Three Mexican Recipes that Truly Showcase the Beauty of Altos Plata and Altos Reposado

Flavor wheels are those chromatic and organoleptic circles that help you sound like a 5-star sommelier while describing a drink as “an explosion of citric with hints of wet soil and a subtle aftertaste of toasted nuts.” But deep down, what you really want to know is if a product matches perfectly with your favorite mixer.

But before focusing on recipes, let’s discuss some theory (like when you studied for a cocktail test).

What is a flavor wheel?

The flavor wheel is an instrument used broadly in the food and beverage industry, offering common vocabulary to name flavor and aromatic notes and communicate with a universal language when discussing flavors and aromas. 

They basically help you put a name on what you smell and taste. In addition to providing a universal language, they can help you impress a know-it-all client who read an article of Mixology Monthly once.

The flavor wheels of Altos Plata and Altos Reposado

We are not talking of just any flavor wheel. A dream team of experts created these flavor wheels: Jesús Hernández, Maestro Tequilero of Altos; Dré Masso, Co-Creator and Guru of Altos, and Carlos Andrés Ramírez, Global Advocacy Director of House of Tequila. 

Flavor wheels not only contain basic aromas, but also fruity, floral, spicy, nutty, and herbal notes. By the way, there is nothing wrong with describing a drink as if it were a poem of aromas.

3 proudly Mexican Recipes

Here are 3 proudly Mexican recipes that are a perfect match with Altos Plata and Altos Reposado due to their organoleptic profiles.

Baja Style Fish Tacos 

(12 servings) 

Ingredients

For the fish:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• salt
• pepper
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 cup of cold beer
• 4 fillets of a medium / small tilapia (mojarra)
• 1/8 cup of canola oil
  
  

For serving: 

• 1/4 shredded cabbage
• 12 flour tortillas
• lime
  
  

For the chipotle mayo:

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/8 cup dried or 3 canned chiles chipotle.
• 1/8 cup fresh crema
• salt
• a dash of milk
  
  

For the pico de gallo:

• 2 tomatoes
• 1/4 white onion
• 1 chile serrano
• the juice of half a lime
• salt
  
  

Preparation

1. For the chipotle mayo, blend the cream, milk, and chipotle in a blender. Transfer the mixture in a small bowl and mix it with a spoon with the mayonnaise. Add salt. Set aside. 
2. For the pico de gallo, dice the tomatoes, onion, chile serrano, lime and salt. Set aside.
3. For the fish, mix the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper with a whisker. Then add the eggs white and then the cold beer, until you have a batter the same texture as a pancake mix.
4. Cut the fish fillets in sticks and move them to a tray.
5. Heat the oil in a frying pan.
6. Sprinkle some flour on the fish sticks and with tongs, submerge the fish into the batter and fry it in a pan with oil until golden light brown and flip them over. 
7. Serve the fish in a tortilla with the cabbage, chipotle mayo, pico de gallo, red salsa and lime.

Gringa al Pastor*

(12 servings)

* Two flour tortillas (as in a sandwich) filled with cheese and al pastor meat. It goes with salsa on top. 

Ingredients

• 500 g pork meat marinated al pastor*
• 500 g Oaxaca cheese or Monterrey Jack cheese
• 20 flour tortillas
• salsa verde or guacamole
  
  

For the marinade

• 3 guajillo chiles, seeded and deveined 3 ancho chiles peppers
• 1 thick slice white onion
• 1 cup orange juice 
• 2 tablespoons white vinegar
• 3 heaping tablespoons achiote paste
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 pinch ground cumin
• 1 pinch dried oregano
• 1 scoop of the pineapple, celery & carrot prepared escabeche (see below)
• Cooking oil
  
  

For the escabeche

• About 1/3 of a big pineapple, cut in small cubes 2 medium celery stalks, cut in brunoise
• 1 medium carrot, cut in brunoise
• 1⁄2 onion, finely chopped 
• About 4 tablespoons white vinegar
  
  

To Garnish

• Finely chopped cilantro, including the stems white onion, finely chopped
• Salsa
• Lime wedges 
• The corn tortillas you will need for 10 servings
  
  

Preparation

1. Cut the guajillo chili peppers in order to devein and seed them.

2. Cut the chile ancho peppers, devein and seed them. 

3. Put the chiles in boiling water and heat for 5-10 minutes or until soft. Drain well.

4. Sautée chopped onions in the necessary oil until transparent. Add the carrot: Cook for about 2 minutes, then add the celery. Cook for 1 minute and then add the pineapple. Cook for about 1 minute and then sprinkle with salt to help it “dry”. If the pineapple isn’t too sweet, you might need to add a little (1-2 tbsp) sugar here. Keep stirring until all the juices dry up and the pot starts “browning.” Deglaze with white vinegar. Reserve. 

5. Dissolve the achiote paste in the orange juice, then place it in the blender with the guajillos and the ancho chiles, raw onion slice, garlic, cumin and oregano.

6. Blend well and place in a container. Add vinegar and a scoop of the escabeche, integrate well.

7. Cut in strips the pork steaks and marinate with the sauce of achiote and chiles.

8. Place in the refrigerator and let it stand overnight.

9. After this, strain the pork, heat a griddle, grill or pan and add 2 tablespoons of oil. The oil must be very hot, as we want to sear the meat. It is better if you cook the meat in small batches.

10. Serve the pork with tortillas, the escabeche and all the garnishes. To each taco, add salsas and a squeeze of lime.

Options to the ingredients y/o Achiote paste and guajillo 

Instead of the Achiote and guajillo, a preparation of chopped tomato, chopped onion and garlic could be used.

Chicken Tinga* Tostada

(6 servings)

*Tinga is a dish from the state of Puebla, in central Mexico. You can use tinga to make either tacos or tostadas. Tinga can be made with beef or chicken or both.

Ingredients:

For the meat:

• 500g chicken breast and/or chicken thigh
• 6 cups water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 white onion
• salt to taste
• 3 whole allspice berries
  
  

For the sauce:

• 100 g canned chile chipotle in adobo
• 100 g chorizo
• 1 onion cut in julienne (for the meat)
• 1/4 onion cut in pieces (for the tomato puree)
• 1 clove garlic
• 1tbsp canola, grape seed, or avocado oil
• 3 tomatoes
• a splash of vinegar
  
  

To serve the dish:

• 6 tostadas (you may also serve the dish in tacos)
• refried beans
• shredded lettuce
• red or green salsa
  
  

Preparation

1. Boil 6 cups of water with the onion, bay leaf, salt and allspice. Add the chicken and boil for 40 mins.
2. Take the chicken out, allow it to cool, and shred it.
3. In a bowl, cover the chiles chipotles with water and let them sit for 10 mins. Blend them in a food processor until pureed. Reserve.
4. Boil the 3 tomatoes until cooked. Peel them and blend them with the 1/4 of onion cut in pieces in a food processor until pureed. Reserve.
5. In a pan, fry the chorizo until crispy. Add onion and garlic until transparent.
6. Add the tomato puree. Cook everything for 8 mins.
7. Add the shredded chicken to the mix and cook.
8. Add the chile chipotle puree. Add salt, pepper, and a dash of vinegar. The tinga is ready.
9. Serve by spreading the refried beans on the tostada, then the tinga, the shredded lettuce, and finally, either green or red salsa.