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📍 Querétaro

Gorditas de maíz quebrado (cracked-corn gorditas)

· Lunch

Thick gorditas of coarsely ground corn, filled with stews and bathed in red salsa.

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Gorditas de maíz quebrado (cracked-corn gorditas): Thick gorditas of coarsely ground corn, filled with stews and bathed in red salsa.
Photo: Ix kimiaranda · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.
⏱ 50 min🍽 4 servings📊 Intermediate🏷 Commonly associated
Preparation
30 min
Cooking
20 min
Waiting and resting
0 min

History

A legacy of the Querétaro semi-desert, especially Tolimán and Bernal; in 2012 they were declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of the state.

Ingredients

Adjust quantities

Only numeric quantities at the start of an ingredient are adjusted. Descriptive quantities, seasoning to taste and timings remain unchanged; check them when changing servings.

Preparation

  1. 1

    Knead the cracked corn with salt into a firm, textured dough.

  2. 2

    Form thick gorditas and toast them on a griddle until browned on both sides.

  3. 3

    Slit them open along one side and fill them with the stew of your choice.

  4. 4

    Make a coarsely ground salsa of tomato and serrano.

  5. 5

    Bathe the gorditas with the salsa and finish with chopped lettuce.

Cooking tips

  • Make gorditas evenly thick and cook over medium heat so the centers do not remain raw.

Technique and preparation

What to check during preparation

The dough should hold together when pressed without deep cracks or a wet paste-like texture. Adjust moisture with small additions of water and let it distribute before kneading again. Shape pieces of similar thickness for even cooking. Use moderate heat; rapid browning can leave a raw center. Open a test piece before filling it. The interior should be cooked through without wet dough.

References to consult

References provide information about the dish, its context or a technique. Quantities in this version may differ from those in the source.

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