Each country has its own unique food traditions. Mexico is certainly no exception in this regard, with many fascinating (and delicious) Mexican food traditions which are all its own. Some of these Mexican food customs include preparing and serving special recipes for holidays and other important events. Some of these holiday dishes are world famous, while others are lesser known, being rarely seen outside of Mexico.
Mexican Holidays And Recipes
Perhaps the best known of Mexican holidays is Cinco de Mayo. This celebration on May 5th every year is commonly thought to be Mexico’s Independence Day holiday. As it happens, the holiday was declared not to celebrate Mexican independence from Spain, but the victory of the Mexican army over the French in’62 at Puebla.
It is in the state of Puebla that this holiday is celebrated with special Cinco de Mayo recipes. In the rest of the country, it is regarded as a minor holiday, despite how popular this commemoration is in the United States. Puebla’s Cinco de Mayo dishes often include mole, a traditional Mexican recipe which hails from this state.
A dish, which you may see, served on Cinco de Mayo in Puebla is turkey in mole poblano (the poblano here refers not to the large peppers used to make chiles rellenos, but means “Puebla style”). Turkey happens to be a very popular food in Mexico and appears in a great many Mexican recipes. While turkey in mole sauce may not be what most Americans would expect to be served as a Cinco de Mayo dinner, it is a delicious way to celebrate this holiday.
Christmas And The Feast Of Epiphany
As a largely Catholic nation, Mexico celebrates Christmas and other religious holidays with aplomb; and when it comes to celebrating with food, Mexican food traditions are second to none! On Christmas morning in Mexico, families and friends hold “posadas,” a traditional Christmas morning party.
At this holiday meal, the menu may include codfish, turkey soup, mashed potatoes with cranberry/chili relish and punch, especially with marshmallows. Adding to the festivity of the occasion is often a piata, something which Mexican children eagerly anticipate about their family’s posada.
The feast of Epiphany is another holiday with its own special Mexican food traditions. The traditional Spanish ring cake has been enthusiastically adopted into Mexican Epiphany celebrations, along with the new world treat of hot chocolate as an addition.
Of course, no discussion of typical Mexican food traditions can omit the Mexican celebration of All Saints Day, or Dia de los Muertos as it is known here. On this day, pumpkin candy and other special treats are served, including pan de muertos, a small loaf of bread, which is glazed and sprinkled with colored sugar. These loaves are decorated with small pieces of bread shaped like bones and even skulls!
The most famous food tradition connected with Dia de los Muertos is the making of the colorful, skull shaped candies called sugar skulls. These are made from sugar which is pressed into molds and decorated, sometimes very elaborately – many of these candies are works of art which are simply to wonderful to eat!
The food traditions of every nation reflect their unique culture, something which Mexican food traditions certainly do. The country’s amalgam of new world and old world ingredients, recipes and cooking methods have resulted in a culture – and a set of traditional foods which are an integral part of Mexican life and culture.
What do you get if you combine the freshest produce with the best fish, meat or poultry and a clever combination of herbs and spices? The answer is Mexican food and if you have never tasted authentic Mexican recipes you have not lived! Most Mexican recipes are easy enough to cook at home too.
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