Mexican food again :)

One comment on this year's crop of Joe-E chilis from the South Devon Chilli people, although they are described as being like Hatch chili, they are quite mild this year (probably due to the non-summer we have had - chilis need heat to gain heat).  They ARE very tasty, however, and I think will make some great rellenos, especially if you add a jalapeno or two to the sauce for heat when you are making it.  I'm also trying some of their Hungarian wax chilis, which I have never had before.  So far I've ordered the Joe-E's, the jalapenos, the Santa Fes (also mild) and now the Hungarian wax.  They are lovely people to deal with and you get your chilis nicely packed by next day post.  The New Mexico part of me shudders at the prices, but the major part of me that spent the last 8 years in Sweden and now here craves the chili, damn the expense!

Probably old news, but I saw that Cholula Sauce is now being sold in Morrisons - even my tiny crappy local Morrisons, so I'm sure it must be at other Morrisons too.  Strangely, it was sandwiched on the shelf between Thai sauces and Indian curry sauces...not with the Mexican stuff.   

Yes the Morrisons in Inverness has it too, big bottles. Next to the Discovery and OEP stuff though.

Not sure if this one has come up before, but for those of you in the east of Scotland, St. Andrews has a restaurant called The Grill House (formerly La Posada) that is not exclusively Mexican food but has quite a large proportion of Tex-Mex stuff like enchiladas, fajitas, etc. I find it to be on a par with Don Pablo's type places for quality (the salsa isn't quite as good) if not variety, and the frozen margaritas are excellent!

Another plug for South Devon Chili Farm....just went there yesterday to get tomatillos...what a great place to visit!  Steve picked the tomatillos for me, along with the prettiest poblanos I've ever seen!!! So, now its time to make some Pork chilli verde...since I tend to cook for the nation, if anyone is hungry and in the Torbay area, I'm sure there will be enough to go around 

also, got some of the Joe E's,,,again, they are sooo pretty!

I can vouch for El Panzon The head chef (Grant) use to work in NY and I believe his wife is Spaniard.

It's not authentic Southern Californian, Mexican food, but it's pretty close. The guacamole is good, as well as the tacos..... There's a dish with chicharrones - now this is not the actual crunchy chicharrone you'd find at your local mexican grocers, but it's the meat from the pig, but the fat attached..... it's really good, even though it's not supposed to be called chicharrones 

The taco shells, well they're not the actual corn tortilla's hand friend, but the food inside the taco makes up for it

It's more a very open pub (meaning brown wooden floors with brown wooden blocky tables and chairs) that just so happens to serve mexican. They show football matches on a screen, when they're on, and there is loud music in the evenings, so if you're planning on carrying a conversation, I'd go for eating their before 5-6pm.

Me and my british husband had our wedding their, and Grant was very helpful with giving us suggestions on what mexican dishes we could serve

Anyways, I have a question! I like using corn tortillas for making chile ciles (sp?) but I can only find those big corn tortillas that Discovery and Old El Paso make :/ I'm not convinced they're real corn tortillas, because the smaller ones you'd get in California, the ones mexican restuarants use for their chips and for their hard shell tacos, well I tried these name brand tortillas, and they don't fry as well as the Cali corn tortillas! What makes the UK corn tortillas different from the brand Guerrero?

My mom sent me some Guerrero tortillas via surface mail in December, and I barely got them! Do you think they're still good? They look ok, except for some white powderyness going on.....

Can I get these sort of tortillas in the UK? Or are the materials to make these tortillas available here?

Also, is there any mexican restaurants that make tamales! The beef ones..... Or could I make my own? I have no idea how to make tamales, so it would be great if someone could point me to an easy to follow recipe and let me know where to get supplies :/ As well as how to make good guacamole, like the kind we'd get at those little holed up mexican shaks :p

Im from Texas and i had my first go at making tamales last christmas ... you can buy all the ingredients here in he uk, theres a great mexican food website http://www.mexgrocer.co.uk/  that sells the masa plus corn tortillas (when there in stock!) hope this site helps!

Never quite understood why anyone would expect great Mexican restaurants to be in abundance in the UK as we have no sizeable Mexican community and are obviously nowhere near Mexico. Having said that there are two restaurants in my town that i have heard good things about Liming and Montague Tex Mex, i imagine there are seveal more in Brighton just down the road.

One link that may be of interest (may already have been posted) is

http://www.mexgrocer.co.uk/

A friend of mine loves to cook mexican and she reccommends it

oops missed this post! sorrrrrrryyyyyy!

Dont forget that UKY Charter Members get a discount when ordering from Mex Grocer! 

Right, I keep being tempted to try a local "Mexican" restaurant, and was looking at their menu online only to find this:

VEGETABLE CHILLI 
Our own recipe chilli made from a selection of mixed peppers, mushrooms, onions, courgettes, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower and potatoes. Served with sour cream, crisp tortilla chips and Mexican rice.

How diabolical is that!?! Just add tortilla chips and it's chili? I just don't get it, what's wrong with beans?

Right, I keep being tempted to try a local "Mexican" restaurant, and was looking at their menu online only to find this:

VEGETABLE CHILLI 
Our own recipe chilli made from a selection of mixed peppers, mushrooms, onions, courgettes, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower and potatoes. Served with sour cream, crisp tortilla chips and Mexican rice.

How diabolical is that!?! Just add tortilla chips and it's chili? I just don't get it, what's wrong with beans?

Broccoli? BROCCOLI? 

Right, I keep being tempted to try a local "Mexican" restaurant, and was looking at their menu online only to find this:

VEGETABLE CHILLI 
Our own recipe chilli made from a selection of mixed peppers, mushrooms, onions, courgettes, broccoli, carrot, cauliflower and potatoes. Served with sour cream, crisp tortilla chips and Mexican rice.

How diabolical is that!?! Just add tortilla chips and it's chili? I just don't get it, what's wrong with beans?

We went to a "Mexican" restaurant that had this on the menu not long ago.  It was dreadful.  The "guacamole" was 90% sour cream and the "margarita" was tequila with bitter lime juice.  Bizarrely, the ceviche was very good 

The one that cracks me up is the number of shops that sell "Mexican Paella."  What?  How is paella Mexican?  Just because Spain and Mexico share the Spanish language does not make them have a common food base!

Broccoli? BROCCOLI? 

I know, it's so wrong.

We went to a "Mexican" restaurant that had this on the menu not long ago.  It was dreadful.  The "guacamole" was 90% sour cream and the "margarita" was tequila with bitter lime juice.  Bizarrely, the ceviche was very good 

I don't get the cream in guacamole thing, personally. I'm a little surprised that it's felt to need more fat and creaminess, really.

I think what really surprises me is that it is so easy to make a veggie chili just using pinto and kidney beans. Why go to all the trouble to chop up a million non-chili like veg? There is a fundamental misconception here. Sigh.

Broccoli? BROCCOLI? 

actually i used to make a veggie chili with broccoli in it and it was very nice!

I think what really surprises me is that it is so easy to make a veggie chili just using pinto and kidney beans. Why go to all the trouble to chop up a million non-chili like veg?

Maybe people won't feel they are getting their money's worth otherwise. But a place near me does make their veggie chili pretty much like that (with onions chopped up as well) and it is great.