot of left over escabeche, which I used to make soft tacos. I dumped a bunch of chipotle hot sauce on them to help tone down the tartness.

I agree with you that I won't be returning to this recipe anytime soon.

[Chris Hennes]

Hmm, that makes me wonder if I didn't add enough vinegar: I didn't find it anywhere near as tart as I was expecting. I was definitely hoping for a balance between the beans and the escabeche, but for me it just wasn't there, the escabeche was not tart enough.

One of the things that I've found as I cook more Mexican food (both from Bayless and Kennedy) is that the flavors of Mexico are much more varied than what we typically see up here in the States: it's been fun to discover that variety.

[Alcuin]

I always find myself adding a lot more vinegar than I read in recipes for things en escabeche, maybe even a 1/4 cup but I don't measure. I like things tart though. It looks like the chicken in this recipe is pulled right? I like whole pieces poached, slathered in spice paste, grilled broiled or seared, then put in the pickling sauce. That might not work on a tostada though and its probably not easy either. But it is delicious (with extra vinegar!).

edited for clarity

Edited August 13, 2010 by Alcuin (log)

[Chris Hennes]

This recipe has you poach the chicken in the spiced escabeche and then shred it. I think maybe if the pickling sauce were a little bit thicker, and not cooked, it would be better.

[Chris Hennes]

Tostaditas de Carne Tártara (Chiapas-style Steak Tartar) (pp. 210–211)

This seemed to be a promising dish (I like steak tartare a lot), but in the end it was doomed by too much sauce. Once dressed, all you could taste was the lime juice, with some of the bitterness of the chiles. I think you could make this work, using less juice, and overall less sauce on the steak. The sauce by itself has a good flavor and color, but the recipe calls for way too much of it. Also: the recipe makes it sound like hand-chopping the beef is some sort of challenging ordeal: I am by no means a kitchen prep whiz, and I had no trouble with it. I much prefer the texture of steak tartare made with hand-chopped beef, I don't care much for ground here.

[Florida]

I always find myself adding a lot more vinegar than I read in recipes for things en escabeche, maybe even a 1/4 cup but I don't measure. I like things tart though. It looks like the chicken in this recipe is pulled right? I like whole pieces poached, slathered in spice paste, grilled broiled or seared, then put in the pickling sauce. That might not work on a tostada though and its probably not easy either. But it is delicious (with extra vinegar!).

edited for clarity

I don't have the recipe in front of me, but the problem lies in it's simplicity. The ingredients are vinegar (I used apple cider), water, cinnamon, clove, oregano, chicken and salt and pepper. There is just nothing there, but the vinegar and the spices; the oregano is totally lost.

I keep wanting to compare this dish to a Filipino adobo, and while I realize that is not a fair assessment, at least adobo has the umami from the soy sauce and the fattiness/richness from the pork (which is browned before cooking) to balance out the vinegar. This recipe is just watered down vinegar and spice and that is what the chicken ends up tasting like. Personally I thought the beans helped add the richness the chicken was missing, but the chicken just wasn't very good to begin with.

Not to say this recipe couldn't be tweaked. I'm sure it could be, but I think Bayless was deliberately trying to keep this one simple. He even names it "Easy Tostadas," but in this case I believe minimalism did not make for the best final product.

[Chris Hennes]

Roasted Garlic Tamales with Ricotta and Swiss Chard (pp. 222–223)

Creamy Roasted Jalapeño Salsa (p. 185)

Roasted Beet Salad with Red Onion, Poblano and Lime (p. 159)

Dinner tonight was excellent: I enjoyed all three of these recipes, including the beet salad. While I agree with Florida's post above that the beet salad does not exactly scream "Mexican," I thought it was sufficiently different from the standard American-style beet salad to really jump off the plate. My poblanos are typically very spicy, and this one was no exception: as with Florida's, my salad was very fiery (though I didn't add the goat cheese). I like the balance of the tartness of the lime, the sweetness of the onion, and the earthiness of the beets, and overall thought it was very successful.

The chard and ricotta tamales were also very good, though I'm glad I didn't count on his filling quantities: I don't think the recipe would actually make enough filling for 24 tamales. I made six and used a half batch of the filling. I guess maybe I was putting "too much" in, but I liked the ratio of the filling to batter, and thought the flavors worked quite well together in those proportions. I served this with Bayless's recommended salsa, the Creamy Roasted Jalapeño, which was great both on the tamales and as a dip for chips later on. It is also very simple to make... just roast up a bunch of jalapeños and garlic, toss them in the blender with lime juice and oil, and press "go." Be careful, however, that you read the instructions first. The ingredient list calls for 10 cloves of garlic peeled, but the first instruction is to roast the unpeeled garlic.