by Josephine Polifroni

Created on: January 06, 2008

Every cuisine has its distinctive flavors, and Mexican food is no different. Even if you don't have access to every authentic ingredient, some key ingredients can make all of the difference. I know because while I have spent most of my adult life in the southwestern US with easy access to Mexican food, I also spent a year in Canada where Mexican food and ready made ingredients were difficult to find.

Chilies are one of the definitive flavors of Mexico. Different chilies are available and used in different dishes but some of the most well known are jalapenos, serranos, California chilies, New Mexico chilies, poblanos and chipotle chilies. If you have eaten chili rellenos they were probably made with poblanos and I always use Serrano chilies when I make ceviche. It is possible to make many dishes using dried chilies and since chilies are not only used in Mexican cooking some varieties of fresh may be available.

Corn features prominently in Mexican cooking. Corn tortillas, tamales, posole and menudo are all examples of corn used in Mexican food. If the corn tortillas in your market don't have a fresh corn taste and delicate texture, you can make your own with corn flour.

Tomatillos are in certain recipes as an ingredient in sauces. They look like little green tomatoes with a paper husk. Regular tomatoes are used in sauces too as well as diced in salsas and are easily found.

Lime juice, cilantro, and cumin are used to spice Mexican foods. Lime juice is used, for instance, to "cook" the fish used in ceviche and cilantro is mixed in as an ingredient to serve.

Salsa combines many of these ingredients, usually tomatoes, onions, garlic, cilantro, salt, lime juice, cumin and sometimes tomatillos and green onions.

Avocados and guacamole in particular are a necessary part of the flavors of Mexico. Many people have had guacamole, or at least dips featuring avocado, served with tortilla chips. For authentic guacamole, mix in with ripe mashed avocados some diced tomato, onion, lime juice and salt. This is a very simple recipe I like that lets the avocado star.

Mexican cheeses are varied and distinctive, but unfortunately, not easily found. Fortunately, adequate substitutes can be found from Jack cheese to feta to ricotta and more for most recipes.

Although many wonderful Mexican meals can be made with the ingredients already listed there are a few more that are distinctly Mexican. Chorizo is a spicy Mexican sausage with strong flavors of chili powder, garlic and vinegar. Pumpkin seeds are found ground into sauces. Chayote squash is steamed and stuffed with a variety of ingredients and cactus paddles can be boiled, battered and fried or grilled.

Last but not least is Mexican chocolate not only used to make the traditional hot drink, but is also necessary to create Mole sauce, most often used on chicken. While authentic Mexican chocolate can be used as is for recipes, you can use semi-sweet chocolate with a dash of cinnamon as a substitute. Hot chocolate made from melted chocolate is quite different from hot cocoa, rich and luscious and the perfect end to an authentic Mexican meal.

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