Mixiotes de Borrego

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Cast iron comal or heavy skillet for toasting chiles, spices, and avocado leaves
• •High-powered blender
• •Fine-mesh strainer
• •Large tamalera or stockpot with steamer rack
• •Kitchen twine and scissors
• •Clean kitchen towel for the steamer lid

Instructions

1. 1

   Prepare the mixiote wrappers

   If you have true mixiote membrane, the cuticle peeled from the maguey penca, soak the squares in warm water for 30 minutes to rehydrate. They will turn from brittle parchment to flexible film. If you are working with banana leaf because real mixiote is illegal to harvest in much of Mexico and nearly impossible to find abroad, pass the leaves over an open flame until they soften and turn glossy, then cut into 10-inch squares. Banana leaf is a compromise, not an upgrade. Real mixiote breathes differently and gives the meat the faint vegetal note that is the signature of the dish.

   Maguey harvesting for mixiote has decimated wild agave populations in Hidalgo and Tlaxcala. The Mexican government regulates it for ecological reasons. If you can find ethically harvested mixiote from a sustainable producer, use it. If not, banana leaf is honest. Plastic film wrapped in foil is not. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise.
2. 2

   Toast the chiles and aromatics

   Heat a dry comal or heavy skillet over medium. Toast the guajillo, ancho, pasilla, and arbol chiles separately, about 30 seconds per side, until they puff and turn fragrant. Never let them blacken. On the same comal, toast the avocado leaves until they release their anise-eucalyptus aroma, about 10 seconds per side. Char the unpeeled garlic and the onion until blackened in spots, about 5 minutes. Toast the cumin, peppercorns, cloves, and the canela stick for one minute in a small skillet until fragrant. Each ingredient toasted separately. No me vengas con atajos.

3. 3

   Soak and blend the adobo

   Place the toasted chiles in a heatproof bowl and cover with hot tap water. Hot water, not boiling. Boiling water cooks the skins and makes the adobo bitter. Soak for 20 minutes until pliable. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the soaking liquid. Peel the charred garlic. Transfer the chiles, garlic, onion, toasted spices, 4 of the toasted avocado leaves, bay leaves, vinegar, melted lard, salt, and the reserved soaking liquid to a blender. Blend on high until completely smooth, at least 3 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. The adobo should be thick enough to coat the meat heavily and the color of dried blood and earth.

4. 4

   Marinate the lamb

   Combine the lamb shoulder pieces and the rib portions in a large bowl. Pour the adobo over the meat. Massage it into every surface with your hands. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight. The lamb needs time to take the chile in. A short marinade gives you flavored meat. An overnight marinade gives you mixiote.

   Lamb is the Hidalgo tradition. Goat works. Pork rib works in a pinch. Chicken is a different dish entirely. Do not call it mixiote if you used chicken. Call it pollo en mixiote, which is its own thing.
5. 5

   Assemble the parcels

   Lay two mixiote squares on a flat surface, overlapped in a cross pattern for strength. Place a generous portion of marinated lamb in the center, about 6 to 8 ounces depending on the size of your wrappers. Add a piece of rib if you have it, a small piece of toasted avocado leaf, and a few epazote leaves. Spoon a tablespoon of extra adobo over the top. Gather the corners of the wrapper up over the meat and twist firmly. Tie tightly with kitchen twine just below the twist, forming a small bundle that hangs from the knot like a money pouch. Repeat with the remaining ingredients. You should have 8 parcels.

6. 6

   Steam slow and long

   Set up a large tamalera or steamer pot with at least 3 inches of water in the bottom. Place a steamer rack or a layer of crumpled foil to hold the parcels above the water. Arrange the mixiotes standing up if possible so the juices stay sealed inside. Cover with a lid wrapped in a clean kitchen towel to catch condensation. Steam over medium heat for 3 to 3 and a half hours, checking the water level every hour and adding hot water as needed. The meat is ready when it pulls away from the bone with no resistance and the adobo has reduced to a thick paste that clings to every fiber.

   Never let the steamer run dry. The smell of burned aluminum and scorched lamb is not something you forget. Set a timer for every 45 minutes.
7. 7

   Serve in the parcel

   Carry the parcels to the table on a platter, still tied. Each guest cuts their own open at the table with kitchen scissors. The first opening releases a wave of toasted chile and avocado leaf that is the entire point of mixiote, that contained aroma the cook has been protecting for 3 hours. Eat the lamb directly from the parcel with warm corn tortillas, pickled red onion with habanero, salsa borracha, and lime. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Chef Tips

• •True mixiote membrane is restricted by law in much of Mexico and effectively unavailable outside the country. Banana leaf is the honest substitute. Parchment paper wrapped in foil is acceptable in a pinch but loses the vegetal note. Plastic wrap is never an option, even for the steam-bath method. Plastic and lamb fat at 200 degrees for 3 hours is not food.
• •The avocado leaf must be the Mexican variety, hoja de aguacate criollo, not the Hass avocado leaf, which can be toxic in quantity. Look for it dried at any Mexican grocery. If you cannot find it, leave it out entirely rather than substitute. There is no substitute for that anise-eucalyptus note.
• •Lamb shoulder is preferred over leg because of the higher fat content. Mixiote needs the fat to keep the meat from drying out during the long steam. Lean cuts give you stringy mixiote. La manteca es el sabor, even when the manteca is from the lamb itself.
• •Salsa borracha, made with pasilla chiles and pulque, is the traditional accompaniment in Hidalgo. If you cannot find pulque, a dark Mexican beer works as a documented substitute. Tequila does not. Tequila is from Jalisco. Cada estado, su propia cocina.

Advance Preparation

• •The adobo can be made 3 days ahead and refrigerated. The flavor deepens with rest.
• •The lamb can be marinated and the parcels assembled up to 24 hours before steaming. Refrigerate the tied parcels on a sheet pan, then steam directly from cold, adding 20 minutes to the cooking time.
• •Cooked mixiotes hold beautifully for 2 days refrigerated in their wrappers. Reheat by steaming for 20 minutes, still tied. They do not microwave well, the wrapper toughens and the meat dries.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 200g)