Bacalao a la Vizcaína (Biscayne style cod). Photo taken from the Flickr account of Raul Pacheco-Vega under Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) For many cultures around the world, December is a month that brings with it a series of celebrations, of which Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year stand out in particular. These celebrations are traditionally shared with family, and in many cases, around a table. Therefore, as these occasions approach, Global Voices pays attention to two dishes served in Central Mexico that give a specific flavour to the festive season. A considerable proportion of Mexican families have adopted the custom of eating turkey on these dates due to the influence of cultures such as that of the USA, where the dish is an essential component of Thanksgiving Day and Christmas dinners. Many families in the central region of the country (the capital, Mexico State, Puebla and Queretaro) however, prefer dishes emblematic of national Christmas cuisine: romeritos and bacalao a la Vizcaína (Biscayne style cod). Romeritos — which shouldn't be confused with the spice called romero (rosemary) — are edible herbs which are accompanied with mole, and sometimes with dried shrimp tortitas (cakes) or croquettes. Nowadays, mole is a complex dish with many variations, so much so that it is worthy of an article all to itself. However, for the purposes of this introductory piece, one need only mention that it is a sauce or gravy prepared with chillies and spices, and that when made according to the original recipe, contains around a hundred ingredients. This is how the official site México Produce explains the term ‘romeritos': Los romeritos o Suaeda torreyana son un quelite, esta palabra deriva del náhuatl quilitl, que significa “hierba comestible o verdura”. En México este término es usado para referirse a los tallos tiernos, retoños o brotes de una planta que son comestibles, por ejemplo: los quintoniles, el epazote, el pápalo, la verdolaga, el huauzontle, los berros, los romeritos, entre otros. Romeritos or Suaeda torreyana are a quelite, a word which derives from the nahuatl quilitl, meaning ‘edible herb or vegetable’. In Mexico this term is used to refer to the soft stems, shoots or sprouts of a plant which are edible. For example: quintoniles, epazote, pápalo, verdolaga (purslane), huauzontle, berros (watercress) and romeritos among others. With regards to its use as a dish for all occasions, the website adds: Se pueden comprar en los mercados populares por kilo o en grandes manojos y, a diferencia de los otros quelites, no se come crudo. Esta hierba se convierte en el centro de atención de la cena navideña cuando, acompañada de mole, nopales, papas y tortitas de camarón, se transforma en el tradicional revoltijo. They can be bought in popular markets by the kilo or in big bunches and, unlike other quelites, they aren't eaten raw. This herb becomes the centre of attention at Christmas dinner when, accompanied by mole, nopales (prickly pears), potatoes and shrimp cakes, is transformed into the traditional mish-mash. Paulina, writing for the blog Curiosidades de Cocina agrees with regards to this explanation of the stew: Image by Flickr user [ebarrera] used under terms of the CC license. Los romeritos son muy comunes en la cocina de la Ciudad de México y estados circunvecinos. A diferencia de los otros quelites, no se come crudo: siempre se cuece primero en agua, se escurre y luego se añade a salsas o guisos. Cuando le dan este hervor reduce mucho su volumen. Como les mencioné ya, es muy típico comerlo en las festividades de navidad, año nuevo y cuaresma, uno de los guisos más importantes hechos de este quelite es el revoltijo, que es un platillo con mole, nopalitos y tortitas de camarón. Romeritos are very common in cooking in Mexico City and surrounding states. Unlike the other quelites, it isn't eaten raw — it is always cooked in water first, drained, and then added to sauces or stews. This boiling reduces a lot of its volume. As I have already mentioned to you, it is very typical to eat it during Christmas festivities, New Year and Lent. One of the most important stews made from this quelite is el revoltijo (mish-mash), which is a dish with mole sauce, nopalitos and shrimp cakes. From romeritos we move on to bacalao a la Vizcaína (Biscayne style cod), something which has managed to cross the Atlantic Ocean from the Basque Country in Spain to make the journey into Mexican cuisine. As its name indicates, it is essentially made up of salted cod — fish dried by salt — in a light tomato broth (caldillo de tomate), usually served with olives, chillies and spices.