I am an inveterate buyer
of cookbooks. I browse the second-hand bookstore near my home
on a weekly basis, searching for no longer loved copies of classics
by Elizabeth David, newer titles by Patricia Quintana or Bharti
Kirchner, and the occasional oddment, such as Memories of
Mexico and Recipes, Too, a memoir of and recipes inspired
by, travels in Mexico in the 1940s and 50s.
Who could resist chapters titled "A Gambol in Guatemala and
On To Yucatan" or "We Choose Veracruz," not to mention a drink
recipe called "Si, si senora" ?
Recently, I discovered a cache of cookbooks in Spanish, mostly
paperbacks printed in Mexico. I pulled a stack onto the floor
for closer examination. As I perused titles such as Cocina
para debutantes, a thin, unobtrusive volume slid out from
between two larger books. El libro de la cocina imaginaria,
read the cover. Intrigued, I opened it and discovered.
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1 lb. black beans, rinsed and sorted or
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2 16 oz. cans of black beans, drained and rinsed
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1 small purple onion
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1 small red bell pepper
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4 jalapenos
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3 medium mangoes, slightly under ripe, peeled
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1 bunch cilantro
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1/2 c. bitter orange juice (also called Seville oranges,
or naranja agria) - approximately 4 oranges
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juice of two limes
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1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
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salt
If you are using dried black beans, soak them overnight in
enough water to cover them. The next day, replenish the water
and cook until just tender, about 4 hours. Avoid overcooking;
soft beans make a mushy salsa. Drain the cooked beans, and rinse
under gently running water to remove any loose hulls. While
the beans cool, prepare the other ingredients for the salsa.
Dice the onion, the peppers, and the mangoes into pieces roughly
the size of the black beans. When the beans have cooled to room
temperature, mix the mangoes, onions and peppers with the beans.
Finely chop the cilantro, and stir it in. Add the orange and
lime juices, and the cumin. Add salt and stir together, adjusting
cumin and salt amounts to your taste.
Prepare one or two hours in advance, so flavors have a chance
to mingle. Serve as a dip with tortilla chips, as a light salad,
or as a relish alongside grilled pork or chicken. The salsa
can be served chilled or at room temperature. Adapt this recipe
to suit your own tastes and the availability of ingredients.
Don't like the heat of jalapenos? Use green bell pepper. Like
more spice? Add red serranos or jalapenos in place of the red
bell pepper, or, for the true chili fanatic, 2 or 3 habaneros
or scotch bonnets. Can't find naranja agria? Use grapefruit
juice, or for a sweeter taste, pineapple. Try papaya in place
of mango.
Memories of Mexico and Recipes, Too, by Dorothy Weeks,
published in 1983 by Editorial Minutia Mexicana, which also
publishes titles such as A Guide to Mexican Witchcraft
and A Guide to Tequila, Mezcal, and Pulque. Unfortunately,
no publication data is given for El libro de la cocina imaginaria,
which leads one to speculate on the nature of this book.
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