I thought there was no bad food in Mexico. No matter where you eat: in one of the best restaurants in the world or at a small village street stall from a grandmother with weathered hands.
However, as they say, there’s always a first time! Mine was after more than twenty years. I had half an hour, meaning I could only eat where I was at the moment. And I was right in the heart of the city, where there was a pavilion with a few snacks. I had already tried some food there a few times in previous years, so I decided without much thinking. On one of the menus, I saw a typical Valladolid dish: Longaniza sausages, which I wanted to try.
Once upon a time, these sausages were made from venison, which was later replaced by pork. The red color comes from achiote (annatto seeds). The sausage is fried and often eaten with fried eggs, tacos, quesadillas, or alone with fresh cabbage salad, habanero peppers, and red onions.
This time Longaniza was so dry that it crumbled, pickled onions had no flavor, similar was the rice; the only acceptable part was the chopped cabbage.
A few days later, I had a more typical Mexican experience: delicious and interesting food. It’s worth mentioning that I was in another place—Mérida, the capital of Yucatán. And that certainly doesn’t mean there’s no great food in Valladolid.
NOL restaurant is celebrating its first birthday in October. It’s run by a talented young chef from the culinary talent hub of Oaxaca. As I entered, I knew I had to try the kombucha pickled beets with mint and cheese in beet and coffee sauce. I enjoyed it thoroughly and wished it wouldn't end! What gives it that extraordinary flavor? The sauce is smooth but perfectly flavored. You can sense a light coffee taste, but I think it's impossible to guess the other ingredients. In fact, it was my first time hearing about “cultured” mold koji, whose ancestors were even toxic, but now it works wonders in the food and beverage industry. Koji is also a key ingredient in miso, and it has been used in Japanese cuisine for thousands of years.
I was persuaded to try a second dish by the waiter, Lucas.
Tetelas—a traditional triangular corn tortilla snack filled with beans or cheese and fried—are filled with crispy pork skin at NOL, served with pistachio sauce and various greens known as “quelites.” Interestingly, the Mayans even have a word for “quelites,” which sounds similar to a word “flowers" in Lithuanian and describes the greens grown in the yard (milpa).
It was tasty, definitely not dry like tetelas can sometimes be, and as all dishes at NOL, beautifully presented. As usual, when the food is creative, the serving dishes receive special attention as well.
Despite I did not have room for dessert, I couldn't resist the originality: herb biscuit, hierba santa ice cream, cilantro meringue, mint oil, and kefir. The effect was similar to that of the beet dish!
If there’s anything I regret, it’s that I won’t be in Mérida in October and won't be able to attend the restaurant's birthday events. Today, I saw the first information about the initial dinners featuring two guest chefs who are exceptionally talented as well, so those are lucky who can be there.
And I will settle for having satisfied my curiosity by tasting various fermented experiments from chef Erick Bautista Chacon’s hands, which later possibly will become part of the unique dishes.
Culinary experiments using koji: fermented black bananas, corn, plums, mole sauce. In fact, the jars look similar to those used for fermenting cabbage, apples, or mushrooms in Lithuania.
Are you curious about the prices? The beet dish costs 285 pesos (about USD 15), three tetelas 230 pesos (about USD 12), and a dessert 195 pesos (about USD 10). It is definitely worth it.
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