Calabacitas a la Mexicana Jaliscienses

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Wide clay cazuela or 12-inch heavy skillet
• •Sharp knife for cutting corn from the cob
• •Wooden spoon
• •Comal for warming corn tortillas

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the vegetables

   Cut the calabacitas into even 1/2-inch pieces so they cook at the same pace. Cut the corn kernels from the cob and scrape the cob once with the back of the knife to catch the sweet milk. Keep the squash and corn separate. They do not enter the cazuela at the same time.

2. 2

   Soften the onion

   Heat the manteca in a wide clay cazuela or heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the white onion and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring often, until it turns translucent and smells sweet. Do not brown it. This dish should taste fresh, not roasted.

3. 3

   Cook the tomato base

   Add the garlic and chile serrano. Stir for 30 seconds, just until the garlic wakes up. Add the chopped jitomate and salt. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring and pressing the tomato with the spoon, until it softens, loses its raw smell, and stains the fat orange-red. This is your base. If the tomato stays raw, the whole dish tastes unfinished.

   Use chile serrano, not jalapeno from a jar. The serrano gives a clean green bite without turning the dish into a chile contest. Not all Mexican food is hot. Some dishes need just enough chile to speak.
4. 4

   Add corn and squash

   Stir in the corn kernels and cook for 2 minutes, until they brighten and start to smell sweet. Add the calabacitas and black pepper. Fold gently so the squash is coated in the tomato base. Cook uncovered for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the squash is tender but still holds its shape.

5. 5

   Finish with epazote

   Lay the epazote sprig over the vegetables for the last 2 minutes of cooking, then remove it. Epazote is strong. You want its green, resinous perfume, not a mouthful of medicine. Taste for salt. The Cotija will add salt too, so don't get brave too early.

6. 6

   Serve with cheese

   Turn off the heat and let the calabacitas sit for 2 minutes so the juices settle. Spoon them into a shallow clay serving dish, crumble Cotija over the top, and scatter the cilantro. Serve with warm corn tortillas. If there is liquid at the bottom, good. Drag a tortilla through it. Saber cocinar es saber vivir.

Chef Tips

• •Buy small, firm Mexican gray squash when you can find it. Large squash with soft centers will throw too much water into the pan and taste tired. If the market only has oversized squash, remove the seedy center before dicing.
• •Fresh corn matters. Frozen corn works in winter, but understand the compromise: you lose the milk from the cob, and that milk is part of the sweetness in the cazuela.
• •Cotija is a western Mexican cheese with authority. Use it crumbled at the end, not melted into the pan. If you use mild queso fresco, the dish will still be good, but it will speak more softly.
• •Do not cover the pan while the squash cooks. Covered squash sweats and collapses. Uncovered squash stays bright and tender. Así se hace y punto.

Advance Preparation

• •The onion, garlic, chile serrano, tomatoes, squash, and corn can be cut up to 6 hours ahead and refrigerated separately.
• •Cook the dish just before serving. Reheated calabacitas taste fine, but the squash softens and loses the clean texture that makes the dish work.
• •Leftovers keep refrigerated for 3 days and are excellent folded into scrambled eggs or spooned into a warm corn tortilla with more Cotija.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 210g)