Memelas Veracruzanas

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Cast iron comal or heavy griddle
• •Tortilla press lined with plastic
• •Clay cazuela or heavy skillet for beans
• •Blender
• •Small saucepan for frying salsa

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the masa

   If using masa harina, mix it with the warm water and salt until it forms a soft dough. Knead in the softened manteca de cerdo. Cover and rest for 20 minutes so the corn hydrates properly. If using fresh masa from a tortilleria, knead in the salt and manteca, adding a spoonful of warm water only if it feels dry. The masa should feel like soft clay, not sticky paste and not cracking at the edges.

2. 2

   Cook the beans

   Melt 1 tablespoon manteca in a small clay cazuela or heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and garlic and cook until sweet-smelling, about 3 minutes. Add the black beans, a splash of bean broth, epazote, and salt. Mash them until thick but still a little loose. They should spread across the memela without running off the edge. Remove the epazote stem before serving.

   Black beans are the Veracruz choice here. Pinto beans will feed you, but they will not taste like the Gulf coast.
3. 3

   Toast the chiles

   Heat a dry comal over medium. Toast the guajillo chiles for about 20 seconds per side, just until fragrant and flexible. Toast the chile de arbol for only a few seconds. Do not blacken them. Burned chile turns the salsa bitter and then you are cooking from behind.

4. 4

   Roast the salsa

   On the same comal, roast the tomatoes, onion, and unpeeled garlic until the tomatoes blister and collapse, the onion has dark spots, and the garlic softens in its skin. Soak the toasted chiles in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain. Peel the garlic. Blend the tomatoes, onion, garlic, guajillo, chile de arbol, and 1/2 teaspoon salt until mostly smooth.

5. 5

   Fry the salsa

   Melt 1 tablespoon manteca in a small saucepan over medium heat. Pour in the blended salsa carefully. It will sputter. Cook 6 to 8 minutes, stirring, until the red color deepens and the salsa thickens enough to cling to a spoon. This is not decoration. Frying wakes up the chile and tomato. Así se hace y punto.

6. 6

   Shape the memelas

   Divide the masa into 8 balls. Press each one between plastic in a tortilla press to about 1/4 inch thick and 5 inches wide, thicker than a tortilla. If you do not have a press, pat them by hand. The edges can be uneven. A market comal is not a factory.

7. 7

   Cook and pinch

   Cook the masa rounds on a hot dry comal for about 1 minute per side, then flip again and cook until pale brown spots appear and the surface looks dry. While each memela is still hot, pinch up the rim with your fingers to make a shallow border. Work quickly. That little wall is what holds the beans and salsa. Use a folded towel if your fingertips are tender.

8. 8

   Brush with manteca

   Brush each pinched memela lightly with melted manteca de cerdo and return it to the comal for 30 to 45 seconds. The surface should take on a faint sheen and the bottom should crisp in spots while the inside stays tender. La manteca es el sabor.

9. 9

   Top and serve

   Spread each memela with warm black beans. Spoon salsa roja over the top, letting the pinched rim catch it. Finish with crumbled queso fresco and chopped white onion. Add a thin line of Mexican crema and a few cilantro leaves if your table likes them. Serve immediately from the comal, because masa waits for nobody.

Chef Tips

• •Ask at the tortilleria whether they nixtamalize their own corn. If they do, buy fresh masa. If they only rehydrate flour, use a good masa harina at home and do the work yourself.
• •Tuxpeño corn is a northern Veracruz landrace with broad, sturdy kernels. If a molino or specialty masa maker offers it, buy it. The flavor is rounder and more local to the state.
• •Do not drown the memela in crema. Veracruz picadas and memelas are about the masa, beans, salsa, and cheese. Crema is an accent, not a blanket.
• •The salsa should taste like roasted tomato and clean chile, not raw garlic and not sugar. If your tomatoes are weak, cook the salsa longer. The comal cannot fix bad produce, but patience can concentrate what is there.
• •These are not flour tortillas. Flour belongs to northern traditions and to Veracruz wheat breads that came through the port, canilla, pambazo, hojaldra veracruzana, pan de Xico. This dish is corn.

Advance Preparation

• •The black beans can be cooked up to 3 days ahead. Reheat with a splash of bean broth and mash just before serving.
• •The salsa roja can be made 2 days ahead and refrigerated. Reheat it gently so the chile fat loosens before spooning it over the memelas.
• •The masa can be mixed 4 hours ahead and held covered at room temperature. If it dries at the edges, knead in warm water a teaspoon at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 300g)