Tag: Molcajete

AlbuquerqueDog FriendlyMariscosMexicanNew MexicoTacos

El Molcajeton – Albuquerque, New Mexico

Gil Garduno

Molcajetes have become so commonplace on many a Mexican restaurant’s decor that we sometimes forget molcajetes are the traditional Mexican version of the mortar and pestle…that they have both form and function.  As we gawk in admiration at the symmetry and fine craftsmanship of a well-made molcajete, we don’t always reflect on the fact that throughout Mexico and some parts of the Estados Unidos molcajetes are still used to crush and grind spices and to prepare guacamole, moles and salsas.  In restaurants and homes in which molcajetes are used for their intended functional purpose, the guacamole, moles and salsas created within them are said to taste better, much better. As James Beard Award-Winning Writer and Chef Patti Jinich says “A…

BernalilloMexicanNew Mexico

Antojitos Lupe – Bernalillo, New Mexico

Gil Garduno

Gustavo Arellano, the brilliant and hilarious author of Ask a Mexican, an erstwhile syndicated satirical weekly newspaper column published mostly in weekly alternative papers, used to be one of my go-to sources of entertainment and information, particularly regarding our common and beloved Spanish lexicon. His inimitable wit and perspective is amusing and enlightening. Take for example his translation of the word “antojitos.” in an article published in his then parent newspaper, the Orange County Weekly, Arellano observed that “the Spanish menu entry antojitos translates as “appetizers,” but the expression connotes more than mere snacks. It derives from the noun antojo, which describes the cravings unique to pregnant women. Antojitos, then, is “little cravings,” and Latinos know that their before-the-main-meal bites should…