Foodie, the Brave & Curious...Mayan Cuisine

What is Yucatan or Mayan Cuisine? Without going into the details of the Yucatan history and periods, what I can gather is that an influence of the Mayans who introduced to the New World corn, chocolate, honey, venison, wild turkey, pheasant, squash, cucumbers, chillies & tomatoes AND Spain who brought Pork and Seville Orange which is a sour flavored orange AND finally the Dutch who shared Edam and Gouda Cheese.

Add the Yucatan cuisine spices that seem to influence it's international fame such as pumpkin seed powder, oregano, red onion, sour orange, sweet pepper, lime, achiote or recado colorado paste-sauce,capsicum pepper (Xcatik), Habanero pepper & corander.

Plus, bring habaneros and recados, the basic ingredients in Yucatan cuisine - recados are marinated pastes made of cloves, black pepper, oregano, cumin,garlic, coriander and vinegar. Most common is the red paste version which gets its color from adding "achiote" (annatto seeds) to the mixture.

Replace the local pheasant and deer with turkey & pork (Don't panic for those not that brave). And don't forget an important table sauce often used is called "Xnipek" which is a type of salsa/sauce that is made of habanero chilies, scallions, citrus juice & cilantro. Then you have the basic foundation of Mayan cuisine.

Listed below are some of the Mayan cuisines I have found through my exploration and hope to try at the Yaxche Restaurant in Playa del Carmen. After all basic ingredients don't come about with a good chef or cook, right?

I have also added below some links that were helpful to me and hopefully for you to visit and enhance my very limited snapshot of what this fascinating cuisine has intrigued me to taste and savor . Hope this helps!

DRINK

Xtabentun - similar to icy margarita. Made with local anise & honey Liquer

Chaya Drink - made of ground rice, chaya (regional plant or Pitahaya)

Micheladas - tangy mix of lime juice, worchestshire sauce or soy sauce,tabasco & good dark Yuctan Beer

Chelada -which is a Michelada without the tabasco,peppers & other seasoning Just,beer/Lime & Salt

SNACKS/APPETIZERS/BOTANAS

Papadzules -hard cooked eggs wrapped in corn tortilla with pumpkin seed sauce

Soap de Lima - chicken tortilla soup flavored with local variety of sour lime.

MAYAN (YUCATAN) ENTREE

Cochinita Pibil - pit roasted pig marinated in sour seville orange juice, garlic, achiote & yucatan spices

Queso Relleno - stuffed cheese rind of edam cheese filled with mixture ground beef,raisin, olives, almonds & spices

Panuchos - layered hand made corn tortilla stuffed with beans, topped with shredded turkey or chicken, lettuce, red onion rings and xnipek salsa

Chilmole - turkey in a dark spicy sauce

Poc-chuc - charbroiled slices of pork with onions, marinated in a sour orange sauc

Pescado Tikinxic: fish marinated in achiote sauce wrapped in banana leaves and charbroiled. Served with a tomatoe & habanero sauce.

Huevos Motulenos - Friend eggs atop a tortilla garnished with beans,peas,ham,sausage, plantains & grated cheese - Yucatan specialty

Pavo relleno negro - a stuffed turkey yucatan style, filled with chopped pork & beef cooked in a rich dark sauce

Food and Wine - Yucatan Adventure

Colors & Flavors of Yucatan Cuisine - Cancun.com

YucatanToday.com -Yucatan Cuisine

MexConnect.com - Cuisine of the Yucatan - a Gastronomical Tour of the Mayan Heartland

Photo provided by Yaxche Restaurant website gallery

Xcaret vs Xel Ha Park

Randy recently called me and we were getting excited about the trip. He spoke of a number of activities that he was exploring and was thinking he might like to do. Some of his activities I knew of like swimming in a cenote and snorkeling off the 2nd largest reef in the world. He spoke of ziplines and floating through an underground river, I believe I got that right? You'll have to talk to him directly to confirm what he has decided on. Need less to say, in my own research of our visiting area, I came across two parks which got me even more confused and most definitely curious! So I decided to share with you all just in case you were curious or thinking of partaking in your own 'venture at any of these parks.

The link I came across is about Xcaret vs Xel Ha Park...check it out if you are considering this option. Below is a caption that might entice you to explore more on their website.....

In a nutshell:

If you are travelling with kids and want a fun day snorkeling and fooling around a unique Eco water park, then Xel-Ha is the place to go.

If you want to see enchanting Mayan dancers, vibrant Mexican performers, a Mexican rodeo, Pole Flyers, a butterfly zoo, etc, etc, then do go to Xcaret.

TravelYucatan.com has some other interesting information that might be helpful. Worth a possible look!

Photo provided by Flickr.a2gemma