Mexican Food Appetizers

Mexican food has a tangy flavor to it, which makes it impossible to resist! And then there is such a wide variety of tasty foods available, that one often gets confused about what to eat and what not to! Another specialty of Mexican cuisine is that it is brightly decorated, which makes it even more tempting! If you are a bean lover, Mexican food can rightly be your staple food, as almost every Mexican dish does contain bean and corn. The simple reason for it is that corn is the main grain produced in Mexico. Talking about spices, cinnamon, chile powder, epazote, oregano, cumin and cilantro are some of the widely used spices. So now you know what gives Mexican food its spicy taste! So are you curious to know some of the mouth-watering Mexican food appetizers? Here are some of the most popular traditional Mexican appetizers for you.

Mexican Appetizer Recipes

Tortilla Soup Recipe
Ingredients

• Chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 cups chicken broth or homemade chicken stock
• 1 medium anaheim, poblano or jalapeno chile, seeded, veins removed, chopped (depending on the hotness and flavor desired. You can also mix chilies - 1 Anaheim and a half jalapeno.)
• 6 (6-inch) corn tortillas, preferably a little old and dried out
• 1 cups shredded cooked chicken
• cup grape seed oil, peanut cooking oil, other high smoke-point oil
• 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 lime, cut into wedges
• 1 ripe medium avocado
• 1 small onion, chopped ( cup)
• tsp coarse salt (kosher or sea salt)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• cup shredded cheese (2 oz)

Process

If the tortillas are fresh, bake them for 10 - 15 minutes at 200 F, to dry them out. Cut the tortillas into half and then cut them further into inch strips. Heat oil in a 3-quart saucepan. Fry the tortillas, at a time, until crisp and brown. Once brown, remove and drain on paper towels. Keep aside. Heat the remaining oil, and cook onion for about 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Now add in chile and garlic. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring until the ingredients are crisp-tender. Add in broth, salt and tomatoes and heat the mixture until it boils. Reduce the heat, cover it and cook for another 15 minutes, just simmer. Add in chicken and heat until hot. While serving, peel the avocado and cut into 1-inch slice. Divide half the tortilla strips in 4 serving bowls. Pour the soup and top with cheese and avocado. Garnish the remaining tortilla strips and cilantro. You can also serve with lime wedges, to make it more decorative.

Veg Quesadillas
Ingredients

• 1 large clove, finely chopped fresh garlic
• 1 cup Mexican cheese, divided
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• cupthick and chunky salsa
• 1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
• 2 tsp margarine or butter
• 1 cup red bell pepper strips
• 4 (8") soft taco-size flour tortillas

Process

Heat vegetable oil over medium heat in a large skillet. When heated, put mushrooms, garlic and bell pepper. Cook for about 1 - 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add in spinach, cook until spinach turns tender. Spread half of this mixture into a tortilla and sprinkle half of the cheese, on top of it. Place the second tortilla over it. Take a large pan and melt margarine in it, over medium-high heat. Place quesadilla in the skillet and cook for about 2 minutes on both the sides. Let the cheese melt. Repeat the same with all others.

Empanadas
Ingredients

• 2 hard-cooked eggs, peeled and chopped
• cup shortening
• cup raisins
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 quart oil for frying, or as needed
• 1 pounds ground beef
• 1 cups water, or as needed
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 pinch salt
• tsp ground black pepper
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp cumin

Process

Stir flour and salt together in a bowl. Make small pieces of shortening or cut it with a pastry blender, into small crumbs. Using a fork, stir in water, just a few tbsp at a time, only until it forms a ball. Once it is formed into a ball, flatten it slightly, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for about an hour. Now heat oil in a pan, over medium heat. Fry onions until tender, add in beef, sprinkle paprika, salt, black pepper and cumin. Cook until beef becomes brownish and then stir frequently. Once cooked, drain the excess oil and then add vinegar along with raisins. Refrigerate for chilling. When chilled, add in hard-cooked eggs. Take the prepared dough and form small balls out of it, about 2 inches in size. Roll out each ball and spoon in the meat mixture, into the center and fold one part, into half-moon shapes. Do not forget to seal the edges with your fingers. Now take a deep fryer and heat oil to 365 F. At a time, place only one or two pieces in the fryer. Fry from both the sides, turning once, for about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels and serve.

These were some of the traditional Mexican appetizer recipes. These Mexican food appetizers were some of my personal favorites. There are many others which taste as good as these. So now when you are bugged up with the usual pizzas and burgers, you can try some Mexican cuisine, which will surely awaken your taste buds!