Bowl of menudo from El Molinito Restaurant

For many Tucsonans it’s not Christmas without menudo for breakfast and tamales for dinner.  Menudo is a traditional Mexican stew made up primarily of white corn and beef tripe (cow stomach).  It is usually garnished with lemon or lime, salt, red pepper flakes, green onion and  cilantro.

Because Arizona sits above the Mexican state of Sonora, you will most likely find white Sonoran-style menudo served here.  You may also find red menudo that has come to us from the Mexican state of Chihuahua and the American states of New Mexico and Texas that sit above it.

Menudo is thought to have curative powers as a detoxifier and hangover cure (said to banish the demons of drink).  It is often referred to as “the breakfast of champions” because those who enjoy it feel they have been fortified after eating it.  In the early 1900′s south Texans called it “cafe de hueso” or “bone coffee”  which some thought was a reference to it’s medicinal value.

There are many theories about the origins of menudo.  Some say it’s a pre-Colombian dish.  Others cry foul, pointing out cows did not come until later.  There probably were versions of it in pre-Colombian times with other meats.  If common people made it back then, there is a good chance it was a plane-Jane, bland version of today’s dish just as the common version of the tamale back then was bland and low-fat. Excessive spice was not often used in everyday common food.  It was considered rude by many to use too much chili or other spice because it left less for others.

So where did the modern beef version come from?

It is thought menudo originated in Sonora.  Sonoran folklore says during the Mexican civil wars, people slaughtered their cows, dried the beef and sent the jerky off with the soldiers.  They had to make due with what was leftover.

This could be true, or partly.

However it originated, you can gaze into a steaming bowl of menudo and gain more understanding of Mexican culture and plight and understand how this dish came to be.  The white corn or maiz has been a long-standing important staple of the Mexican diet – the object of songs, poems, prayers, life and death.  The lemon/lime, chili, oregano, green, onion and cilantro are traditional flavors and were easy to grow or pick wild.  They were important foodstuffs and curatives in their own right.

Then we have the tripe and other common ingredients most people fail to mention – calf or pig feet.  I know it’s gross to think about, but when you are a poor peasant, you learn to be creative and not waste a single thing.

Well-off ranchers in Mexico and along the United States/Mexico border were a major source of income for poor Mexicans.  The ranchers would keep the good parts of the cows and “allow” their poor farm hands to keep the head, tough beef skirts, feet/hooves and entrails.  These farm hands turned what was considered junk into gastronomical delights that nourished and provided strength – tacos de cabeza (head meat tacos), barbacoa (usually head meat), menudo, tripas (intestines), carne asada and fajitas (made from skirt steaks).

Generations later, many of us offspring are still enjoying these creations.  When you pass by certain restaurants and stands grilling up these dishes or encounter a family in the park making carne asada, you are witnessing the influence of a our local version of ranch-hand cooking.

Because of the labor required to make menudo, many people only make it themselves for special occasions – such as the holidays.

If you have not had a chance to try menudo, I do NOT suggest you get a recipe and try to make it.  It would be horrible to spend hours making it, only to find you don’t care for it.

If you have friends who make menudo, perhaps you can ask them to let you try it when they make a batch.  There are many restaurants around Tucson that serve menudo – usually on Sundays.  Some places in Tucson make lousy menudo, so get recommendations.

I have read in the Weekly that local folklore expert Jim Griffith is picky about his menudo and prefers the Saturday menudo at Little Mexico Steakhouse on Valencia road.  I can’t think of a better recommendation than that.

If you do not live on the south side (where you will find the best menudo in my opinion), there are other options.  El Molinito restaurants serves a good menudo and has locations on Pantano/Wrightstown, 22nd/Craycroft, and off of Ina/Thornydale.

Another favorite of mine is El Sur restaurant off 22nd/Craycroft.

I will admit, I have an affinity for Juanitas canned white menudo (only the “white menudo” version) and this will be the closest I get to a recipe in this post.  It tastes really close to homemade.  Warm it up, add some chopped green onion, cilantro, salt, pepper, and red chili flakes along with a few squeezes of lemon juice.  Slice a bolillo or french roll in half, butter and toast it.  Pretty damn good!

Maybe I’ll talk my dad into sharing his recipe…  Do you have one to share or a restaurant to recommend?

Try this alternative pumpkin seed recipe for shell-on pepitas.

Pumpkin or other similar squash seed can be used in this recipe.  Seeds are highly underrated and under-consumed.  Did you know watermelon seeds are edible?  Search for recipes.

I often do a variation of this recipe with shelled seeds, but you don’t get the benefit of the fiber in the shells and it’s easier to eat a ton of the shelled seeds which have a good amount of calories and fat.

If you have made pepitas before, this is very similar.  The difference is the shell and preparation.

Native Americans in this area used to eat a lot of squash seeds.  They toasted and roasted them.  Sometimes they ground them to make a mush.  They found eating the shells helped to get rid of internal parasites and worms due to the internal cleansing ability of the shells.  It’s nice to know pumpkins can do more than scare trick-or-treaters away!

This recipe is also good for taking to parties or having with beer.  Whenever I make pumpkins seeds this way, they do not stay around for long.

I am not a professional cook or dietitian, so this recipe is passed along in more of a “back fence” type of way with general measurements.

Ingredients:

• Pumpkin seeds (remove as much of the stringy squash as you can – I like to leave small bits of it)
• Chiltepines or red pepper flakes
• Garlic
• Salt
• Sugar
• Lime

Spread seeds on a cookie sheet that is either lined with parchment/wax paper or cooking spray.  Put it into a 250-300-degree oven and check every 10 minutes and stir a little to help them cook more evenly.  It could take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour depending on your oven and size of seeds.  Let them get a little toasted and crispy.  They should be edible to your personal taste.

Next get a pan and heat it over medium to high heat.  I most often use a cast-iron pan or griddle but most pans should work.  I put a little butter – just enough to keep the seeds from sticking.  Not a lot.

Throw in the seeds and add salt, the chiltepines (or pepper flakes) and minced  or pressed garlic.  These are all to taste.  In general for a cup of seeds, I use about 1/2 tsp salt, 1-2 crushed chiltepines, and 1-2 garlic cloves.  I love garlic and don’t mind smelling like garlic.  You might want to start with less because the garlic taste can get strong. Keep stirring and don’t let the seeds burn.

When they are hot, sprinkle the seeds with a pinch of sugar and then take them off the heat.  Squirt a little lime juice over the seeds and stir.  Start with a small amount and add more to taste without “washing” the other ingredients off.  Enjoy!

Next time you cook up those pumpkins seeds, save some to try out this recipe and let me know how it went.