People have been asking me to write this book for a long time," says Thomasina Miers, the one-time MasterChef winner turned restaurateur who co-owns Mexican restaurant chain Wahaca.
"I was a bit reluctant because Mexican cuisine rivals that of China or Italy, and I felt like I should live there for 10 years before I even thought about writing a book about it." But, such was the demand from people keen to cook the kind of food she serves, but with no idea where to start, that she agreed to write an introductory book rather than an encyclopaedia of burritos, and Mexican Food Made Simple is the result. "It's not necessarily completely authentic – I'm not trying to prove how good at making this food I am! It's meant to be fun and accessible."
This is a big year for Mexico – the 200th anniversary of Mexican independence, and the 100th anniversary of the revolution, so it's fitting that its food should finally be being noticed more. "It's a really exciting time," says Miers, "and I hope that the growing popularity of Mexican food means that soon you'll be able to buy the ingredients in supermarkets, things like chipotles, which are smoked dried jalapeños – it's such healthy food and sophisticated and I just want to tell people about it."
Steak Burritos
Skirt steak, a cheap cut over here, is a favoured piece of meat in Mexico, thanks to its rich flavour. As long as you cook it quickly over a high heat, the meat will be tender and delicious.
cooking time 10 minutes
for the steak:
600g skirt steak
3-4 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
juice of half an orange
1 chilli de arbol, finely chopped
sea salt and black pepper
4 wraps (corn tortillas, chappatis or other wraps)
1 tbsp olive oil
4 spring onions
about 150g warm cooked black beans (see below)
about 200g warm rice (optional)
salsa
1 avocado, peeled and mashed with the juice of a lime
3-4 tbsp crème fraîche
chopped coriander leaves
120g extra mature cheddar cheese (optional)
If the skirt steak is cut into thick slices, butterfly it out into thin steaks by cutting it down the middle with a sharp knife. Marinate the steak in the olive oil, garlic, orange juice, chilli and seasoning for 30 minutes.
Heat each tortilla in a hot, dry frying pan for about 10 seconds a side to make it soft and pliable.
Heat up a griddle or heavy-bottomed frying pan until smoking hot and add the olive oil. Top the spring onions and peel off the outer skin before chopping them up into 2-3cm lengths. Season with salt and pepper and put onto the hot griddle.
Pat the steak dry with some kitchen paper and add to the griddle pan. Sear for a minute on each side (or 90 seconds, tops). Leave to stand for a minute on a warm plate while you finish cooking the spring onions. They should be soft and slightly charred. When the spring onions are cooked, remove from the pan, add the reserved marinade from the steak and let it sizzle up before pouring over the warm beans. Chop up the steak into bite-size pieces across the grain (you can see the grain all running in one direction, so cut across these lines at a right angle).
Fill the tortillas with the steak, beans, rice, salsa and spring onions. Add some mashed avocado, a drizzle of crème fraîche, some coriander leaf and the cheese, and toast if you like your burrito crispy. Eat up at once.
Black beans
makes 600g cooked black beans
cooking time 2-3 hours
250g dried black beans
4 cloves garlic, bashed with a rolling pin
a few sprigs of thyme
a few bay leaves
fresh epazote or quarter of a tsp anise seeds (optional)
1 onion, cut into quarters
1 tbsp sea salt
Rinse the beans well in cold water and drain, picking out any loose pebbles. If you have the time, you can soak the beans overnight, which will reduce the overall cooking time. Place the beans in a large pan and cover with at least 10cm of cold water.
Add the garlic, herbs and onion and bring the water to the boil. Cook the beans until they are just soft, topping them up with boiling water if the water looks like it is boiling off and skimming off any white foam that gathers on the surface. This can take anything from 2 to 3 hours, depending on whether you soaked them overnight or not. At this stage, season the beans with the salt and continue to cook for another 15-20 minutes so that the beans absorb the flavour. If you add the salt any sooner, it prevents the beans from softening.
Drain the beans and remove the herbs, onion and garlic. This recipe can also be used to cook dried chickpeas, borlotti, pinto, flor de mayo or any other beans.
Coconut ceviche
In ceviche [se-vee-chay], the lime juice "cooks" the raw fish, resulting in a light, delicious starter.
serves 4
preparation time 20 minutes
2-3 plum tomatoes
225g sea bass, skinned and diced into 1cm cubes
juice of 5-6 limes
4 tbsp coconut milk
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch of sea salt
half a small red onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 habañero (Scotch bonnet) chilli, finely diced
1 large handful coriander leaves, chopped
To serve:
4-5 radishes, finely sliced
coriander leaves, chopped
half an avocado, peeled, stoned, roughly diced and tossed in the juice of half a lime
totopos (tortilla chips)
Cover the tomatoes with boiling water and count to 20. Drain and pierce them with a knife so that the skins slip off easily. Deseed and dice them into 1cm cubes.
Place the fish in a glass bowl, add the lime juice, coconut milk, olive oil, salt, onion, garlic and chilli. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour for a light marinade or 4 hours in total if you want the fish to be completely "cooked". The flesh will turn from translucent to opaque and white when it is cooked.
Drain the fish of the marinade, keeping it aside. Add the tomato and coriander to the fish and gently mix together, adding some of the marinade back into the fish if it looks dry. Spoon the ceviche onto small plates and sprinkle over the chopped coriander, sliced radishes and diced avocado. Hand out tortilla chips to scoop up and eat the ceviche.
Summer ceviche Omit the tomatoes and dice up the flesh of 2 small mangoes when they are in season.
As a main course Just up the quantities and increase the amount of chilli. Serve with grilled, buttered sweetcorn and roasted sweet potato, both of which calm the fiery nature of the ceviche.
How to eat a taco
Eating tacos (right) is the most fun. A basket perches on the table with a cloth inside, hiding slightly charred, hot tortillas. These can be stuffed with your choice of fillings and spicy salsas.
Here are a few ideas to get you started
sautéed courgette flowers
chorizo with potatoes
shredded chilli-smoked chicken
slow-cooked pork
confit of pork
poached and shredded chicken, cooked in mouthwatering moles
stuffed chillies
beans gently cooked with spices and aromatics
grilled fish
Arrange the table with taco fillings, salsas and garnishes of your choice.
Fill your taco with any of the fillings. Top with your favourite salsa, a sprinkling of chopped onion and coriander and a squeeze of lime.
Eat with greed, gusto and glee.
Torta (the Mexican club sandwich)
Mention the word "torta" to any chilango (someone who comes from Mexico City) and you will see a faraway look come over them as they are transported back to the torta stands that line the streets of the capital.
serves 4
preparation time 20 minutes
2 large, ripe tomatoes or fresh tomato salsa
sea salt and black pepper
1 red chilli, finely chopped
a drizzle of olive oil
300g cooking chorizo
4 ciabatta buns
1 tbsp lard or olive oil (optional)
8 large tbsp refried beans
1 avocado, mashed with the juice of half a lime
half a red onion, sliced very thinly
1-2 baby gem lettuces
4 very generous tbsp chipotle mayonnaise or ordinary mayonnaise
Slice the tomatoes and dress them in salt and pepper, the chilli and a drizzle of olive oil.
Slice the chorizo up into bite-size pieces that can easily be grilled, unless you are cooking them outside on the barbecue, in which case grill the sausages first and then slice them so you don't lose precious pieces in the fire. Heat a griddle or frying pan until smoking, add the chorizo and cook for a few minutes a side until it is looking good and crispy.
Remove to a plate and cut the buns in half. Brush both sides of the buns with the chorizo fat and a little extra lard or oil if you think they need it. Toast on the grill pan on both sides. Smear one half of the buns with refried beans and top with the avocado, red onion, tomato, chorizo and lettuce.
Smear the other half in the mayonnaise and press down firmly. Eat at once, preferably doused with healthy amounts of salsa.
Why not try
Leftover chicken Instead of chorizo, or try steak, pork or fish.
Vegetarian torta Layer the sandwich up with grilled courgettes, mushrooms or grilled corn, sliced from the cob.
The great Mexican breakfast
This is a delicious brunch that will cure any hangover, restore good moods and pep you up.
serves 4
cooking times 20 minutes
For the tomato sauce:
5-6 tbsp lard or dripping
1 large onion, finely chopped
1-2 red chillies, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tins plum tomatoes
sea salt and black pepper
1 tsp piloncillo or demerara sugar
a generous few splashes of Worcestershire sauce
a small handful chopped tarragon
4 corn tortillas, chapatis or other flatbreads
4 eggs
60g Lancashire cheese, grated
Heat 2 tablespoons of the lard in a wide saucepan and add the onion and chilli. Let them sweat over a low heat for 10 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic, cook for a few minutes more, and then add the tomatoes. Season the sauce well with salt, pepper, sugar and Worcestershire sauce, breaking up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon to make a roughly textured sauce. Leave the tomatoes to gently cook over a low heat for half an hour, adding a little water if they get too dry.
When you are ready to eat, melt 1 to 2 tablespoons of the lard in a frying pan and gently turn the flatbreads in the fat. Put them in a low oven, wrapped in foil, to keep warm, along with four plates. Add the tarragon to the sauce and stir.
Melt the rest of the lard in the pan and turn the heat up until the fat is sizzling. Fry the eggs, two at a time, spooning the lard over them so that they turn golden at the edges and absorb the flavour. Season with salt and pepper.
Put a flatbread on each plate and top with tomato sauce. Put an egg on top and scatter with the grated cheese.
Tlayudas (Oaxacan pizzas)
Tlayudas [clae-yoo-das] are wonderful messy open pizzas, sold at night on the streets of Oaxaca.
serves 4
cooking time 15 minutes
1 large bag of baby spinach
small knob of butter
sea salt and black pepper
olive oil
4 large flat breads (large Middle Eastern pittas, Turkish or Italian flatbreads)
4 heaped tbsp guacamole or the flesh of a ripe avocado
2 balls mozzarella, grated
80g pecorino or mature cheddar cheese, grated
300g leftover chicken or 2 chicken breasts, poached and shredded
8 very ripe fresh tomatoes, sliced
2 tbsp roughly chopped herbs (basil, tarragon, chervil or coriander)
2 handfuls rocket
Wash the spinach and shake dry. Heat a large pan, add the butter to it, then add the spinach and cook for a few minutes until the spinach has wilted down. Remove from the pan, squeeze dry and season with salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
Heat a large frying pan big enough to hold the flat breads or a flat griddle pan. Put one flatbread in the pan and sprinkle with a tiny bit of water to gently heat it.
Once slightly crisp, turn it over. Spread a layer of guacamole on first, followed by some grated mozzarella and a quarter of the rest of the ingredients. When the outer side of the bread is crisp and the mozzarella has begun to melt, fold the pizza over so it looks a little like an open calzone. Slide on to a plate and slice into pieces. Serve with a salsa.
Mexican Food Made Simple by Thomasina Miers is published by Hodder, £20. To order a copy for £18 with free UK p&p go to www.observer.co.uk/bookshop or call 0330 333 6846
