I spent last week in New Mexico, mostly around Albuquerque and Santa Fe. I’ve visited northern New Mexico a number of times in both summer and winter and it’s always beautiful. It’s also one of the most distinctive states in the U.S. – the landscape differs even from elsewhere in the Southwest (though things blur around the four corners area). A high desert filled with stunning and varied mountain ranges, volcanoes, and the Valles Caldera.
The interior of the Valles Caldera. Redondo Peak is in the background and Cerro la Jara is the dome in the near center.
New Mexican food is one of America’s unique regional cuisines (even more so than the South). I love the food there. The ubiquitous New Mexican chiles vary in heat but are always flavorful, and they’re prepared with apparent care and skill even in the cheaper restaurants. The flavor of the chiles and their abundant use most sets New Mexican cuisine apart, but there are other differences, too. Blue corn is common, pinto beans are usually served whole (not refried), and many dishes (even the chile rellenos) are served lighter on the cheese than in other American-Mexican traditions. There are plenty of dishes I haven’t tried and probably much more diversity than I’ve encountered, but I look forward to working my way through it all on future visits. I love posole but I haven’t eaten it there, and I look forward to trying carne adovada.
(copyright Judy Henning)
The best chile relleno I had was a stuffed blue corn-encrusted green chile from The Range Café in Bernalillo (they have three locations but I liked that one best). A close runner-up (and my host’s favorite) was at El Patio De Albuquerque near the university. My favorite tamales (topped with green chile) were from the North Valley El Pinto – they have sauces available nation-wide but I haven’t tried them outside the restaurant. I had great blue corn chicken enchiladas with green chile at a few spots. My host turned us onto eating the end-of-the-meal soapapilla with a little bit of green chile along with the honey. I don’t know if that’s traditional, but it was good. Those are some highlights, but almost every meal we had was very good.
In addition to some great margaritas we found a really good beer during our first meal (at the High Noon in Old Town Albuquerque) and drank it thereafter – the Marble Red Ale. It’s unusually floral and hoppy for a red ale but it has more conventional flavors of light malt and caramel underneath, and it goes well with New Mexican food.
