Tacos de Queso de Bola de Ocosingo

Chiapas, the Ocosingo valley where Los Altos start dropping toward the Selva Lacandona, owns this taco. The cheese tells you where you are before the tortilla even hits the comal. Queso de Bola de Ocosingo has a firm rind and a creamy double-cream center, made from the milk of local cattle. It is not Yucatán's Edam ball and it is not supermarket melting cheese. Cada estado, su propia cocina.

In Ocosingo I watched women in market kitchens cut the cheese in thick slices, not grated into nothing, and lay it on hand-pressed corn tortillas until the center softened and the edges took a little color. The salsa was chile simojovel from the north of Chiapas, toasted fast, ground with roasted tomato, garlic, and salt. That chile is small but it speaks clearly. It cuts the richness without turning the taco into a dare.

This is weeknight food, but do not confuse quick with careless. The tortilla must be corn and the comal must be hot. The cheese should slump, not leak into oil. The salsa should taste of chile first, tomato second. No me vengas con atajos. If you know the market, this taco takes less than an hour and tastes like the road between San Cristóbal and Ocosingo.