-[Pati V.O.]
Continuing my journey in Coahuila, I drove west through the valley of Arteaga until I made it to the desert badlands of General Cepeda.
It seems that here, behind every door, there are people willing to share their table.
For me, time and food are the most sacred things people can give you.
[upbeat music] Pati's Mexican Table is brought to you by [upbeat music] Wells Fargo supports over 3 million small business customers.
[upbeat music] La costea, por sabor.
Avocados from Mexico.
[gentle music] Eggland's Best, available in your grocer's egg aisle.
Visit egglandsbest.com.
[birds chirping] [Gentle western music] -[Pati V.O.]
The maguey or agave, is such an iconic staple of Mexican cuisine and culture.
Mexico is one of the few countries that grow this plant and use it in countless ways.
Surrounded by them, I meet Emilio Arispenarro, who himself embodies the resilience and wisdom of this -ancestral cactus.
-Aqu vamos al encuentro con el seor maguey.
T los ves salvajes, llenas de espinas, amenazadoras y todo eso.
Sin embargo, es la planta ms noble que existe y un smbolo muy importante de nuestro pas.
-Esprame, que la descripcin que me acabas de dar: salvaje, una personalidad fuerte, pero bien noble, pues como que se asemeja.
[risas] Eso est as siempre?
-No.
-No, no, no.
-porque le cortaste -Ujum.
Qu parte le cortaron?
El-- lo que es el cogollo, lo que es el centro- - [Pati] Aj.
-[Emilio] Y empieza a escurrir -[Emilio] agua miel.
-[Emilio] Este es el agua miel.
[sonido de lquido vertindose] Mmm.
A ver, a ver, a ver, que te vea.
Guau!
No puede ser la dulzura.
[exclamacin de sorpresa] Mmm.
Sabe un poquito al jugo de caa, fresco, pero este est mucho ms intenso, con un poquito ms de personalidad y ms dulce.
Y est fro, adems, [risas] con el calor que hace aqu.
-[Pati V.O.]
Alongside his wife, Sofa Ochoa, they bring the bounty of this region to our kitchens by crafting every conceivable ingredient that comes from this land, like this juice.
-[Emilio] Lo envasamos, lo mezclamos con frutas, con jugos de frutas, para hacer esta miel.
-A ver.
-Prueba eso.
Mmm, no.
Bueno.
[risas] No, bueno.
-[Emilio] Qu te parece?
Qu delicia.
Est -un poquito acitronadito.
-Es un alimento.
Si, s.
Y entonces, con esto, cuando tuvieron esos aos de sequa, -[Pati] esto los salv.
-S.
Aqu lo primero que hicimos fue plantar los magueyes.
-[Pati] Ah.
-[Emilio] Y despus de que plantamos magueyes -[Pati] Empez a crecer.
-[Emilio] Empez a salir todo lo dems.
Por eso dices, Emilio, que aunque se vea san-- salvaje, es tan noble que jala no solo para s, sino para sus alrededores.
-[Emilio] As es.
Porque el maguey puede con muy, muy, muy poquita agua prosperar, crecer y sobrevivir.
-[Pati] Qu porcentaje de lo que ustedes producen viene del maguey?
-[Emilio] Nuestros animales comen maguey.
-[Pati] Aj.
-[Emilio] El maguey es parte importantsima de su alimentacin.
Hemos ido haciendo cruzas con vacas buenas para producir carne y tambin leche.
-[Pati] Tienes el maguey, tienes las vacas, tienes los borregos.
-[Pati] Qu te falta?
-[Emilio] Falta tiempo, porque la vida es corta y esto lleva muchos aos.
Que yo ah me conecto contigo.
Yo pido que me regalen ms aos para poder seguir haciendo lo que hago.
-[Pati] Platcame un poquito el rol de tu mujer.
-[Emilio] Ella est atrs de todo esto y no me deja claudicar.
-Hola!
-Qu agradable sorpresa.
-Qu gusto!
Te traje un regalit -Ay, muchas gracias.
Me encanta.
-Y quiero probar todo lo tuyo.
Pues bueno.
Pues no se diga ms, pasa, tenemos mucho que platicar.
Gracias.
-Qu belleza.
-Pues te quiero ensear el patio, mira qu lindo es.
Este limn me lo heredaron los seores Schleiman, de origen libans, que eran los dueos de esta casa.
Tiene ms de 100 aos y todava da limones divinos.
Y cuntame qu hay en los diferentes rincones.
-Ac est la panadera.
-Aj.
-[Sofa] Aqu hacemos las empanadas, los panqus.
-Y ac se hacen las tortillas de maz.
-[Pati] Guau!
-[Sofa] Y el caldo de hueso.
- [Pati] Ay, qu rico.
- [Sofa] La miel.
-Te enseo la tienda.
-S, s, s.
-[Sofa] Escog algunas cosas de lo que ms me gusta para que te lleves.
-[Sofa] Ese es el ate de membrillo.
-Yo crec comiendo de postre ate con queso, pero obvio no era ate fresco hecho en casa, era ate del ate que compraba mi mam en el sper.
-Ya.
-As que, qu lujo.
- [Sofa] Vamos a almorzar.
Y yo creo que lo que te va a faltar es estmago, porque mira, [risas] eh, tenemos yogur de leche de vaca, yogur de leche -de borrega.
-[Pati] Mmm.
- [Sofa] Tenemos las nueces.
-[Pati] Puedo probar?
- [Sofa] S, por supuesto.
-[Pati] Mmm.
Tu nuez est fresqusima, deliciosa.
Mmm.
A ver, me voy a poner un poquito de yogur.
-[Sofa] S.
-[Pati] A ver, este es de oveja.
Quiero comparar -con el de -[Sofa] Con el de vaca.
-[Emilio] De vaca.
-[Pati] primero voy a probar el de oveja.
De oveja, o de borrega.
[exclamacin de sorpresa] Qu delicia.
Tiene muchsima personalidad.
Y este es el de vaca.
Sabe muy diferente?
S.
-T lo, t lo dirs?
-Mmm.
-S.
-S.
A ver, este est como que est cantando en alto y este est cantando ms en bajo.
-Ya.
-S?
Exacto.
Perfecto.
Me encanta la comparacin.
Y con la leche hacemos mantequilla- -[Pati] Mhm.
-[Sofa] y hacemos quesos de diferentes Aqu en el norte, la tortilla de harina es la que manda.
-[Sofa] Las tortillas que tenemos aqu son hechas con trigos ancestrales.
-[Emilio] Que nosotros sembramos.
-Norma, mucho gusto.
-[Norma] Igualmente.
-Ya me estaba platicando -Sofa que usted es la maga de las salsas.
[risas] S.
-[Pati] S?
Platquenme de la salsa.
-[Norma] Esto tatemamos los chiles serranos.
-Serranos.
-Y la cebolla y el tomate.
-[Pati] Cul es su favorita?
-[Norma] A m me gusta la roja [risas] la brava.
-[Pati] Porque s pica mucho.
-[Norma] S, s, est picosa.
La, la roja ya vendida.
-Mhm.
Mmm.
-Mhm.
-[Pati] Me voy a hacer el taco de barbacoa.
Es barbacoa de sus borreguitos de aqu.
-[Sofa] S.
-Esprate, qu le pusiste ah?
- Le pusiste yogur?
-Ah, despus de, de la cebolla y el cilantro, una cucharada de yogur, porque le da Se marina muy bien.
Es como una crema cida.
Aj.
-Y aades un poco de sal de grano- -Mmm que est por all.
Y ahora s, la salsa que ms se te antoje, que puede ser la salsa brava.
-Eso s que no haba probado- -No, pues- barbacoa con yogur.
-Cmo se te ocurri la idea?
-A m no, se, eh, se le ocurri a mi hijo, -Uno, uno los educa a ellos y luego ellos -nos educan a uno.
-[Director] Muy libans, no?
-Muy libans, no?
-Exacto.
Como un kebab.
-[msica suave de guitarra] -El futuro de la humanidad lo podemos hacer que sea mejor simple y sencillamente si mejoramos lo que comemos.
-[Sofa] La manera de producir.
-La manera de producirlo, lo que comemos.
-Entonces, Sofa, pues yo cuando le pregunt a Emilio qu-- si vea desde arriba, como con vista de pjaro, la trayectoria de su vida y lo que han construido, le dije: Qu te falta?.
Me dijo que le faltaba tiempo.
Les digo que a m me falta tiempo para seguir conociendo a gente como ustedes, que son un ejemplo y que lo han vivido y que lo estn haciendo.
Eh La verdad que qu, qu, qu sueo, qu bonita vida tienen.
Gracias por invitarme un ratito.
-Adis!
Vuelve pronto!
-Regreso!
[msica suave de guitarra] My director, Jos, fell in love with the barbacoa.
I promised him that I would make my take of the barbacoa in Lebanese-style pita bread tacos.
So, Jos, this one's for you.
I'm using 2 different kinds of meat.
And I also have here a gift that Jos just gave me, which I'm gonna open.
[gasps] Jos, no, bueno, guau.
I'm dead.
I'm dead.
Okay, you're gonna use it with me for the 1st time to make this barbacoa.
I'm using sirloin cap that has a thick layer of fat, and it's gonna add like a nice layer of flavor and it's gonna make the meat really succulent.
So cutting it into chunks, you drop everything in here and then just let it cook.
But so we have 3 pounds of sirloin cap and 2 pounds of beef short ribs with the bone.
This is so gorgeous.
It's so incredibly flavorful.
And why am I combining 2 pieces of meat, you may ask?
Because I wanna get the best of both.
I wanna let this come to a boil.
3 tomatoes, 2 garlic cloves.
[smashing garlic] Super powerful.
Wow.
Did you see that?
No, yeah, I'm Wonder Woman now with this knife.
I'm gonna add 2 chiles verdes.
You know, chiles verdes just rule in northern Mexico.
And I used to think that the chile verdes were something like north of the border, because, you know, the chile verdes are also known as Anaheim or California chiles.
But of course not, because California was also Mexico.
Talking about the blurred borders in our cultures and cuisines.
Garlic, chiles, tomato, meat, onion We're doing a whole onion and I'm just cutting it in quarters.
Just dropping it in.
2 or 3 bay leaves, black pepper, kosher salt, or you can use sea salt, and one tablespoon oregano.
Norteo flavors.
I'm gonna cover with a lid, reduce the heat to low, and just let this simmer for 2 hours.
I'm gonna make red salsa that we tried in Muskies, where there's a restaurant called El Jacalito, and they have spectacular food, of course.
Ehm, but what they're most famous for is their salsa roja, salsa de chile de rbol, which just goes by salsa del jacalito.
The owner and the waiters told me how they make it.
They're like, you add as much chile de rboles as you want, and then you toast them.
You add enough white distilled vinegar until the chiles begin to float.
So that's what we're gonna do.
You wanna toast the chiles.
Until, [coughing] until this.
[coughing] Until you and everyone around you start to cough.
Oh, s.
Quiero abrir una puertita.
[coughing] Oh.
Okay, you start toasting the chiles until you need to open a window.
Em, let's finish the sauce.
I have your chiles de rbol, super toasted.
They go in the blender.
White distilled vinegar, which is my favorite vinegar to use for cooking, really.
Add enough until the chiles star to float.
Then garlic, as much as you want.
I love garlic, so I'm adding 4.
Black pepper, kosher salt, half a teaspoon of cumin seeds.
[blender whirring] I mean, I've made very spicy habanero salsas, but I think in terms of intensity, this is the spiciest.
We have the salsa ready.
The barbacoa is cooking along.
And now I'm gonna make the salsa de yogurt.
As I came back home, I was telling Pilar, who works with me, we've been working together for many years, that I really wanted to do this yogurt sauce.
And her husband was from Iran, and she cooks a lot of Middle Eastern food, and she shared the recipe that she loves.
So Pilar, here's your salsa de yogurt.
But as you know, I can't help myself and I need to add things, as you will too with any recipe that you like.
Make it your own.
I added some serrano chiles.
Okay, I'm gonna add 4 cups of yogurt.
5 cucumbers that I already, I cut the end and the bottom and I shredded.
So you can see.
However, the cucumbers have so much liquid.
Did you see how much liquid that was?
That's insane.
See?
When is the water going to end?
We're gonna add fresh pressed garlic.
Some, eh, spring onions, but you could also use scallions.
I'm gonna use 3.
And then we're gonna add all kinds of herbs.
Tarragon, dill, oregano.
Oregano.
Tarragon.
Okay, dill, which really reminds me of my Austrian grandmother, because, you know, in Austria, they use a lot of dill.
The smell of dill is, like, very anise-like.
3 tablespoons mint.
Then we're gonna use cilantro.
We're gonna add salt and pepper.
I'm adding chiles, beautiful slices.
Okay.
I love radishes!
My Polish grandfather used to devour radishes.
Just, like, cut in half, spread them a thick layer of butter and a sprinkle of salt, and he was a happy man.
Beautiful.
No soy buena para decorar, pero soy superantojada, so Pecans.
Pine nuts.
The green parts of the spring onions.
Olive oil.
Y ya, aqu est.
[whistling] La ollita est chillando.
Oof, this is what you want.
The barbacoa has cooked down to the point where the bone is just falling off the meat.
See?
Oof.
Look how easy it is to shred.
And the chili and the tomato are just part of it.
I'm gonna start heating a pita bread.
Let me try.
Mmm.
Okay.
Coahuila-style barbacoa, super juicy.
La salsa de yogurt, pero con un poquito de todo, with a little bit of everything.
So, ooh, some pine nuts, some radishes, some avocado, jacalito sauce.
Jos, pues, you requested this dish, so you have to come and eat it.
-This is para Jos.
-[Jos] Ah.
-Ooh.
-Gracias, Paty.
A ver, how big you need to open your mouth?
Okay, okay.
Wait.
[laughs] I didn't cross, I didn't cross.
-[laughs] -Capi.
Mmm.
Cumpleaos del Capi.
-Feliz cumpleaos, Capi.
-Muchas gracias.
Gracias.
-Mmm.
-Rico?
-[Pati V.O.]
Back on the road, I head further west from General Cepeda into Parras.
Once there, I stop at Vinos Don Leo, where the chef, Francisco Barredes, surprises -me with a picnic.
-Don Leo es el pap del fundador, de don Arturo Mendel.
-Aj.
Y su mam es Sieglinde.
Entonces, tenemos 2 marcas que son Don Leo- -Aj - y Linde.
-Okay.
-En honor a los padres de, de nuestro fundador.
Ellos son judos alemanes.
Ya su familia ya creci aqu en Coahuila.
-[Pati] Aqu, s.
-[Francisco] Y yo ya tengo aproximadamente 11 aos trabajando con ellos.
-S!
-[Francisco] La bodega tiene 14, 15 aos- -[Pati] Mmm - en funcin y en produccin.
-A ver este.
-A ver, salud.
-Salud.
Ay, gracias.
-Hombre, es un gusto.
-Mmm, s, est buensimo.
-[Francisco] Tenemos quesos que nos hacen en produccin local, como el queso Chihuahua, este quesito azul.
Algo que me llama muchsimo la atencin de la gente de aqu, del norte, de Coahuila, es lo orgullosos que estn -Claro, porque tienes - de sus productos.
que estar orgulloso de algo que t haces.
-S.
-O sea, cuando participas en la elaboracin de algo- -S - la verdad que te sientes a gusto, te sientes padre, te sientes orgulloso de lo que ests haciendo.
-S.
A ver, cul pruebo primero?
-[Francisco] Este con este.
-[Pati] Ay, ate de membrillo.
-[Pati] Es un ate, es un ate con queso de Chihuahua.
-Mmm, est buensimo el queso.
-[Francisco] Y prubalo con queso azul.
-[Pati] Deli, t te hiciste sndwich con 2 quesos.
Con 2 quesos.
A ver, a ver.
-[Pati] Amo el queso azul.
Vamos a ver.
Mmm, mmm.
[carraspea] Te iba a decir, no vuelvo a comer ate de membrillo con un queso na ms.
-[Pati] Este es el rbol de pin?
-[Francisco] Pues es uno de los rboles que nos da pin, s.
-Dnde, dnde?
-De aqu, de estas puntas- -Aj - salen las pias.
-De aqu?
-S.
-Ya hay pias secas.
-Agarramos una.
-A ver si se cae.
-Me voy a montar.
-Cmo le hago?
Me haces pie de ladrn?
-Pues s.
-Va.
-A ver, va.
S nos sale, pero dime por cul pia voy.
[risas] -[Francisco] Esta que est aqu.
-Esa?
Crees que llego?
-S, mira, si te A ver, dale.
Una, dos y 3.
[quejidos] S llego, s llego.
Voy a agarrar dos, voy a agarrar 3.
[risas] Mira, creo que ya estn demasiado secos, ya no -Y estos- -Estaran aqu adentro.
Ah, mira, tal vez -aqu hay unos secos, no?
-Mira, ndale.
-Ah, este es un pin- -S pero ya es fuera de temporada.
-S, pero ya es fuera de temporada.
[soft guitar music] -[Pati V.O.]
It is too early to see the grapes on the vines and too late to pick the pine nuts from the trees.
Yet, I was able to find some pine nuts to bake some empanadas.
I'm gonna show you how to make agave empanadas with pecans and pine nuts.
Empanadas in Mexico are of all kinds, but I'd never tasted empanadas where the dough was based with agave honey until I went to Coahuila, and I was charmed.
So here's a take on them that you can make at home.
1st, I'm going to spice up the agave honey or agave syrup.
I have my small saucepan here that I've been preheating, so I'm gonna pour it in here.
Syrup.
And I'm gonna add a couple of tablespoons of water, anise seeds, 2 teaspoons, a couple inches of this canela.
I'm gonna let it sit here, and I'm gonna let the agave honey kind of embrace the flavors from the anise seeds and the warmth of the cinnamon.
And this is gonna be the main, um, flavor of the dough.
So I'm gonna start making the dough.
I have three and a half cups of all-purpose flour, tablespoons of sugar, half a teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons of dry instant yeast.
And then I'm gonna mix my dry ingredients, and I'm gonna add 5 tablespoons of butter and 4 tablespoons of vegetable shortening, couple of eggs.
I'm gonna strain my agave syrup into this bowl.
This flavor really reminds me of Coahuila.
It's just hearty, cozy.
So with my hands, I'm just gonna break the fat into the flour until it resembles coarse meal.
See?
Like this.
And then I'm gonna add the eggs.
And then in a very slow stream, I'm going to pour that agave syrup.
I love making empanadas because, you know, being someone who's always been intim- intimidated by baking bread and making pastries and all baked goods, I feel like, um, empanadas are just very accommodating.
It's a dough that is super sticky and that you would think needs more flour 'cause it seems too wet.
One to 2 hours, you let it sit, and I'm gonna show you what it looks like.
So this is the one that I just finished mixing, and this is the one that's been resting for an hour.
See?
Oof.
[popping sound] Ah, did you hear that?
Ah, ah.
Delicious-looking dough.
This is an empanada that just has, like, a mixed nut filling, so the filling is not wet.
So it's more like a pan dulce with a filling.
You will see.
It's like a pecan pie, but with a crust outside and the filling.
So look, one cup chopped pecans, one cup of pink pine nuts.
I'm just loving these so much because I love pecans.
I'm obsessed with pink pine nuts, and they're so hard to find.
If you can find them, I mean, rejoice.
And if not, you can use normal pine nuts, or you could use any mix of nuts that you want.
I'm adding a sprinkle of salt, and then I'm adding 3 quarter cups of cranberries.
So now I have my filling.
I need 16 pieces, so I'm just eyeballing.
Half, half.
They don't have to be perfect 'cause we're gonna roll them out.
I'm gonna cover them as I roll them out.
My rolling pin.
Make a round between between 5 and 6 inches.
And it doesn't have to be perfect.
Empanadas are really very, very forgiving.
So once you have your flat round, add, like, 2 generous spoons of the nuts.
I mean, when have you seen an empanada that has a dry filling like this?
I have never, and it is so satisfying.
You can seal and decorate the empanadas in so many ways.
One kind of baroque, more complex way is to fold like this, which looks very cute.
'Cause the other easy way to do it is a fork, which you just grab a fork and you just go around.
Which also looks cute.
I'm gonna brush this with egg wash 'cause it gives it a nice finish, but it's also nice to bite into.
Then, um, you could leave it just like that, just the egg wash, but because the filling doesn't have jam or anything specially sweet, I'm doing the cinnamon sugar.
And then I have the oven at 350, and we're gonna bake it for 21 to 22 minutes until they're brown and fully cooked.
[instrumental music] So pretty.
Which one?
Which one?
Which one?
The smell of the cooked agave is so sweet, but you can see how they look inside.
It is like a piggy cookie, but stuffed and with a tang and really intricate flavor from what agave brings.
But now I'm gonna do it with cajeta.
Oof, I love cajeta so much.
Mm.
Mm.
-[Pati V.O.]
Back in Coahuila, in the hollow desert night, I know there's a fire waiting for me at the end of the road.
[instrumental music] Pati, buenas noches.
-Hola, Fede.
-Bienvenida.
-Cmo ests?
-Bien.
Un gusto saludarte.
-Gracias por esperarme, que llegu tarde.
-No, ests en tu casa.
llegas con hambre?
Pasamos a nuestra cocina para que pruebes algo.
-S, la verdad que s llegu con hambre.
-Te acompao.
-S, gracias, Fede.
Le cierro ac.
For recipes and information from this episode and more, visit patijinich.com and connect.
Find me on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, X, Pinterest, and YouTube @patijinich.
Pati's Mexican Table is brought to you by [upbeat music] Wells Fargo supports over 3 million small business customers.
[upbeat music] La costea, por sabor.
Avocados from Mexico.
[gentle music] Eggland's Best, available in your grocer's egg aisle.
Visit egglandsbest.com.
[birds chirping] Proud to support Pati's Mexican Table on public television.
[instrumental music]
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