Hi Karen,

No, I do not have plans to have a restaurant in NYC. We are happy in Chicago!


Sincerely,
Rick

Hi Greg,
That sounds great! The beauty of Mexican Everyday is that you really can adapt any recipe to suit your likes. Thanks for writing and let me know how it turns out.


Sincerely,
Rick

I could outline a whole course on the topic of what to grow for my style of cooking, but I'll start with some simple stuff. Grow some heirloom tomatoes (try the Zapotec Pleated) and tomatillos (purple tomatillos are my favorites). If you don't have access to banana leaves very easily, order a dwarf plant from one of the on-line sources like Logees. You'll certainly want chiles; I'd suggest growing habaneros, serranos, poblanos and chilacas (all do well in large pots in full sun). And for herbs, I'd choose epazote and Mexican oregano; cilantro is harder to grow and cheap at practically every market. You can find seeds for most of these plants at Johnnyseeds.com and Seedsofchange.com.
Hope this helps.


Sincerely,
Rick

Catharina
Sad to say that it's next to impossible to find a good heavy Molcajete
in the U.S. But if you're not going to Mexico anytime soon check out this company.
The CMC Company
Avalon, NJ
1 800 CMC 2780


Sincerely,
Rick

My roasting pan is aluminum (Lincoln Wearever Roast Pan - 20X17.5X7) and most restaurant supply stores carry it or will order it for you. I imagine that the pan you're talking about will work, but just remember: your pit should be six to eight inches bigger than the pan all the way around. If the pit's too big, you'll loose too much heat in the open spaces.


Sincerely,
Rick

Typically in Mexico, the word is written chaya. Though it is hard to find in the United States, you can go to the following link and purchase plants: http://toptropicals.com/cgi-bin/garden_catalog/cat.cgi?uid=Cnidoscolus_chayamansa. It should do fine in California, but keep in mind that it likes well drained soil, heat, not too much water and full sun. It will do fine in a large pot, but wont thrive the way it will in the ground. Good luck!


Sincerely,
Rick

Sincerely,
Rick

Hey Amanda,
This recipe is one of my favorite things I enjoyed in the Yucatan. It is
in "Mexican Kitchen", but I figured we might as well share it with
everyone. Thanks,
Rick Bayless
Serves 6 as a hearty breakfast or supper
For 3 cups Essential Simmered Tomato-Habanero Sauce:
2 1/4 pounds (4 large round, 14 to 17 plum) ripe tomatoes
1/4 to 1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 medium white onion, thinly sliced
1 1/2 fresh habanero chiles, halved
Salt, a generous 3/4 teaspoon
2 very ripe plantains
1 1/2 to 2 cups Classic Mexican Fried Beans
OR coarsely-mashed, seasoned black beans (homemade or canned)
6 ounces good ham (I love dry country-style ham), cut in thin strips 1/4
inch wide by 2 inches long
1 1/3 cups (about 2/3 of a 10-ounce package) frozen peas, defrosted, (or fresh peas, steamed until tender)
1/2 cup (about 2 ounces) crumbled Mexican queso fresco or pressed salted farmer's cheese
6 eggs
6 crisp-fried tostadas (store-bought or homemade)
1. Making 3 cups Essential Simmered Tomato-Habanero Sauce. Roast the tomatoes on a baking sheet 4 inches below a very hot broiler until blistered and blackened on one side, about 6 minutes; flip and roast the other side. Cool, then peel, collecting all juices with the tomatoes. In a food processor or blender, coarsely puree the tomatoes and juices.
In a medium-size (2- to 3-quart) saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium. Add the onion and fry, stirring regularly, until deep golden, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes and chile halves and simmer over medium-low 15 minutes or so, stirring often, until the sauce is beginning to thicken but still juicy looking. Taste and season with salt; remove the chile halves.
2. Completing the basics. Peel the plantains, then cut them into diagonal slices 1/4 inch thick. Heat 2 to 3 tablespoons of the vegetable oil in a large (10- to 12-inch) well-seasoned or nonstick skillet (you'll need a lid) over medium, and lay in the plantain slices in a single layer. (If they won't fit comfortably, fry them in 2 batches). Fry for 3 or 4 minutes per side, until richly browned. Drain on a baking sheet lined with paper towels and keep them in a warm oven.
In a small pan, warm the beans over low heat. Mix together the ham strips and the peas in another small pan or dish, and warm them over low heat or in a microwave oven. Crumble the cheese into a small bowl and set aside. Set the pan of tomato sauce over low heat.3. Finishing the dish. Measure 1 to 2 tablespoons of the oil into the large skillet and set over medium to medium-low heat. Crack the eggs into the skillet, cover and cook 1 minute. Uncover and cook until the whites are set, 1 to 2 minutes longer, but the yolks are still soft (if you like them that way). If they won't all fit in the pan, cook them in batches, remove from the heat and keep warm in a low oven.
Spread a portion of beans over each tostada, then set in the middle of each of 6 warm dinner plates. Carefully slide an egg onto each, drizzle the sauce over and around the eggs, letting it run off onto the plate around each tostada. Sprinkle each plate with the ham, peas and cheese, decorate with plantain slices and your beautiful creations are ready to be carried to the table.


Sincerely,
Rick

Season 5 recipes are located on rickbayless.com, TELEVISION, Season 5 recipes. Thanks for watching,


Sincerely,
Rick

Hi Kevin,
Thank you for supporting the show. Mexico-One Plate at a Time airs on
PBS. You can probably check your local station for times. As for Season 5 DVD's they should be available on our website in the next couple of months.


Sincerely,
Rick

I have my Sunday's and Monday's to relax. I hang out with my family, see movies and plays and basically pretty regular stuff! (Gilmore Girls with my daughter)....
As far as my shirts: I do a lot of vintage shopping--in Chicago. I sometimes order from the catalogue Clark's Register for cool, contemporary stuff.
Thanks,


Sincerely,
Rick

Hi Elke:

Thanks for watching! And yes, I am really loving my dancing--did you check out the video? As far as enchilada sauce--was there one from the show that you are interested in? I have all of the recipes from the TV shows posted on rickbayless.com. Let me know and I will help you out!


Sincerely,
Rick

Chicago actually has about the best selection of fresh, traditionally made corn tortillas in the United States. When my friends come from Mexico, they marvel at the qualitysome even say the flavor and texture of ours surpasses most of what you can find in Mexico City right now. My favorite tortillerias in Chicago are El Popocatpetl (which for 20 years has supplied our restaurant with the fresh-ground corn masa that we use to make the handmade tortillas we serve); Atotonilco is similar. El Milagro is another wonderful tortilleria, offering a slightly different flavor in their corn masa. All are located in the Pilsen area, but distribute their tortillas to most all the Mexican groceries in town. I know some of them also supply Mexican groceries in the suburbs, but my experience buying Mexican ingredients in your area isnt very extensive. For a great experience, visit one of the tortillerias for just-baked corn tortillas. Their aroma will fill your car on the way hopebegging you to taste at least one on the drive.


Sincerely,
Rick

Hi L.A.
I hope you found the show on PBS. Your husband is one lucky man to benefit from such great cooking! The following places have plants and or seeds:
Companion Plants Athens, OH 614-592-4643
Johnny's Selected Seeds Albion, ME 207-437-9294
Seeds of Change Santa Fe, NM 505-438-8080
Shepard's Garden Seeds Torrington, CT 860-482-3638


Sincerely,
Rick

The flavor of carne seca (jerky) is so deep and rich, I think it works well as a flavoring for broth. In our restaurant, we often simmer carne seca in some beef broth (double whammy of flavor) for several hours with roasted garlic and herbs like bay, thyme and marjoram. That makes a wonderful base for a sopa ranchera (quick-fry diced tomato, green chile and onion; simmer with the strained broth and serve with cilantro and more chile if you wish). If you have time, pound the machaca fine, then fry it crisp in a little oil and sprinkle it over the soup as you serve. Pounded jerky can be fried crisp (just to give it a wonderful toastiness), then simmered with some roasted tomato-green chile sauce until the meat is completely tender. Makes a wonderful taco filling.


Sincerely,
Rick