Clavel

Clavel calls itself a mezcaleria, and yes, there are a vast number of mezcals on the drink menu available as single or double shots and in flights, but I'm in it for the tacos and ceviche. I do like a shot of mezcal now and again, don't get me wrong, but I have always found food to be far more interesting than booze, so I'm not even going to get into the alcohol at Clavel. We've tried a few of the cocktails, which are complex and interesting, but I can't really speak about them with any real authority so I'm not going to try.

What I can talk about, however, is the eats.

The food menu at Clavel isn't huge. There are five ceviches, two soups, quesadillas, tortas (sandwiches), and a selection of tacos. All three of the ceviches I've tried--shrimp, tuna, and rockfish--were lovely, with super-fresh seafood "cooked" until firm with lots of lime juice and complementary flavorings (pineapple with the tuna; tomato, cucumber, and avocado with the shrimp; a sweet potato mayo with the rockfish). They were served atop tostadas that had a toastier flavor and crisper texture than those I've eaten in the past. We ordered the small size, which was perfect for three of us to share. More people can try more types of ceviche, or order the larger size, which comes with chips for sharing.

We also tried the flavorful esquites, corn layered with mayo, crema, butter, cheese, lime juice, and chiles. The tender-crisp corn kernels were the main focus of the dish, which was not as insanely fatty as it sounds.

Then we had tacos, all of which were more-ish. My favorites were the cochinita pibil, shredded pork cooked in a tangy mixture of bitter orange and achiote, and the carnitas. Carnitas are chunks of pork cooked in its own lard (so how can that ever be anything less than amazing?), making them super tender. Clavel mixes in bits of crisp chicharrones (pork skin) and tops it with a bit of warm salsa verde. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

We've also tried the huitlacoche (a fungus that grows on corn), the rajas vegetarianas (strips of poblano chile with corn and crema), the lengua (cubed beef tongue in salsa verde), spicy chicken tinga, beef and pork barbacoa, and the coffee-tinged lamb barbacoa, all of which were tender, juicy, and flavorful. There are a trio of spicy sauces on the table, as well as pickled red onion, but I didn't find that any of the tacos needed additional garnishes. You might want more heat, but I didn't.

Three tacos and a small ceviche each made for a pretty filling meal because of all the protein. That doesn't mean we didn't briefly contemplate ordering more tacos, as there are still a few (including seafood) that we haven't yet tried. Next time.

Clavel is quite popular and there was already a line at the door just before they opened at 5pm. On a Tuesday. Thankfully, they've opened another dining room, but the place still got very full very fast. Be prepared to wait if you're not an early bird diner like we are. Totally worth it though.

Clavel
225 W. 23rd Street
Baltimore, MD 21211



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Fiesta Mexicana

My brother discovered Fiesta Mexicana first, when he lived on the east side of Baltimore County. He and Dad would go to the tiny family-run restaurant for lunch on a semi-regular basis, which made me wish Mr Minx and I lived closer. The two of visited the restaurant in 2012, while we were writing Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore. We ordered the Paquet Eduques, a combo platter including two enchiladas, and one each sope, taco, quesadilla, and flauta. We would have ordered more, but in those days we were eating at multiple restaurants a day in order to write about as many as possible before we hit our rapidly approaching deadline. We especially enjoyed the authentic Mexican quesadilla, which only vaguely resembles what goes by that name here in the US.

Recently, my Dad moved to the area and we took advantage of the proximity to visit Fiesta Mexicana not once but twice in a matter of weeks. The first time, I tried the pambazo, a sandwich served in a roll that has been brushed with a savory guajillo chile sauce and seared, then stuffed with meat and garnished with lettuce, crema, and queso fresca. The normal meat filling is chorizo with potatoes, but I opted for the Milanesa, a breaded beef cutlet that they cut into pieces and pile onto the bread. The sandwich had lovely flavors and textures, from the slightly chewy seared parts of the roll to the cool cream and everything in between. I could get this every time, but there are so many other things on the menu, I'm definitely going to have to branch out.

On the next visit, I tried three of the tacos: carnitas, carne asada, and campechanos, which is a combo of chorizo with shredded beef. The fillings are generous and the corn tortillas are thick enough that they don't need to be doubled, but I was a bit disappointed. Both the carne asada and carnitas were tough and chewy, and I really couldn't tell the pork from the beef. The campechanos was the best of the three, but was also lacking in moisture.

My Dad got his favorite, the quesadillas. Made from pockets of fresh masa stuffed with your choice of meat, cheese, or veggies, these are closer to turnovers than what we normally consider a quesadilla. The texture is both crisp and tender, and they are especially good when stuffed with chorizo and potatoes, or spicy chicken. He normally doesn't like sour cream (or so he says) but he gobbled these up even with the generous drizzle of crema.

On one occasion, we ordered enchiladas to go. Normally stuffed with shredded chicken and topped with a spicy green sauce, they can also be filled with any other meat for a slightly higher price. Occasionally, molé sauce from Mexico City is available, which I am sure is a treat.

On both occasions, the restaurant was full of patrons ordering things like nachos, chilaquiles (eggs with tortilla chips soaked in chile sauce), cecina (flank steak), and tostadas, all of which looked tempting. Next time I'll try one of those, if I don't just get another pambazo.

Fiesta Mexicana
8304 Philadelphia Road
Rosedale, MD 21237
The menu can be found here.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Jamie Oliver's Comfort Food

I received several cookbooks for Christmas, and hope to talk a little about each of them here. First up is Jamie Oliver's new one, Comfort Food: the Ultimate Weekend Cookbook.

The book is thick and heavy, so it might seem that there are hundreds of recipes included. Rather, the bulk of the book is food porn--lots of pretty pictures of the various recipes included. And when I say "various," I mean the recipes are all over the place. Oliver's idea of comfort food includes dishes from India and Indonesia as well as British favorites like toad in the hole, sticky toffee pudding, and beans on toast.

I've bookmarked several recipes to try, including the three mentioned above, plus one called Bloody Mary Beef, which seems like a good thing to cook up on a cold winter day, as it spends 5 or so hours in the oven.

The first recipe to strike my fancy, however, was for quesadillas made with brussels sprouts. Unusual? Yes. But also quite good. I would never have thought of this combination, but it worked very well.

The recipe is pretty simple. I can't share it exactly as written, but it's not rocket science.

Slice up a large onion and half a pound of brussels sprouts (I added a handful of sliced mushrooms, too, because I had them). Toss them in a large saute pan with a pat of butter, or, use a glug of olive oil, as I did. Sprinkle in 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika, 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds, the leaves from 3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme, and a big pinch of salt. Cover pan and cook over medium-high heat for about ten minutes, stirring frequently. Remove lid and cook for another ten minutes or so, until onions and sprouts caramelize nicely. Turn off the heat, hit with a squeeze of lime juice, and scrape into a bowl. Wipe out the skillet and spray it with release spray.

Lay a large flour tortilla out onto a plate or cutting board. Top with enough of the brussels sprouts mixture to cover almost to the edges. Sprinkle with a handful of grated pecorino cheese (as per recipe), or your favorite combo of melting cheeses. I added some shredded sharp cheddar, too, since I had some. Top with a second tortilla.

Heat pan and carefully transfer filled tortillas, making sure not to slop filling into the pan. Cook over medium heat until browned and crisp on the bottom, 2-3 minutes. Flip gently and repeat on second side.

Transfer quesadilla to a cutting board and cut into 6-8 wedges. Serve with sour cream, salsa, guac, chopped green onion, whatever floats your boat. I whipped up a quick sauce with ground chipotle pepper, a dash of agave syrup, pinch of salt, and a squeeze of lime stirred into sour cream.

A brussels sprout quesadilla might seem weird, but it was really very delicious. Both Mr Minx and I love brussels sprouts in pretty much any form, so this was a big hit. We made two quesadillas for dinner and had enough sprouts and onions (and mushrooms) left over to make another one a couple days later.

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Posted on Minxeats.com.

Fiesta Mexicana

My brother and father go to Rosedale's Fiesta Mexicana pretty regularly and rave over the authentic renditions of Mexican street food known as antojitos. That pretty much includes all the stuff most Americans are familiar with - quesadillas, tacos, enchiladas - plus thicker tortilla shells called sopes, and a chile sauce-soaked sandwich called the pambazo.

There restaurant is tiny - only four tables and a small counter - but the menu offers a panoply of options. Not only are there plain cheese quesadillas, but also variations filled with beans, mushrooms, roasted poblanos, potatoes, chicken, beef, chorizo, or a combination of chorizo and potato. The quesadillas at Fiesta Mexicana are not the Americanized version made with griddled flour tortillas layered with cheese, rather, they are fried turnovers made with fresh corn tortilla dough. In my mind, closer to an empanada.

We tried one filled with chorizo con papa, or spicy Mexican chorizo and potatoes. We also tried a beef flauta, chicken enchiladas, a mushroom sope, and a carnitas taco, all of which come on the "Paquet Eduques" sampler platter. Apart from the slightly tough beef in the flauta, everything was uniformly tasty and despite some items being fried, ungreasy. The two salsas served on the side - one green, one red - were both complex with roasted chile flavors that gave a nice hit of heat but weren't overly-spicy.

Drink choices are myriad and include imported sugar-sweetened Coke and various flavors of the Mexican soda brand Jarritos, all of which are self-serve from the refrigerated case at the back of the restaurant.

Service at Fiesta Mexicana is cheerful and helpful, especially for people like us who can't make up our minds. Definitely worth a visit for those who want a real taste of Mexico. Indeed, most of the other customers were Latino, which speaks well for the authenticity of the food.

Fiesta Mexicana
8304 Philadelphia Rd
Rosedale, MD 21237
(410) 686-0135


Posted on Minxeats.com.

Salsarita's

Not only do we have California Tortilla within walking distance of  the University of Maryland, Baltimore, campus, but we also have a Salsarita's dishing out burritos, tacos, and the like. While CalTort has set fillings for its Tex-Mex offerings, Salsarita's follows more of a Subway or Chipotle model and allows one to choose a receptacle (taco, burrito, nachos, quesadilla, salad) and fill it with a choice of protein (chicken, ground beef, shrimp, steak, pork) or veggies, choice of beans (black or refried) and any number of other accoutrements (several salsas, guac, sour cream, cheese, cilantro, lettuce), making their food completely customizable. For example, the other day I ordered a small burrito with black beans, rice, sautéed vegetables, sour cream, shredded cheese, mild salsa, guacamole, and cilantro and received a rather mammoth package of all of the above. And it was pretty good.

In the past, when I've ordered items with meat (particularly the taco salad), not only was the meat tender and properly seasoned, but the portion was more than generous. In fact, I've had to ask for half as much meat because I just can't eat that much at lunchtime.

It's a good thing when one's biggest complaint is that the portions are too generous, right?

Salsarita's Fresh Cantina
324 W Baltimore St
Baltimore, MD 21201
www.salsaritas.com
(410) 962-8270



Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.

Meatless Mondays - Huitlacoche Quesadillas

Huitlachoche, or corn smut, is actually a fungus that attacks corn. In most cases, farmers destroy affected crops; whoever thought to eat it must have been desperately hungry, because it's not pretty. Although unattractive, huitlacoche has a pleasant, mild, mushroomy flavor and is considered a delicacy in Mexico. The first time I tried it was in a quesadilla at Blue Agave. The amount of corn smut in the appetizer seemed fairly paltry, but it was enough for me to taste its fungal goodness and left me curious to try more.

Recently, I discovered Goya canned huitlacoche at the Shoppers in Perring Plaza. I thought it would be nice to recreate those quesadillas and explore the "Mexican truffle" at home.

One look at the canned product was almost enough to change my mind - it's like something out of a diaper, black and viscous and studded with corn kernels. Or maybe chocolate pudding in Japan (they put corn in the weirdest things.) Before I tossed out the lot, I read the label and found the fungus had been canned with oil, salt, and onion. The best thing to do, I decided, was to give it all a nice rinse and drain to get rid of the black glop.

There. That's better. Ok, maybe not prettier, but it does look more like mushrooms. Maybe a bit like those funny straw mushrooms one finds in some Asian dishes. You know - the ones that look like wee mutant penises.

Since there was already corn involved, I added more corn to my dish, along with three kinds of cheese (Cheddar, Muenster, and Mozzarella, because they were what we had on hand), and some sautéed onions for sweetness. I fought the urge to sauté some mushrooms because I didn't want to detract from the huitlacoche's subtle flavor.

That was a good decision, as the fungus tasted a lot like regular mushrooms, albeit with an unusual added herbaceousness. Topped with some fire roasted tomato salsa and cilantro from our garden, these quesadillas made for a yummy supper.

Have you tried huitlacoche? Would you, now that you've seen the stuff? I recommend trying it in a restaurant first to get the flavor before playing with it at home, especially if the graphic appearance is a turn off. It almost was for me, but I'm glad I used it. Now to find other recipes....