- Burritos Burritos
consist of a filling, usually shredded or dried meat, often mixed with a chile
sauce, wrapped in a large, thin flour tortilla. They are a specialty of the State
of Sonora where they are often packed into saddlebags.
- Cazuelitas These
are a specialty of Chilapa in the state of Guerrero. They are made by pressing
a thin layer of tortilla dough around the outside of a small mold and then deep
frying it to produce a crisp shallow corn cup. They are filled with shredded
meat and other taco fillings.
- Chalupas These
are made by pressing tortilla dough into an elongated shape with a ridge around
the edge, resembling the chalupas or canoes from which they take their name.
They are cooked on a comal, and sometimes fried as well, then topped with shredded
meat, cheese and similar fillings.
- Chilaquiles Chilaquiles
are made with totopos, the crisp fried tortilla quarters that are so familiar
as complimentary appetizers in Mexican restaurants. The fried chips are mixed
with either a red, green or tomatillo-based chile sauce and heated, often with
chicken and cheese as well, and served at breakfast.
Chimichangas Deep fried burritos.
- Enchiladas Enchiladas
consist of a corn tortilla that has been "softened" in hot oil and
often dipped in a chile sauce, wrapped around a filling of either meat or cheese,
then garnished with a little more sauce and cheese. Sonora style enchiladas are
made by covering a very thick corn tortilla with heated chile sauce and cheese. (In
Mexican-American cooking enchiladas are often made without the initial dipping
in sauce and are heated after being topped with a large quantity of chile sauce
and cheese, and sometimes sour cream, as well). Enfrijoladas Enfrijoladas
are similar to enchiladas except that they are covered with thinned, refried
beans, rather than a chile sauce, and the softened tortillas are often folded
in half twice into a triangle shape.
- Entomatadas Enchiladas
made by dipping the tortillas to be wrapped around the filling in a sauce, usually
of tomato and chiles in the south and more often of tomatillos and chile in the
north.
- Envueltos Another
name for tacos that are filled and fried.
- Flautas Flautas
are made by rolling a large corn tortilla around a filling, usually shredded
meat, and then deep frying it to a crisp golden brown. Also see taquitos.
- Garnachas Another
member of the gordita family from the Yucatan, often made with the masa shaped
into little "plates" with raised edges, then fried.
- Gorditas Gorditas
are made with tortilla dough (occasionally with the addition of other ingredients
such as wheat flour or potato) which is patted into circles of 2 - 3 inches then
cooked on a comal and sometimes deep fried as well. The filling, often beans
or shredded meat and cheese is placed in the pocket formed when a small layer
or skin of dough puffs up from the top and can be peeled open.
- Molotes Corn
masa for tortillas, sometimes with a little wheat flour added, is mixed with
some lard, rolled into small oblongs, filled and pressed into oblong shaped little
packages which are then fried until golden and crisp.
- Pambazo From
the pharase pan bazo, which means literally, brown bread. Originally this term
referred to the crudest, most inferior bread. Now it is most often used in connection
with two different antojitos: one made with unleavened wheat flour dough that
is filled, rolled into an oblong shape and fried. The other consists of a small
torta made with a small version of either a bolillo or telera
- .Panuchos This
specialty from the Yucatan is made by peeling back the thin skin that puffs from
the tortilla as it cooks, filling it, sandwich style, with fried black beans
and shredded meat, then frying it to a golden brown. It is then topped with shredded
meat.
- Papadzules These
are the enchiladas or soft tacos from the Yucatan that are filled with hardboiled
egg and topped with both tomato and pumkin seed sauces.
- Pellizcadas A
type of gordita or chalupa that is made by pinching (pellizcar means "to
pinch"}up the dough around the edges to create a raised border to help contain
the filling.
- Picada Another
regional name for gordita.
- Quesadillas Quesadillas
are tortillas, usually corn but also flour, that are folded over a filling of
cheese, sometimes with the addition of an epazote leaf, squash blossom or other
ingredient, and cooked on a greased or ungreased griddle until the cheese is
melted and the tortilla begins to become crisp. In some areas an uncooked corn
tortilla is folded over the cheese and sealed like a turnover, then fried in
oil until crisp
- Salbutes Tortilla
masa, often with flour added, is formed into a small, fairly thick tortilla,
fried until crisp and light, then topped with shredded meat and vegetables. A
specialty of the Yucatan
- Sopes Another
name for gorditas
- Tacos Tacos are
basically tortillas wrapped around a filling. They are usually defined by either
the type of filling, the type of tortilla (corn or flour) and whether the taco
is fried or not.
- Tacos al pastor These
tacos are filled with thin slices of marinated pork cooked on vertical spits
set beside charcoal, gas or electric heat sources.
- Tacos al carbón This
specialty of northern Mexico refers to tacos filled with charbroiled meats.
- Tacos al vapor Tacos
whose meat filling, often from a cow or goat's head is steamed.
- Tacos de barbacoa Tacos
made from barbacoa.
- Tacos de carnitas Tacos
made from carnitas.
- Tacos de cazuela This
refers to tacos filled with ingredients, usually a stew of some sort, cooked
in a cazuela.
- Tacos a la plancha Tacos
made from meats cooked on a comal or griddle.
- Tacos dorados The
name of these tacos comes from the golden crisp-fried corn tortilla which encloses
them. Usually the filling is of shredded meat.
- Tacos sudados o de
canasta "Sweated or basket" tacos get their name from the fact
that they are prepared, often with a stewed, shredded filling, then placed between
towels in a basket to keep them warm until they are consumed.
- Tacos de maíz
o harina Tacos de maíz are tacos made with corn tortillas and tacos
de harina with flour tortillas.
- Tamales The original
pre-Hispanic tamales were made by placing some uncooked masa (tortilla dough)
on a fresh or dried and rehydrated corn husk, adding a filling of meat, seafood,
insects, vegetables or fruit, wrapping the husk into a package and steaming it.
Following the introduction of lard by the Spanish, this fat was added to the
dough which makes it much lighter, and more savory. Tamales are also made with
fresh ground corn. In Esplendor y grandeza de la cocina mexicana, Sebastián
Verti describes well over a hundred regional varieties made with almost every
imaginable ingredient.
- Taquitos Taquitos
are essentially the same as flautas but are theoretically made with smaller tortillas.
- Tlacoyos This
is one of the oldest antojitos of all. Tlacoyos are made by patting tortilla
dough around a filling, often of squash blossoms, huitlacoche or mushrooms, until
fully enclosed into an elongated shape, which is then cooked on a comal
- Tortas compuestas This
is the famous Mexican version of the sandwich. Fillings, including various meats
or stews and sometimes whole tamales are placed inside a roll, often a telera,
from which some of the crumbs have been removed. Often tortas are named for the
country of origin of the filling such as Torta Italia which may contain mortadella.
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