Mexican cuisine is unique to all the world, there is nothing like it anywhere else. The roots lie in their ancient Mesoamerican cultures, from the Olmecs, Maya, Zapotecs and Aztec’s and others that makeup Mexico today.
Many people’s experience is limited to Tex-Mex cuisine which came from the Mexican cowboys, and their use of mesquite wood to slow cook their foods while they worked on the vast Texas cattle ranges. You’ve probably heard of these cowboys being referred to in movies as vaqueros, gauchos, charros… but the most popular and frequently used is Caballero.
Every year is a huge celebration all across North America in Mexican culture, it is an annual ‘Cinco de Mayo’ celebration festival, held on May 5th, (Cinco de Mayo is Spanish for “Fifth of May”). The date is observed to commemorate the Mexican Army’s victory over the French Empire at the Battle of Puebla, on May 5, 1862.
It has become associated with the celebration of Mexican-American culture and food, it is as big a party as the super bowl. The following feast is laid out to invite your friends and family and plan for a huge celebration this May 5th.
You can make this fiesta at any time of the year, and throughout the summer. You can even plan another big celebration of Mexican Independence Day on September 16th which celebrates the war of Mexican Independence from Spain.
You can make these sauces a few days ahead and enjoy them; they will last a couple of weeks in the fridge. You will be using the Plantein Chick’un Tenders for the kids and for slicing and stuffing in tacos. You can also slice them and use them to make quesadilla’s at any time. The Plantein Fish’un Fillet is perfect to slice after cooking and using for fish Taco’s with coleslaw and any of the following salsas.
The Plantein Plant-Based Burgers are excellent to use for an Al Pastor recipe, the burgers are a large 4.4 oz and barely have any shrinkage compared to almost every other plant-based burger. I covered the top and the bottom of the burger with the Al Pastor sauce, put them on a parchment-lined bake sheet in the oven for 15-18 minutes, and then sliced them into strips, tossed them with more Al Pastor sauce in a skillet, and put that into a bowl for my guests to help themselves make Al Pastor tacos with the pan-fried pineapple and some of the salsas.
- Mexican Fiesta Salad – bright, colourful, and full of flavors
- Salsa Brava – Purple Onion, chili, lime, garlic, oregano, olive oil. This salad has a bite, the lime juice cooks the purple onion and makes it a vibrant pink.
- Salsa Verde Cruda – this is a raw green sauce, use it liberally on everything.
- Salsa de Rojo – Literally means Red Sauce and this is what you will use for the Al Pastor.
- Queso Fresco – Fresh Cheese, this is something you can make yourself with lemon juice.
- Salsa Tatemada – Charred salsa – Incredible deep rich flavors.
- Lime Slices – lots and lots of lime slices, you need them for your cerveza as well.
