Cooking In Oaxaca: They've Always Liked It Hot

If you're like me, one of the major reasons you like to visit Oaxaca, Mexico is the food. Oaxacan cooking is considered some of the best in Mexico, with its seven types of mole (a wonderfully complex chocolate-based sauce), and its wealth of chiles, fresh produce, and herbs.

Now there's scientific evidence that Oaxacan food has been around (and tasting good) for a long time-about 1,500 years, in fact-making it one of the oldest cuisines in the world.

Archaeologists digging in two sites near the ancient Zapotec city of Mitlá found well-preserved remains of 10 different types of cultivated chile pepper. The chiles were found in excavation layers that date back to 500 A.D. Scientists already know that this region produced squash, avocado, corn, and beans at that time. The presence of those foods, together with the chiles, seems to indicate that a recognizably Mexican style of cooking began to evolve 1,500 years ago.

And it was sophisticated cooking, contends lead archaeologist Linda Perry, from the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. "You don't grow…[this many] different kinds of chiles unless you're cooking some pretty interesting food."

Perry says she can tell that the chiles were used in both fresh and dried form, just as they are today, because fresh chile pods break in a distinctive way. Cooks 1,500 years ago would have used fresh chiles for dishes like salsa, and dried ones for stews or moles.

According to Perry, one of the peppers found near Mitlá looks like a Tabasco pepper, while another resembles a cayenne pepper. But without a genetic analysis-which to date hasn't been done-she won't know whether any of these are related to modern chiles. It's possible the varieties discovered died out some time in the past.

All this talk of food makes me hungry. Off to lunch now at my favorite tiendita…

Best Regards,

Suzan Haskins
Editor, Mexico Insider
International Living

P.S. Mexico's food is only one of the many things it has going for it. If you'd like to learn more about Mexico, join us in Puerto Vallarta September 23-25 for our next Live & Prosper in Mexico Seminar, where our experts can answer all your questions. For more information contact Events@InternationalLiving.com or call 1-866-381-8446 (toll-free in the U.S. and Canada). Register before July 23 and get our Early Bird discount.