City Market's Mexican Cooking Class

 

Tostadas, Dalia says, are typical Mexcio City fare, and can be made with a wide range of toppings. The chorizo version she made with salsa verde on top was delicious. 

 

Dalia recommends getting a “tortillera” or tortilla press to make corn tortillas, although she said you could also roll them by hand. The tortilla press she recommends is sold here, for $18.95.

 

Here are the recipes, in Dalia's words.

 

Maseca (masa harina)

Water

Salt

 

The directions are on the back of this bag:

 

 

I only use them as guidelines. Trust your hands. Use a large bowl and fill it only half way with the flour. Add warm to hot water (not too hot that you cannot touch). Throw in a pinch of salt. Start kneading it with your hands. If it’s too crumbly, then it needs more water. If it’s too mushy then you need masa. Add both little by little, according to the needs. Put it in a plastic bag on the side to rest for a few minutes. (The plastic lets it retain its moisture).

 

Take a small portion of the masa and roll it into a small ball (a little bit like the size of a golf ball). If you do not have a “tortillera” at hand, simply use a rolling pin. Cut a plastic bag into two circles. Place the ball between the circles and start rolling. You want the tortilla to be thin. Have a pan hot and ready to place the tortillas in. They will cook much faster if the pan is really hot. Just turn them until they are a little bit brown on both sides. Place them in a bowl with some cloth to cover them. Make as many as you please.

 

To start with you will need to make a tortilla, followed by the toppings of a tostada. It is very different in many regions of Mexico, and the toppings always vary. But today we are making a chorizo tostada.

 

1 cup dry black turtle beans

½ onion Onion

Salt & pepper to taste

***

Chorizo

Lettuce

Tomato

Avocado

Cheese

Sour Cream

 

First you might want to begin with the beans, because they take the longest to make. Give yourself about two to three hours to cook them. First wash the beans so that there aren’t any little rocks. Always use about three times as much water as you have beans. Slow-cook them in a good sized pot, uncovered. Add about half an onion (do not chop as you will remove later). If they start to run out of water (which they probably will), add warm water to the boiling pot. Boil them until they have enough liquid like a soup but are tender enough. You have overcooked them if they are all disintegrated. I would suggest adding the salt and pepper when it’s almost fully cooked just to be on the safe side and not over salt them. We are using the beans as the base of the tostada so we want to puree them at this point. In a blender just place the cooked beans with some of its juice to puree them. Then set them aside.

 

At this time you might want to start prepping your meat. For the chorizo, you just put it in a pan with a little bit of oil, just enough to coat the pan, as it will release a lot of fat. (If you wanted to make chicken, you can use any method, e.g. grilled). When it’s cooked just put the meat on the side. When the time comes to put your tostadas, you might want to warm it up.

 

The veggies can be prepped last to conserve their freshness. Leave the avocados for the very end. Chop the tomatoes fairly small in cubes. Shred the lettuce small as well. Slice the avocadoes finely. Set aside.

 

Now to make the tostadas you will need a really hot pan with oil. Once the oil is really hot, then simply slide the tortillas in. you want them crispy on both sides. These will cook very quickly. Start placing them in a plate with paper towels to drain all of the extra oil. Once these are done you are ready for a tostada! Place the tostada on a plate. Spread some bean paste on the tostada. Then layer it with lettuce, meat, tomato avocado, sour cream and cheese. They layers are completely up to you. If there are any other veggies you like, that’s absolutely fine.

 

 

Tomatillos

Jalapenos

Cilantro

 

Bring the tomatillos and the jalapenos to a boil in a sauce pan. They are ready to be made into a salsa when they are soft (about 30 minutes). Just place them in a blender with a little bit of the boiling water and blend. Add the finely chopped cilantro and add salt to taste. It is ready to serve.

 

Make this drink ahead of time.

 

 

Rice

Can of condensed milk

Sugar

Cinnamon sticks

Cantaloupe

Chopped pecans

 

Place the rice in a big pot and fill it with water. Add the cinnamon sticks and let sit for a really long time. I do it overnight.

 

Once the rice is soft and easy to break, the water is slightly white, and it smells like cinnamon, then you are ready to make horchata. Just blend the rice and cinnamon sticks with some of its own water until its completely pureed. Once this is done you will need a strainer to take out all of the good juice out. Strain it a couple of times so the horchata is not too grainy.

 

Once this is done, just place it in a jug. At this time add the condensed milk (about half a can) and taste it. If it’s too sweet add some of the rice water. If it needs more sweetness add some sugar. Stir really well, until it is all one consistency. Add the small cubes of cantaloupe at the end and some of the chopped pecans if you want any. Both of these are optional. Serve chilled.