The food of the plaza
Festivals in Mexico, from patron saint fairs to town anniversaries, spill into the plaza, the church courtyard and the surrounding streets. Around the music, rides and stalls, vendors sell snacks that are easy to eat standing up. These fairground snacks are a distinct category from the dishes served at home. They are cheap in spirit, quick to prepare in front of the customer, and strongly tied to the sensory memory of a visit to the fair.
The three most famous are elote, esquites and churros, though a typical fair also includes fruit cups, fried foods and sweets.
Elote
Elote is corn on the cob, usually from a large, starchy variety harvested when mature but still moist, rather than the sweet corn eaten in some other countries. It is boiled in a big pot or roasted over charcoal, then served on a stick.
The toppings are what make it recognisable. A vendor will typically spread mayonnaise or sometimes a mix of mayonnaise and crema over the cob, roll it in grated cheese such as cotija, and sprinkle on chile powder and a squeeze of lime. Variations include butter, salt, hot sauce, and in some places a dusting of crushed snack chips. The finishing toppings follow the same logic as those placed on other dishes: salt, fat, acid and heat.
Grilled elote has a smoky edge, and boiled elote is juicier and softer. Which one a person prefers is often a matter of local habit.
Esquites
Esquites are the same idea in a cup. Corn kernels are cooked, usually with a sprig of epazote herb, some onion and chile, in a pot, then spooned into a cup with a little of the cooking broth. They are topped with mayonnaise, cheese, chile powder and lime, as with elote, and eaten with a spoon.
The name and the preparation vary by region. In central Mexico the word “esquites” is common, and in other regions the same cup of corn may be called by a different name, such as “elote en vaso” (corn in a cup). Some versions are cooked with butter or epazote and stay a little soupy, others are drier and fried briefly on a griddle. The article on epazote herb explains why that leaf matters in so many pots.
Corn is the thread running through all of these snacks, tying them to the same crop discussed in the milpa system, and the cup has the practical advantage of being easier to eat while walking.
Churros
Churros are strips of fried dough, ridged from being piped through a star-shaped nozzle, then rolled in sugar and cinnamon. Mexican churros are often long and thin, and may be filled with cajeta (goat milk caramel), chocolate or sweetened condensed milk. Hot chocolate or atole is a common drink with them. The origins of churros are debated, and they are generally thought to have come to Mexico from Spain, with local filling and serving habits developed over time. The wider family of fried masa and dough snacks is explored in the article on fried masa.
Fresh churros are best, since they go soft quickly. Hot oil is a hazard: if cooking at home, keep the pot stable, use a thermometer, never leave hot oil unattended, and keep children away.
Other fairground foods
The range depends on the region and the season, and it is long enough that a list can only be a sample.
- Fruit cups and cut fruit: jicama, cucumber, mango and pineapple with lime, salt and chile powder.
- Chicharrones and fried snacks: wheels of fried flour, sold with hot sauce.
- Tostadas and small antojitos: bite-sized corn dishes, sopes and quesadillas.
- Candy and sweets: sugar-coated peanuts, tamarind candy, cotton candy and coconut sweets, which overlap with regional dulces tipicos.
- Roasted or boiled sweet potato and plantain: often sold from carts that whistle at night in some cities.
- Drinks: aguas frescas, atole, and in some places fermented or alcoholic drinks sold at specific stalls (for adults only).
Eating from festival stands
Street food is an important part of Mexican food culture and is often excellent, but it calls for ordinary good sense. A few general precautions help.
- Choose busy stands, where food turns over quickly and is cooked in front of you.
- Look for food served hot, and for clean utensils and surfaces.
- Be careful with raw items such as cut fruit, cheese and creams if you are unaccustomed to the local conditions, or if you are pregnant, elderly or have a weakened immune system.
- Bottled or properly treated drinks are safer than ice of unknown source if you are unsure.
- If you have allergies, ask about ingredients such as peanuts, dairy and mayonnaise-based dressings.
These are general suggestions, not guarantees, and risk is never zero with food prepared outdoors.
The social side
What people remember is often the setting more than the snack: the bench in the plaza, the paper tray, and a vendor calling out the order. For many families, the fair is the one time a year they eat certain items. Elote and churros are available year-round in many cities, but the festival setting changes the meaning, in the same way that the street food culture of Mexico connects ordinary and special days.