We flew from Cabo to Oaxaca. It’s a mountain town just less than a mile above sea level (5102’). It’s at the bottom of a valley surrounded by mountains on all sides. It’s a large city – nearly 4 million residents – but it doesn’t feel nearly that big. We stayed about a 15 minute walk from the zocalo, or downtown center.
Oaxaca is famous for its many mole sauces. We love mole, so we signed up for a cooking class to learn how to make a couple. We started at the 20 de Noviembre market where we bought ingredients for the day. Of course, this included chiles.
During the first part of class we made salsa verde, guacamole, salsa rojo, and sliced up some onions (cebollas) and habeneros just in case things weren’t spicy enough already. We snacked on this on tostadas while cooking the main dishes.
We made the tamales next. One of the things that’s great about a cooking class like this is how they measure ingredients. We’re making enough tamalaes for 8-10 people, so it’s “three hands of lard”. When I grab a handful, they clarify that it’s more like “three lady hands”. Ha ha. After we roll the tamales, they’re put in a pot to boil while we make the mole.
Our laboratory for the day.
Mole is a complex sauce. We made a mole negro which involved 32 ingredients. We sauced the tamales and enjoyed a late afternoon meal.
We toured a botanical garden in Oaxaca. We learned a lot about the history of the place, including plans a couple of decades ago to turn it into a parking lot. The artist community in Oaxaca stepped in and proposed an ethno-botanical garden to reflect not just the plants, but the people and culture of Oaxaca. It’s a beautiful place.
They were setting up the tent for a wedding later that afternoon.
Irrigation channel.
I may have become obsessed with the succulents.
Leena found a great rooftop bar where we enjoyed cocktails. I had a margarita con mezcal; Leena had a jamaica con mezcal. Jamaica is a hibiscus flower-infused juice. And though it’s spelled the same as the Caribbean island, it’s pronounced “ha-MIKE-ah”.
We were there in the early evening (5:30 to 7?) and had the place to ourselves. Mexico follows a different schedule for sure.
