The Science of Spice

The Americas 65

The range of spices used in everyday Mexican

and Central American dishes is as complex as the

region’s historical culinary influences. Cultural

fusion is key: Belizean cuisine draws from the

Maya, the Garifuna, Creole, and even the British,

while Mexico’s dishes can thank Mayan, Aztec, and

Spanish-colonial influences. The Mayans frequently

made use of red and green jalapeño chillies; the

Aztecs used chipotle chillies, cacao, and vanilla. All

of these spices made their way round the world via

the Spanish conquistadores, who in return brought

cumin, pepper, cloves, and cinnamon.

MEXICO AND

CENTRAL AMERICA

Hot | Toasted | Complex

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pri

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SPICE

PALETTE

LOCAL SPICE BLEND

Mole mix

Each country has its own

version, always made with

three different chillies.

2 each dried ancho, pasilla,

and mulato chillies

3 tbsp cacao nibs

1 tbsp sesame seeds

2cm (¾in) piece of cinnamon stick

¼ tsp cumin seeds

¼ tsp anise seeds

¼ tsp whole black peppercorns

¼ tsp cloves

¼ tsp dried thyme

¼ tsp dried marjoram

1 dried bay leaf, crumbled

Toast the whole spices in a dry frying

pan over a medium heat, stirring,

until fragrant. Mix with the remaining

ingredients and grind. Stir into fried

onions and garlic, then simmer with

chopped tomatoes for a mole sauce.

Signature

Chilli (ancho, jalapeño, pasilla,

mulato, chipotle, chile de arbol),

paprika, cumin

For that fiery kick, any of

60 different chillies offering

varying degrees of heat

are used, either fresh,

whole dried, or powdered,

while cumin is essential

to chilli powder mix.

Supporting

Black pepper, garlic, cinnamon,

clove, vanilla

Black pepper is usually

slow cooked to draw out its

complex pungency. Savoury

and sweet dishes draw on

the latter three spices, with

cinnamon traditionally

flavouring local chocolate bars.

Supplementary

Cacao, sesame, allspice, Mexican

oregano, coriander, annatto

The first three spices all

contribute to mole sauce,

while Mexican oregano

and coriander seeds bring

extra complexity to chilli

blends. Annatto is mainly

used for colouring meats,

rices, and stews.

064-065_Mexico_Central_America_Caribbean.indd 65 04/06/2018 15:46