Al Mercado Indígena (At the Indian Market): Photos, San Cristóbal de las Casas, Chiapas, Part One

The brilliant jade green and cream squash skin contrasts beautifully with the pale yellow interior.  These calabaza amarilla (yellow squash) are about five to seven inches in diameter.  When I asked the proprietor of the booth how he prepares them, he shrugged and said, "Se pelan y se ponen a cocer en agua.  Después se guisan, con cebolla, chile y jitomate." ('Peel them, boil them, and just cook them, with onion, chile, and tomato.')

Trenzas (braids) of recently harvested garlic.

I loved this market puesto (booth) for its colorful symmetry.  On the left are fresh strawberries.  At the middle on the bottom are containers of ground pumpkin seeds for pipián.  Fiery hot dried chiles de árbol are in the bowls in the upper right hand corner.  The tiny green balls are miltomate, small tomate verde  grown in the milpas (corn fields) and known in English as tomatillos.  On the right are bowls of zarzamora (fresh blackberries).  The yellow objects in the bottom right corner are chiles manzano.  To the right of the zarzamora are bowls of small chiles blanco.

A young woman's booth offered small (5 pesos) and large (10 pesos) packets of soft, freshly made achiote.  The achiote is a tropical shrub or small tree (the word comes from the Nauhatl for bush). The inedible fruits are heart-shaped, brown or reddish brown at maturity, and are covered with short stiff hairs. When fully mature the fruits split open, exposing the numerous seeds. Although the fruit is inedible, the achiote is widely grown for the orange-red pulp that covers the seeds.  The pulp is prepared as a fresh or dried paste which is used as a coloring and flavoring condiment in southern Mexico and other parts of the Americas.

Black beans are a staple on the table all over southern Mexico.  Mexico Cooks! ate sopa de frijol negro (black bean soup) prepared with the following ingredients:

Sopa de Frijol Negro Estilo San Cristóbal de las Casas

Ingredients
Cooked black beans
Chicken broth
Garlic cloves
Fresh tomatoes
Onion
Oregano
Salt

Preparation:
Sauté the garlic, tomato, and onion together until the tomato gives up its juices.  Blend  until well puréed and strain.  Add oregano and salt to taste.

Heat the soup.  Serve in flat soup plates garnished with a swirl of crema mexicana or creme fraiche.

The person who gave me the recipe was unable to give the proportions of ingredients, but the soup is simple to prepare.

Guajes (Leucaena leucocephala) for sale in bunches.  Guaje pods contain tiny bean-like legumes which are prepared as tortitas (little fritters).

Comments

[Steve]

As always, very nice pictures. The blackberries look huge -- or is it just the perspective? How hot are the chiles blanco? Where would you use them? Everything looks delicious.
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Steve, the blackberries are huge, as big as the ball of my thumb.

And the chiles are hot, with a heat similar to the chile guero.