Greetings from Oaxaca 🇲🇽
The Heart of Mexican Cuisine & a Quick Salsa
Greetings from South of the Border 🙌
Oaxaca has long been on my list to visit.
Considered one of the major, if not “the”, home to molé which has attained iconic status due to the amazing chilis grown in the region… corn so delicious that flour tortillas don’t exist in the region… a cacao and chocolate that is distinctly “oaxacan”… and the origin of some of the best artisanal mezcal on the plant.
I had high hopes for Oaxaca… and she over-delivered in spades.
Really… I can’t fully put into words how meaningful it was to experience the flavors, cook with locals and friends in the area… and learn more.
Every time I travel I get to add more flavors, sights and experiences to my culinary “memory bank” which is always more impactful than books or watching YouTube… which is why I’m a huge proponent of travel.
2 weeks might be enough for a solid visit to explore Oaxaca’s culinary, architectural and surrounding destinations… but I could have spent far longer in this culinary paradise.
I’ve got more than can possibly fit into one newsletter drop so I’m going to give you an overview of the city, some regional points, backgrounds and a quick recipe for a simple salsa that is made in every home and restaurant in Oaxaca.
If you want to skip to the highlights and bypass logistics, scroll down
Arrival & First Impressions
First things first… geography.
Traveling to Oaxaca isn’t merely hopping the US border. Oaxaca is deep in the Southern part of Mexico very close to Guatemala, Belize & Honduras.
This has a large impact on climate, temperature and precipitation
In late August, temperatures were hitting upper 70’s during the day and going into the low 60’s at night.
There is also a pretty constant coastal breeze which has a wonderful cooling effect.
When landing in Oaxaca the colored landscape reminded me of the palette 🎨 I had seen in a Cezanne painting Mont Sainte-Victoire. The way the greens played off the earth tones almost block-strokes, with the mountain background came to mind immediately.
I looked it up and Oaxaca isn’t even close to the same longitude as Mont Saint-Victoire, but it made an image connection and art is subjective so I’m sharing it here.
If you arrive at the airport be aware there is no Uber in Oaxaca. They have their own Taxi Cartel and will up-charge the crap out of tourists so knowing reasonable fares and Spanish numbers helps a lot.
I didn’t practice my Spanish numbers but used Google Translate and typing on a calculator 😂 It worked for me.
Anything over 200 pesos from Airport to Centro (center) and surrounding areas is a gouge. You can haggle or walk out the main entrance, up the side road and get a taxi waiting outside the airport.
Depends if you’re on a budget or not. USD is really strong in Mexico, $1 : 17 pesos last I checked. Banco Azteco and other banks have decent exchange rates to use your ATM card and withdraw pesos from your foreign bank account.
There are private car services I can recommend if you’re going to be doing excursions to sites outside the city, towns, mezcal palenques etc.
As far as first impressions
Oaxaca is 3rd world. The roads aren’t great (ironically better still than Michigan roads), and the infrastructure isn’t great.
If you can get past that, get a nice hotel in Central or Reforma, you’ll be a 5-15 min walk from most places you want to see and eat at.
The people were very friendly. I had no issues with rudeness or assholes the entire time I was there. Except maybe a few people walking at a snails pace and clogging up the market aisles or sidewalks… what can I say, different pace of life down in Oaxaca 😂
There isn’t a huge nightlife scene. A lot of restaurants close at 9-10 during the week. It’s a very chill and laid back vibe in contrast to Mexico City which has a vibrant nightlife.
Cuisine & Beverage Notes
Oaxaca is like the breadbasket of Mexico
The produce, vegetables, chilis etc are so plentiful and there’s dozens of varieties for many vegetables. Corn, avocados, greens, chilis, prickly pear, the list goes on.
One thing to note that Oaxacan cuisine is not a “spicy” cuisine. Meaning, the chiles and spices are mostly warming, not blow-your-head-off heat that you might find in Jalisco or other places where chili de arbol and chili pequin are used.
The spice in Oaxaca is a deep, subtle, complex and hypnotising flavor. This is evident in the 7 iconic molés in Oaxaca.
The cuisine is largely gluten free. Corn is king here. Every tortilla I saw was corn made, in the special Oaxacan way (more on that later) to soak up. And the tamales trumped every version I’ve ever had… 🙌 Soulful memories
Surrounding Sites & Excursions
If you think Oaxaca city is all there is to do you’re wrong.
Just realize that on a map, where a 60 mile journey would be 60-75 mins in a developed country, in Oaxaca that’s a 3 hour minimum drive becuase the roads are crap, the infrastructure is non-exsistant… and it’s just the height of ineffiency
I’ll submit a whole list of waterfall pools, ruins, churches, mezcal palenques and more in a later substack. Just realize that Oaxaca has so much to see, do and explore.
One of my favorites became San Jose del Pacifico
This is literally a town that lives in the clouds. 8200 ft above sea level the views are insane… the hiking is awesome, and the people are friendly.
A chef friend told me about it because they just had their 1st global mushroom conference where scientists, botanists, chefs and medicine healers all came together to learn and discuss.
One thing to note, this town is famous for their magic mushrooms. Apparently world famous. DYOR
The views I will never forget and some of the most calming and head clearing time among nature I’ve had was up in the clouds in SJdP
Oaxacan Salsa Fresca
One of the things at most restaurants and also home cooks do is make a salsa fresca before meal times
I’ve gotta say I was like “wuuuut? 4 ingredients?” It’s tasty af… should be a go to for you at home during the week or dinner parties and never buy the jarred crap again.
The grandma that taught me used 4 ingredients but you can sub out some stuff and make it your own.
Also you’ll note. Oaxaca usually doesn’t have “tortilla chips”. Their tortillas are so thin they just simply toast whole or halves on a comal and serve them cripsy, and shatter like wafers.
Recipe:
(1) whole medium vine/plum tomato, roasted over coals until soft (can use a broiler but rotate often so the tomato is fully cooked but not exploded and lost all it’s juice
(3) medium cloves garlic
(1) serrano pepper, cooked whole over coals or broiler until soft, stem removed
sea salt, to taste
Take the garlic and pound to a paste in a mortar and pestle, or molecajete.
Add the serrano and repeat.
Now add the tomato and push lightly with the pestle so you don’t make a mess.
Finally add salt and stir to taste. make sure to stir thoroughly so the seasoning is incorporated.
You’ll see in restaurants they’ll ask your spice level and use different chilis. This combo here is great to me. But will vary depending the chilis natural heat. Taste it and and more tomato if necessary.
I truly hope you enjoyed this intro to Oaxaca… lots more in-depth stuff coming
👀 is that mezcaloteca?
🔥🔥🔥🔥
Damn you making me excited to go!