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📍 Chiapa de Corzo

Pepita con Tasajo

· Lunch

A ceremonial dish of dried beef tasajo bathed in a thick sauce of squash seed, ground rice, and achiote.

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Pepita con Tasajo: A ceremonial dish of dried beef tasajo bathed in a thick sauce of squash seed, ground rice, and achiote.
Photo: AlejandroLinaresGarcia · CC BY-SA 3.0 · via Wikimedia CommonsPhoto resized, converted to WebP and cropped for display.
⏱ 100 min🍽 6 servings📊 Difficult🏷 Commonly associated🌱 Gluten-free🌱 Dairy-free
Preparation
40 min
Cooking
60 min
Waiting and resting
0 min

History

It is the 'Comida Grande' (Great Meal) of the Fiesta Grande of Chiapa de Corzo, held January 4-23 and inscribed on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Its preparation begins at midnight, following rituals passed down through generations of cooks.

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

    Soak the tasajo to remove excess salt and lightly grill it.

  2. 2

    Toast the squash seeds and the rice separately, then grind them finely.

  3. 3

    Dilute the ground squash seeds and rice in water with achiote, tomato, and garlic.

  4. 4

    Cook the sauce over low heat, stirring constantly so it does not break.

  5. 5

    Add the tasajo in pieces and the avocado leaves.

  6. 6

    Cook until it thickens and serve piping hot with tortillas.

Cooking tips

  • Taste the soaked tasajo before salting the sauce and add water if it becomes too thick.

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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