CULINARY THUMBNAIL

Here are the most notable characteristics of this state's cuisine:

1. central valley producing fruits and vegetables
2. in semi-arid areas ranching provides fresh meat
3. extensive vineyard system supporting fine wineries

Order of gorditas with potato, plus beans and cheese accompanied by requesón (cottage cheese) and totopos (pieces of corn tortilla fried or toasted until crispy); image from city of Aguascalientes; copyright free image courtesy of "Maiscam" via Wikimedia Commons.

TRADITIONAL DISHES TO LOOK FOR

• Picadillo -- beef or pig in tomato sauce
• Costillas con Papas Fritas -- beef ribs with fried potatoes
• Carnitas de Cerdo -- little chunks of roasted pig especially favored here

FRUITS

• Durazno -- peaches
• Guayaba -- guava

SWEETS

• Cajetas -- often a gelatin, traditionally congealed in a round box four or five inches across, made of thin wood slivers; there are cajetas de leche (based on milk), cajetas de membrillo (quince), cajetas de guayaba (guava), and many others

Information on this page based on material presented in Gastronomía: Atlas cultural de México, 1988, an extensive and well illustrated work by various authors, published by the Secretaría del Educación Pública, Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico City.