Original subtitles

Do you believe in magic?

I didn't until Oaxaca cast its spell on me.

In this bewitching place, culinary wonders are conjured.

There's a lot of exciting chefs

coming out of this region.

And Oaxaca is now a mecca for food lovers in the know.

So good.

The gastronomic wizards here...

Wow.

Can summon so many of Mexico's most iconic ingredients.

Have you ever seen such a rainbow of corn?

It's the original string cheese.

I'm Eva Longoria, born and bred in Texas

with Mexican-American roots, which makes me a Texican.

I'm exploring Mexico to see how the people, their lands,

and their past have shaped a culinary tradition

as diverse as its 32 states.

Nestled within three vast mountain ranges,

Oaxaca is so blessed with food riches.

Roasted chocolate.

It's as if the gods themselves dined here.

And for its ancient Indigenous communities...

This land and its produce is sacred.

But in these parts, you've got to work hard for your dinner.

Oh, my God.

I mean, really hard.

God, I'm sweating.

Wish me luck.

Since pre-Hispanic times, ancient trade routes

bringing an abundance of amazing ingredients

have snaked from South America

into the belly of Mexico via Oaxaca.

Today many of these food gems find their way

to the Mercado de Abastos,

a giant market on the edge of the state capital,

Oaxaca City.

And in this warren of stalls...

Hola. Hey, Eva!

I've hunted down the pioneering chef

who put Oaxacan food on the map, Alex Ruiz.

Uh-huh.

This was your playground?

Mm-hmm.

I'm sticking close to this guy.

Get lost here, and you may never be found.

Habaneros. Yes, habaneros.

Oh, my God, look at this.

This is the biggest piece of cheese I've ever seen.

But Oaxaca's most famous ingredient, cacao,

actually came here via those trade routes.

Ooh, I smell chocolate.

And chocolate went on to become a cornerstone

of Oaxacan gastronomy.

If you want your chocolate fix,

the mercado is still the place to come.

But I'm not talking

about anything as simple as a sugary snack.

Hola, don Chava.

Oaxaca's Willy Wonkas

create bespoke chocolate mixes

for their customers to use in cooking.

Mmm.

Bitter.

- It is bitter. - Pure and raw.

Alex's personal blend combines cinnamon with almonds

and a sprinkle of sugar.

It's the perfect alchemy

for one of his legendary recipes,

the luxurious sauce mole negro.

This is it?

Machine.

So we're gonna grind this into a paste?

Yes.

The oil from the nuts turns the dry beans

into a luscious paste.

Smells incredible.

Yes.

Okay, let's see.

Mmm. Mmm.

But the aroma--

the aroma is...

Roasted chocolate.

This chocolate is a direct connection

to the Indigenous ancestors of the Oaxacans,

who worshipped it as the food of the gods.

Only for the kings. Only for the kings.

- Yeah. - Mm-hmm.

Very nice. It's so pretty.

So now we have our chocolate

for the mole. Yeah!

Alex's world-famous restaurant, Casa Oaxaca,

celebrates the glories of this region's produce.

So there's no better place

to try Oaxaca's famous mole negro.

Is this everything that your mole has?

Yes, correct.

I mean, this is a very culturally mixed dish, mole.

These 28 ingredients are a marriage of Spanish imports,

like limes and walnuts,

with Indigenous staples

likechiles and, of course, chocolate.

Okay.

Muy bien.

I love that everything just goes all together.

The chilesoff the comal.

Rather than spicy heat,

these charred, dark-brownchiles

native to Oaxaca

add a rich smoky texture to the mole negro.

That's all you do is crush them in?

Smells wonderful.

Okay, here goes the mole.

- Chocolate! - Chocolate.

- Want me to get it out? - Yeah, yeah.

There.

Alex's custom-made chocolate is the crowning ingredient...

So smooth and silky.

To this magnificently complex

and sophisticated sauce.

Okay.

- Please, Eva. - Okay.

Mmm. It's super chocolatey.

- Yeah. - So good.

- You like it? - Yeah.

- Good. - Oh, my God.

I knew I was gonna get mole on my dress.

- You now-- - Now I'm Oaxacan.

Now I'm a real Oaxacan. You can marry in Oaxaca.

Sí, señora.

What better way to celebrate my new Oaxacan citizenship

than dinner on Alex's gorgeous rooftop terrace?

Hey, Eva.

Oh, wow.

Turkey?

Spaniards?

So they had poultry?

The turkey is marinated with herbs and slow-cooked,

served with rice, some plantain, and a tamale.

But the star of the show--

Alex's velvety, chocolaty mole negro.

Oh, that's delicious.

It's the chocolate. It's the chiles.

It's the nuts. It's all of those herbs.

It's very herbal. Mmm.

It tastes totally different now.

This is so, so nice.

What an honor to eat your mole negro.

Oh, yes, our mole negro.

So when did you start cooking?

Five?

- No? - That made me cry.

Vicenta.

Salud, doña Vicenta. both: Ahí está.

Salud.

- Hi, Eva. - Hi.

How are you? Great.

Great meeting you. Oh, so nice to meet you.

You too. Bienvenida.

Welcome to the world capital of quesillo.

Oh, it's my favorite cheese.

Food writer Omar Alonso is passionate

about Oaxaca's most famous export, a stringy cheese.

Legend has it, it was created

here in the sleepy town of Reyes Etla,

where the locals christened it quesillo,

meaning little cheese.

So, yeah, quesillo is a very important part

of our diet in Oaxaca.

- In your sandwiches? - Yeah.

Omar is taking me

to meet one of the most distinguished quesillo makers

in the region.

There's a difference between the industrialized one

and the artisanal way?

Yeah.

Janet López Canseco's family farm

is one of the last in Mexico to produce quesillo

the traditional way.

This is so exciting.

I've never seen how quesillo is made.

This is your lucky day.

Uh-huh.

Turning the curds into the stringy goodness

we know and love takes hands-on attention

from Janet and her dad, Juan.

They say that an ancestor of Janet's,

a clueless teenager, took her eye off the curds

and added boiling water in a panic

to save the family's cheese.

Oh. Oh, it's happening.

It's getting so creamy, smooth.

- La textura. - From that crumbs...

Yeah.

To a solidified ooey-gooey goodness.

And so each batch is done by hand?

- Sí. - De mano?

Wow.

Of course, behind every great cheese, there's great milk.

And for that, we have the Spanish to thank,

when they brought dairy cows to these valleys

in the 16th century.

But they never could have imagined

what Janet's family would create with the milk.

Is this cold water?

Like a never-ending scarf from a magician's hat,

the cheese just keeps on coming.

Mmm. Wow.

Have they got a rabbit in there, too?

Okay.

But how do you pack a fire-hose length

of delicious cheese into your fridge?

Okay, here we go.

You're going to have to roll with it, by hand, of course.

So you salt it all the way through?

Wow.

Wow.

I don't even want to attempt to try it.

I mean, I can.

- Sí, sí, claro. - Oh, my God.

Oh, Lord. My hands are clean.

I feel like I'm making a baseball.

Oh, God, I'm sweating.

That's my quesillo! Hey.

Oh, my God. Look at his, though.

I'm just gonna say I did this one.

Wow.

Y mira. Mira, mira, mira.

It's the original string cheese.

Oh, wow.

You can taste the milk. Mmm.

It is super lactose-y.

If you're lactose intolerant, don't eat this.

You can make so much with quesillo.

Even ice cream. Have you tried it?

They make it in Oaxaca. No.

It's delicious and amazing.

Mm-mm. Oh, look at yours.

My God.

Respect to Omar.

I have never seen so much cheese gobbled so fast.

Sí.

I always assumed it just came in this shape.

Back in the city,

I want to check out how this local cheese is celebrated

at Oaxaca's hottest restaurants.

Star chef Celia Florián loves innovating

with traditional ingredients in her kitchen

to create gastronomic magic.

Hola.

Un gran placer. Mucho gusto.

Ay, mucho gusto.

Okay.

Uh-huh.

Yerba santa is a local herb that has flavors of anise,

eucalyptus, and mint.

And since pre-Hispanic times,

it's also been used for medicinal purposes.

Oh, my God. Have you guys eaten these?

They're grasshoppers.

Wow.

Eating insects is a practice

that dates back hundreds of years...

See the little legs?

And continues to this day.

The creamy, full-fat quesillo

is layered onto the yerba santa.

Ah!

I feel like the whole purpose of chapulinesis the crunch.

So...

I hope they're crunchy.

Like a toasted sandwich, it's touched on the hotplate

to help the quesillo stick to the leaf.

Oh, you roll them up.

Es un bocadillo.

Little bite sizes.

Wow. And these are edible flowers?

- Bueno. - Beautiful.

This plate is literally making me happy.

Oh, that's a perfect bite right there.

I think I have a little bit of everything.

Crunchy.

Mmm. It's such a balance of flavors.

- Sí. - Wow.

Who would think to put cheese with grasshoppers with flowers?

Celia's exquisite dish honors Oaxaca's past

while keeping an eye on the future.

I'll never look at cheesy insects the same way again.

Some of Oaxaca's greatest culinary creations

come from its Indigenous communities,

like the ancient Zapotecs,

who thrived here for 3,000 years

with a large population in its Isthmus region.

Known as the Waist of Mexico,

it's where the Atlantic and Pacific Coast are closest.

These days, the proud guardians

of Zapotecan cuisine are the extraordinary Muxes.

And I'm lucky enough to be invited to lunch.

Hola. Hola. Buen día.

Hola.

Hola, Eva.

From a young age, Muxes identify as a third gender,

often displaying feminine attributes

and wearing feminine clothes.

Salud.

If the food is as fabulous as the outfits,

the eating is going to be good.

Oh, my God.

Okay.

Sí.

Okay.

Sí.

Historically, Muxes adopted traditionally female roles

within the family,

becoming caregivers, needle workers,

and, most importantly, cooks.

Sí.

Very tropical, with the pineapple

and the tomatoes and the onions.

And then with this dense pork,

I think it's gonna be pretty amazing.

Clearly, this is a dish

worth risking third-degree burns for.

Oh, my God...

It smells so good.

Wow.

Okay.

I could walk home in that time.

But don't worry. We don't have to wait that long.

And now for the carbs in the kitchen.

Rubich and Victoria are whipping up

a decadent potato side dish.

Okay.

both: Mmm.

The mashed potato is combined

with spring onion, carrot, egg,

and mountains of butter and garlic.

Uh-huh.

Muxan culture has given a sense of freedom

to Zapotecs who don't conform to gender stereotypes.

And today they are celebrated in the Isthmus and beyond.

- Sí, por favor. - Oh, my God.

Wow.

This feels amazing, the texture of this cream.

A ver...

Wow.

Muy bien.

Aw.

And now I'm hungry for that stuffed-pork dish.

Time to fatten me up.

Oh, my gosh, look at this.

Wow.

Oh, my gosh.

And I get a bone.

I mean, look at that juice.

And this is the potato puree.

Wow.

It smells...

So good.

Oh, my gosh.

God.

It's falling right off the bone, and it's so soft,

so flavorful.

It has everything we put into it.

It complements so well--

the pork with the cooked pineapple

with this potato puree...

Sí.

Perfect combination.

It's been such a privilege

for me to spend time with the Muxes,

who've cherished these incredible recipes

and forged their own path in Oaxacan culture.

I'm never leaving.

Mmm.

Salud. Muchas gracias.

Muchas gracias, Feli.

An hour's drive from Oaxaca City

lies the farming town of Santa Ana Zegache,

the unassuming epicenter of corn.

Mm-hmm.

Mm.

Amado Ramírez Leyva is my guide to this region,

where corn has been worshipped for over 6,000 years

and is still the beating heart of Mexican cuisine.

Cut us, and we bleed yellow.

Hola.

Soy Eva.

Hola.

Okay.

Amado was battling to keep Oaxaca's ancient species alive

by working with corn farmers like Ponciano Méndez Galván.

Oh, my God, this color's beautiful.

Look at this color.

Velatobo.

Pinto.

Sí.

Have you ever seen such a rainbow of corn?

The range of colors comes from growing crops

at different altitudes

and varying amounts of sunlight exposure.

The darker heritage corns are often sweeter

and more herbal than the yellow ones.

So are these disappearing?

Because all we ever see in the supermarkets is yellow.

Mm. Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

Tannins, yeah.

- ¿Sí? - Sí.

This was me when I was little, y'all.

My dad would have me and my sisters peeling the corn.

There'd be worms inside sometimes.

That was a fun surprise.

And we would have to fill all of these baskets,

and we would go sell the corn, just the yellow ones.

Sell it on the side of the road.

Sí.

Unfortunately, Ponciano takes me up on the offer.

Oh, my God!

Now I've got to keep up with the hard-core 82-year-old

as we clean the corn.

Oh, yeah.

This is a great workout.

¿Ya está?

I've sure worked up an appetite.

And as luck would have it, Ponciano's wife, Antonia,

is making a traditional Zapotec farmer's breakfast.

This Oaxacan vegetable soup, sopa de guías,

is like a vegan super fuel packed with nutrients.

It's perfect to come back to

after toiling in the fields since sunrise.

The herb chepil is native to Central America

and tastes like spinach and watercress.

But the soup gets its name from guías--

shoots of squash and their leaves

bursting with vitamins and minerals.

Wow. I love a good vegetable soup.

♪ I'm on fire ♪

Sí. Sí.

And added last, so they keep their delicate form,

the squash flowers.

Such a beautiful green.

Ponciano's hardworking family have gathered for breakfast.

And the star of the meal

is, of course, their beautiful corn.

It's so good. I'm so hungry.

Wow.

Oh, my God.

Sí.

I love everything has lemon in Mexico,

even vegetable soup.

It's wonderful eating this delicious simple food

with the family who grew it on their land,

just like their ancient ancestors did

for thousands of years.

I know corn is important to Mexico,

but I never knew it was endemic to Oaxaca.

Que nació aquí. It was born here.

Oh, look at these agave.

Oaxaca is the land of the agave plant.

And where there's agave, there's mezcal--

the smoky liquor this region is famed for.

I've always been more of a tequila girl myself,

so I'm off to apalenque, an agave farm,

for a little mezcal education

in San Baltazar Chichicapam.

And I'm excited because this palenque

has a maestra mezcalera,

which is a female master of mezcal.

And it's very rare in the mezcal industry.

Tequila is only made from blue agave,

while mezcal uses a variety of species.

So, to see the field out here with all this diverse agave

is pretty cool.

Hot, arid plains are the perfect breeding ground,

but you got to be patient.

Some agave can take over 30 years to mature.

Hola.

Connoisseur Sylvia Philion

champions traditional producers.

A mezcal authority, three years ago,

she discovered doña Berta's artisanal spirit.

What doña Berta is doing now--

how we say it in Oaxaca...

shaving the agave.

And what type is this one?

both: Cuishe.

This is a species

that you can only find in Oaxaca, actually.

Okay.

What she's doing is she's taking out all the leaves

so we can have the heart of the agave.

And this is the part that's gonna be cooked?

Yes.

So this is a very important part of the process.

This is where mezcal takes the smoky qualities

and flavors and aromas. Mm-hmm.

And this is

what differentiates mezcal from tequila,

because tequila is not using

an earth oven to cook the agave.

It's using machinery to cook it.

Mezcal maestra doña Berta's earth oven

is lined with rocks and heated by firewood.

The agave hearts roast slowly,

releasing their natural sugars

and develop that distinctive smoky flavor.

And how old is the technique?

The earth oven is pre-Hispanic.

Actually, in many pre-Hispanic cities around Mexico,

we find earth ovens.

And the word "mezcal" comes from the pre-Hispanic language

from the Aztecs.

And mexcallimeans cooked agave in an earth oven.

Wow.

She doesn't trust me to put in a bigger one.

Sí.

To close up the holes, I'm gonna put it there.

Mm-hmm.

Yay!

The hearts are then covered with crushed agave husk

for the cooking process,

which can take up to five days.

Then you're gonna put some soil on top.

I love seeing her boss everybody around.

Sí.

She's like, "You're doing it wrong."

Sí.

I feel like I've slipped back in time.

Oaxacan families have been making alcohol

from roasted agave for centuries,

but the Spanish brought copper stills,

which took it to another level

and helped create the smooth mezcal we know today.

The Aztec goddess of fertility and agave, Mayahuel,

watches over the family's production.

And then to cover all religious bases...

Oh, wow. And this is all her mezcal?

Yes.

So she keeps all the mezcal in the altar?

The precious stash is stored under the watchful eyes

of Jesus.

Oh, wow.

Because she worked harder and longer and faster...

- Yes. - They didn't like that.

They didn't like that.

Oh, sí.

Ooh.

And remember that cuishe is endemic to Oaxaca.

Okay.

Gracias, doña Berta.

The mezcal has a light, floral, almost herbal taste.

Doña Berta has worked her magic,

and I'm converted.

Mmm. That's really good.

Orale. Salud.

Hola.

Bien. Gracias.

Mucho gusto.

Sí.

God, look at the color.

Mm-hmm.

Oaxaca's varied altitude and climate

means even simple produce is extraordinary.

Rising star chef Thalía Barrios García

has made the ingredients of her hometown

the main draw of her hipster restaurants.

Oh.

Okay.

These juicy rastrojo and bola tomatoes

are grown among oak trees,

which conserve water and enrich the black soil

of mountains near Thalía's remote village.

So tomatoes are from South America,

but it was the Mexicans

that decided to eat them...

and plant them, grow them, put them in the kitchen.

Sí.

I think a lot of people assume--

Mm-hmm.

Okay.

Wow.

Sí.

Wow.

Lots and lots of tomatoes.

Oh, my God, these are beautiful.

Sí.

Oh.

Okay.

These tomatoes are grown from seeds

passed down from generation to generation

over thousands of years.

The sweeter ones grow in the valleys,

where they soak up sun and water,

while the mountain ones get less light

and are slightly bitter.

Mmm. I use probably, like, 20 of these a day,

'cause my husband loves tomatillo salsa.

Sí.

We're making Thalía's iconic dish--

a simple tomato salad, Oaxacan style.

Have you seen a more perfect tomato?

A warning, though--

once discovered, you will never go

back to the ordinary supermarket tomato.

Look at this.

Oh, gosh, this is so beautiful, I don't want to mess it up.

I don't even want to cut it, he's so pretty.

The sweetness of this bright-purple beet puree

balances the tomato's acidity.

There's barely any seeds in this purple one.

Sí.

Is this a vinaigrette? Sí.

Mm-hmm.

Okay. Mm-hmm. Pero...

Mmm, very refreshing.

Oh, look at that.

Look at this.

Is that not the most beautiful combination of tomatoes

you've ever seen?

Mmm.

Not only the taste--

I think my favorite is this red one.

This is my favorite.

- Ah, el morado. - Sí.

A ver.

Let's have the purple one.

Oh, no, I think that's my favorite.

Wow.

You know what?

It has the texture of a radish.

Mmm.

That herbal dressing with this beet puree,

with the texture of the tomato, with the salt--oh, my God.

I think this is, like, the perfect dish.

Mm-hmm. Exactamente. Sí.

Oaxaca has been a culinary explosion

in my head and in my mouth.

It is on another level gastronomically.

One of the best places I've been to in the world.

Oaxaca's full of so many Indigenous cultures

holding on to their traditions.

They honor their past techniques and ingredients,

but they don't live in the past.

They have called the world to Oaxaca

'cause they want to share everything with the world.

And they're doing it beautifully.