Sweets by the handful
Walk through a Mexican market and, somewhere between the fruit and the spices, there is usually a stall of sweets. Jars and trays hold candies wrapped in paper, bars cut into squares, pastes in bright colours, brittle cut from large slabs, and bags of dried fruit dusted with chile. This article is a tour of that everyday world, as opposed to the more elaborate desserts of the dinner table. The types listed here are common and well known, but what is sold and what it is called changes from region to region.
Tamarind
Tamarind pods, with their brown, sticky, sweet-sour pulp, are among the most important ingredients in the Mexican candy stall. The tree is not native to Mexico, and it arrived with colonial trade, but it has become thoroughly local. The pulp is mixed with sugar and often with chile to form candies shaped into balls, bars or paste, sometimes sold in a squeezable tube or a paper wrapper.
Tamarind also underlies refreshing drinks and flavours, a topic that belongs to the discussion of tamarind drinks. In candy form, the combination of sour, sweet and salty-spicy is typical of Mexican snack taste, and it surprises many first-time visitors.
Chile and sweetness
Pairing fruit or sugar with chile powder, salt and lime is a hallmark of Mexican snack culture. Mango, jicama, pineapple and cucumber are commonly eaten in this way, and many candies follow the same logic with powders or sauces based on dried chiles. Some of these products are very hot, and parents may want to check labels or taste a little first. Candies from unknown makers are best bought from reputable sellers, because small-batch products vary in ingredients and handling.
Sweet potato and fruit pastes
Camote, or sweet potato, is cooked with sugar until it becomes a firm paste, then cut into sticks and sold in wrappers. In the city of Puebla in particular, it is a well-known product, in flavours such as pineapple, strawberry, guava and lime. Camote’s origins lie partly in convent kitchens, a subject treated in the discussion of convent sweets.
Related are the fruit pastes known as ate, made from guava, quince or other fruit cooked with sugar until they set. They are sliced and eaten as they are, or with cheese, a pairing that appears in several regions. Dried and sugared fruit, from small whole tejocotes to slices of pumpkin, round out the fruit side of the stall.
Amaranth and seeds
Alegrias, made from popped amaranth held together with syrup, are among the oldest-rooted sweets, thanks to the grain’s pre-Hispanic history. They are typically sold in rectangular bars or discs and may include peanuts, raisins or chocolate. Seed sweets in general are common: pumpkin seeds appear in brittle bars, in pastes and in milk-based fudge. These sweets give a good sense of how native ingredients were adapted into candy.
Peanuts, brittle and cocadas
Palanquetas are slabs of brittle, typically made with peanuts or pumpkin seeds and a hot sugar syrup that hardens as it cools. Pepitorias are similar bars made of pumpkin seeds. Mazapan, a crumbly peanut sweet, is among the most widely recognised Mexican candies, and one well-known brand is closely associated with Jalisco, where it is part of the wider picture of Jalisco cuisine. Despite sharing a name with the almond confection of Spain, Mexican mazapan is usually made from peanuts.
Cocadas, made of grated coconut cooked in sugar, appear in chewy or baked versions, sometimes coloured or flavoured with fruit. These are especially associated with warm, coastal areas.
Milk candies
Milk-based sweets are a large category. Cajeta, a thick caramel of goat’s milk, is sometimes sandwiched between thin wafers called obleas, a simple street snack. Jamoncillo is a milk fudge. Glorias, small candies of caramelised milk and nuts, are associated with northern Mexico, especially Nuevo Leon. Milk candies are generally soft and sweet, and best kept cool because of their dairy content.
Where they are sold
Many sweets are found at the fixed stalls of permanent markets, while others are sold by roving vendors, at church festivals, and outside schools and bus stops. How markets are organised, and the difference between daily and weekly ones, is discussed in the material on tianguis markets, and fresh fruit and vegetables are described in the guide to market produce. Sweets often belong to the same culture as fairground snacks, where candy, fried treats and sweet drinks are sold together during local celebrations.
Candy is also part of festivals. Sugar skulls and small candies appear for the Day of the Dead, and sweets fill piñatas at posadas and birthday parties, though the exact contents depend on family and region.
Regional and home-made
Handmade sweets can be very local. Small producers in particular towns may be known for one product, whether a type of brittle, a candied fruit or a milk sweet, and people often bring these home as gifts. At home, many families make a few simple sweets, such as candied pumpkin or pumpkin seed bars, using piloncillo sugar and an ordinary pot. If you make candy yourself, remember that hot sugar syrup can cause severe burns, so keep children away from the stove and use heat-proof tools.
A practical note
If you are trying Mexican sweets for the first time, it may help to sample in small amounts across the categories: something sour and chile-spiced, something seed-based, something milky and something fruity. Dried and powdered ingredients vary in strength and sweetness, and labels should be checked if you have allergies, since nuts, peanuts, sesame and dairy are common ingredients in market sweets.