Mexican foods is known for being hot and spicy and there are wide selections of Mexican foods also not that spicy and even not entirely spicy especially Traditional Mexican cuisine. Mexican food is popularly known for its spiciness this is because of the ingredients used. A different varieties of spices are added to the dish during the cooking process to make it more flavorful and appetizing. In today’s guide, we will talk about the most spiciest Mexican dishes that you may want to try or perhaps is already your favorite. Check it out below.
Spiciest Mexican Dishes
When it comes to Mexican foods, as previously mentioned above, is known for its spiciest. Different varieties of spices are used in Mexican cooking such as black pepper, chili powder, oregano and cumin. Before we go through the spiciest Mexican dishes, let us first look into the different herbs and spices used to make the dish spicy and hot.
- Cumin – it is used as an essential spice the works well with stews, rice dishes, soups, sauces, chili corn carne and other dishes. Cumin tends to overtake the flavor of a dish, therefore be careful as to the amount of cumin you add to your dish.
- Garlic powder – an essential spice that is not only used in Mexican dishes, but most of the cuisines. It adds aroma to the food and usually has a pungent flavor.
- Cinnamon – another essential spice in Mexican cooking used as an aromatic and flavoring ingredient to any dish.
- Mexican Oregano – it is also called Origanum Vulgare. It is different from other types of oregano.
- Coriander – it is also called Cilantro. Used in Mexican foods such as Guacamole and Salsa.
- Onion Powder – if you want a subtle kick to Mexican dishes, use Onion powder but make sure to only add a few amounts as it can overtake the dish flavor. Used in pasta dishes, salsa and burrito fillings.
- Chili Powder – for Mexican dishes to become spicy, add this condiment. It usually gives Mexican dishes the right amount of heat and flavor.
- Paprika – is another essential spice in Mexican cooking made by crushing dried sweet red peppers. The color of this spice varies that depends on the pepper used when cooking.
- Cloves- this spice has a pungent, intense flavor and aroma.
- Black pepper – it gives the dish a citrus flavor aside from the heat it also gives to Mexican foods.
Now let us go through Mexican’s Spiciest Dishes
Burrito
Burrito is a Mexican dish that consists of Tortilla flour formed into cylindrical shape and filled with different variety of ingredients. To soften the Tortilla it is usually steamed or grilled.
A typical Burrito ingredients includes the Tortilla flour, fillings of meat (usually seasoned ground beef), salsa and beans. Add-on ingredients includes guacamole, sour cream, rice, vegetables like lettuce and diced tomato and cheese.
Quesadillas
Another Mexican dish is Quesadillas. These are made especially for those who loves cheese and tortilla. Most of the time, Quesadillas are nutritious and healthy, though there are other Quesadillas that have lots of unhealthy option of calories.
Basically, a Quesadilla is a Tortilla sandwich that is filled with ingredients such as meat (protein) and different varieties of vegetables. Of course, a Quesadilla treat will not be complete without the spicy condiments such as salsa. Don’t forget to add cheese too.
Taco
Taco is a traditional Mexican dish, in fact whenever you will hear the word Taco, Mexican food usually comes to mind. To satisfy your taco cravings, you might want to add some cumin, chili powder, oregano, salt, pepper and garlic powder.
The most common ingredient for Mexican dishes is usually ground beef, though you can also use other alternatives. But ground beef is the most recommended and perfect for Taco dish.
Taco is very easy to prepare, in fact you can make your own taco dish at the comfort of home. All you need is a wheat-based tortilla then topped it off with fillings. The Tortilla is then folded (Fillings already inside) and it is best when eaten by hand.
Chilate de Pollo
Chilate De Pollo is a spicy Mexican food that is made of braised chicken in a Spicy Guajillo Broth. Mexicans do love spicy foods that even made their soup as spicy as possible. The spice used in this dish is chili pepper, that will definitely goes well with chicken.
Other ingredients aside from chicken meat that are added to make this soup spicy and delicious are onions, tomato, cumin seeds and oregano.
Guacamole
Guacamole is a spicy avocado-based dip or a salad. To make an Authentic Guacamole, you will be needing made of white onions, tomato, cilantro, Jalapeno peppers, lime juice, garlic and of course, avocado.
You can make two versions of Guacamole
- make in a regular bowl with a fork
- make using mortar and pestle
And since you don’t need to cook Guacamole, making this dish is very easy, simple and quick.
Mexican Lasagna
Mexican Lasagna is different from Italian version of Lasagna, and yes the difference is that with the Mexican version includes extra spice to the ingredients and aside from that it has more cheese.
Mexican Lasagna typically consists of beef and loaded with cheese and beans.
Chimichanga
Another Mexican dish is Chimichanga. A famous dish similar to that of Burrito, although the main difference between the two is that with Chimichanga the tortilla is deep fried, uses salsa as its main sauce and with added guacamole.
A typical Chimichanga contains ingredients such as beans, rice, meat and cheese. If you want you can use a yellow rice or the Mexican style rice. With regards to the beans, you can either use black beans, refried beans or pinto beans.
Enchilada
Enchilada a tortilla corn that is rolled on a filling and then covered with savory sauce. Corn tortillas are recommended since it is more healthier as compared to using flour tortilla.
A typical fillings includes meat either from pork, beef, poultry or seafood. Cheese is also added, potatoes, beans, tofu and vegetables too. Finishing touches of Enchiladas includes topping it with sour cream, lettuce, olives, chili peppers, sliced avocado and or fresh cilantro.
Although Mexican dish does not necessarily to be stuffed with beef but it is actually an ingredient to make it more delicious.
Mexican Chorizo
A regular Chorizo originated in Europe, and it is also called Pork Sausages. The 3 main ingredients includes pork, smoked paprika and garlic. The pork is usually chopped and combined with seasonings and pork fa.t.
Mexican version of Chorizo is easy to differentiate as there is always spice included in the ingredients used. The commonly used spice is black pepper. And since Chorizo is made of pork, it will not be called Chorizo without a pork.
In making Chorizo, it is usually cooked on medium-high heat over a stovetop. You can either use a cast iron skillet or a nonstick frying pan.
The level of Spiciness or how spicy food is varies with different regions in Mexico:
Northern Mexico
Most of the hottest dishes in Mexico can be found in Northern Mexico. It is also where there are quite a number of Tex-Mex dishes are. If you are not into really spicy food, you may want to opt visiting the region as they are considered to one of the hottest areas for Mexican dishes.
Spicy Grilled beef Fajitas is an example of a Mexican dish in Northern Mexico.
North Pacific Coast
In North Pacific Coast, the most common spicy dish in this area are beef and pork stews. Grilled fish are also popular especially when paired with salsa and spicy sauce.
Since serrano peppers are used, the dishes are not as spicy as in the Northern part.
South Pacific Coast
In this region, the dishes aren’t that spicy since most of the spicy condiments used are not mixed with the dish but rather placed on its side usually used as dipping sauce. So you will have an option if you want to take a bite with spice on it or just eat it without dipping.
Black beans and corn are a staple in South Pacific Coast.
The South
When you go to the Southern region of Mexico, the Southern Mexican dishes are more sweet rather than hot and spicy. Mexican cuisine in this region features using annatto seeds and Habanero peppers. But the pepper is usually used as a condiment and not really mixed with the food.
Central Mexico
Mexican Cuisine in Central Mexico is where Northern Mexico is highly influenced, therefore there are a lot of hot and spicy dishes in Central Mexico.
Frequently Asked Questions
As previously mentioned, not all Mexican Cuisine are spicy. Although most of the popular dishes are considered spicy food since it usually uses Mexican peppers but the taste is not that spicy but actually mild spice compared to other cuisine such as Thai Cuisine, Indian Cuisine and Korean.
Habanero pepper is the most spiciest condiment often used in Mexican dishes that is why the spiciest and hottest Mexican dish is called Salsa Habanera or Hot Habanero Salsa.
You can always adjust the amount of spices and condiments used to make the Mexican food less spicy such as increasing lime juice and tomatoes used since the acid can help in neutralizing and reducing the effects of the peppers used in Mexican foods. Another way is to add more cheese, sour cream and cream since dairy products helps in toning down the spiciness of the dish.
Conclusion
The level of spice and the type of spice in Mexico varies with the different regions of Mexican Cuisine as well as how the peppers are used.
There are different options on how you want you Mexican food to taste like, if you want it to be too spicy or less spicy you have lots of options.