There is a lot of variety in Mexican cuisine, even though Mexico is a large country. Tacos and other staples can be found anywhere. There are certain places you will want to try the local cuisine. I tried as many Yucateco food items as possible when I visited the Yucatan in October. There are many things to try, including a cheese wheel with ground pork and an anise-flavored liquor. These are some of my favourite Yucateco food memories from my recent trip to Mexico.Cochinita pibilSlow-cooked pork with annatto and citrus flavors is the best Yucatn dish. This gives the pork a beautiful red-orange hue. The pork is traditionally wrapped in banana leaves and baked in an earth pit. Cochinita Pibil is a whole pig that has been marinated and then cooked in this manner. Merida's cochinita-pibil was delicious.Queso RellenoIt was a total surprise to me. This strange mashup was actually one of my favourite dishes on the whole trip. You may be familiar with queso relleno (chile-stuffed pepper), but the queso del relleno is different. It is the cheese that is stuffed. It's not any cheese. Queso relleno should only be made using Dutch Edam cheese. After the cheese has been hollowed out, it is stuffed with pork, nuts and raisins. Then, the cheese is steam-steamed until it is soft, but not melted everywhere. All of it is coated with sauce.Are you still not convinced by the description? The whole thing was amazing to me. It is amazing how the flavors and textures are combined. The queso de relleno shown above comes from the Museo de la Gastronomia Yucateca. This upscale restaurant serves traditional Yucateco food.Sopa de LimaA great starter is lime soup This dish is both easy and delicious. This soup is mild and made with chicken stock, chicken, lime and other spices. It also has tortilla strips and avocado as garnish. I am a big fan. This Yucateco food is one I would love to try at home. It should be simple, as opposed to some of those on the list.Relleno NegroTo be completely honest, I nearly passed up the chance to try relleno nugro. Although it looks a lot like mole, the flavor is very different and has a distinct burnt taste. Black sauce is made from a mixture of Yucateco chiles blackened, peppers and cloves as well as other spices. The black sauce can also be made with chicken or turkey, as it is more common. It can also be served with ground pork meatballs or hard boiled eggs. This Yucateco favorite is unlike any Mexican food I've ever had.XtabentnXtabentn. Shtahben-toon. Many of the words in Mexico's Yucatn were heavily influenced by Mayan or are directly carried over from Mayan. Anything that starts with an X is suspicious (note: the sh sound is made). Although the odd name of the drink I first saw was what drew my attention, once I discovered what it was, I knew I had to try it.Xtabentn, a special liqueur made from fermented honey and flavored by anise seed, is a unique liqueur. It is then mixed with rum to create a thick, super sweet final product. It is not something you would want to consume straight, although I tried it that way. It's great when it is combined with the right cocktails.Last ThoughtsOther Yucateco dishes I haven't tried include papadzules (a breakfast dish) and huevos motulenos (a dessert). I tried poc-chuc which is a grilled pork dish with sour orange flavor. It was not as good as the cochinita piibil. However, it may have been the restaurant I went to.Overall, I enjoyed the Mrida food. Yucatn was a great place to eat when traveling.Are you a Yucatn resident? Which Yucateco food do you think is the best?
