1 lamb, cut into pieces *
1 maguey leaves
1 ingredients for barbecue consomme
Directions
* backbone, legs, shoulders, ribs, and head
To further explore the international links of various cuisines, check
out this one and remember a few months back when we were talking abou
the Pacific Island custom of cooking in pits. I didn't realize that
the Mexicans also had such a practice. Here's a series of recipes
revolving around Mexican Barbacoa or BBQ.
To be very authentic, use a lamb which has been slaughtered the day
before the cookout and hung overnight. On the day of the big event,
the animal is split into sections: backbone, legs, shoulders, ribs,
and head.
METHOD:
We assume that no one would tackle this kind of barbecue without a
large number of guests-the kind who really like to pitch in. So, the
first thing to do is to set one group of your guests to digging a
hole about four feet by two feet across. Other members of the party
can scout up kindling and others can be set to work cleaning each
maguey leaf.
Once the hole is dug, it is plastered with mud to keep the walls firm.
Large porous stones should then be placed in the bottom of the pit
(beware of little hard rocks; they'll split open). Over the stones
put enough dry wood to fill the pit, then set fire to the wood and
let it burn to the smokeless coal stage. While the fire is burning
down, the maguey leaves should be toasted until limp, for this will
enable them to release precious juices needed to season the meat.
When the fire has burned down sufficiently, line the pit with the
maguey leaves, making sure that all of the mud is covered so meat
will not stick to pit. The leaves should be suspended vertically,
the tips overlapping all the way around and held down with stones for
the moment.
The next step is to lower a grate into the hole and on it place the
casserole with soup ingredients. On top of the uncovered casserole
ingredients, arrange the lamb pieces, starting with the backbone,
then the legs, shoulders, rib sections, and the head. Do not salt
meat before it is cooked, for this can toughen it.
After meat is in the pit, fold the tips of the maguey leaves into the
hole to cover the meat well. Over this place a metal sheet to keep
any earth from seeping into the pit and then seal the pit with a coat
of fresh mud and build a large fire over the metal sheet and mud
cover.
Keep the fire blazing for 5 or 6 hours, depending upon the age of the
meat. Open the pit, salt the meat before serving it, and accompany it
with Salsa Borracha*. The broth is served in small cups.
* See Shepherd's Roast with Drunken Sauce for recipe.
From "The Art of Mexican Cooking" by Jan Aaron and Sachs Salom.
Doubleday and Company, N.Y., 1965.
Posted by Stephen Ceideberg; March 9 1993.
Servings: 1 servings
Barbacoa Mexicana (Barbecue From Mexico City) Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Barbeque; Bbq; Beef; Mexican
The History of Recipes
It is quite feasible to prove the history of transcribed cooking instructions far back into the distant past, in fact as far into history as the early Egyptians, and maybe further still. Interesting though that is, sadly, these early recipes were just simple pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform recipes for food preparation.
The truth of the matter is, the oldest recipe found, according to Professor Solomon Katz, is a series of ancient tablets in ancient Sumerian which show the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making drinkers feel `exhilarated, wonderful and blissful`. As we move on, there were some recipe books from the 1300s ; one book called `Forme of Cury`, and another, similary called `Curye on Inglish`. Despite their titles, these books have no connection with the spicy food that is served today, but rather accounts of the types of meals served to the rich and powerful. During the next few centuries, the rich and powerful families of Wesstern Europe competed with each other to offer the best banquets, and as a result chefs and their recipe collections were highly sought after. However, it wasn`t until the 1800s that cooking and recipe publications rose to prominence. Mrs Isabella Beeton in the UK, and Fannie Merritt Farmer in the US, dedicated their lives to assembling, trying out, and writing down recipes for their fellow cooks to enjoy. By the advent of the 20th century, cookery books were in great demand, due to increased literacy, more spare time and being a little richer. The revolution that is television brings us TV cookery programs and the spin-off recipe books. Which pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of the internet, allowing everybody to search through thousands of recipes like those on sites such as this. |
We hope you enjoy this Barbacoa Mexicana (Barbecue From Mexico City) recipe.
