At the Table with Margarita Carrillo Arronte

Margarita Carillo Arronte is a living legend. A chef, author, TV host, restaurateur, and global ambassador of Mexican cuisine, she spent the last 35 years researching, studying, testing, and compiling the recipes collected in Mexico: The Cookbook. The unprecedented 700 recipes contained within the book’s beautifully photographed pages showcase the rich diversity and flavors that span the Mexican geographic, cultural, and culinary landscape.

Trained at the Culinary Institute of America, Cultura Culinaria/UNAM, Carillo Arronte is the former owner of Don Emiliano in Los Cabos, Baja, Turtux restaurant in Mexico City, and La Colina in Tokyo, Japan. She has been a member of Slow Food International since 1996 and is a member of the Conservatory of the Gastronomic Culture of Mexico, the group responsible for the campaign that earned Mexican cuisine recognition by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Currently, she’s hosting the third season of her 13 Episode TV series for El Gourmet channel in Latin America, which has featured the traditions and cuisines of Oaxaca, Puebla, and most recently "The Cuisine from the Stone: Metates y Molcajetes, Cocina tradicional Mexicana.”

Thanks to these achievements and more, Carillo Arronte is highly regarded within the culinary community. British cookbook author and food star Thomasina Miers says “Margarita is the embodiment of everything that I love about Mexico…a definite hero,” and celeb chef Pati Jinich says she has “long been an admirer of [her] work.”

All of the accolades made us curious, so we combed through the cookbook to see what all the fuss was about. Turns out, the accolades are more than well-deserved. Carillo-Arronte is the real deal, and Mexico: The Cookbook is so stunning we decided to feature it in the November issue – our food issue! – of Latina Magazine.

To get a little insight to the woman behind the food, we asked Carillo-Arronte about her favorite ingredients, insider cooking secrets, and best-loved food memories. Here’s what she had to say.

Next, what the chef craves and her favorite cities to dine in… [pagebreak]

Dish you crave from your abuela:

We never called [her] abuela, always abuelita. Enchiladas Coloniales and Christmas food.

Secret ingredient to make a dish pop: 

The use of unusual, high quality ingredients and balance in flavors.

Favorite Latin restaurant in the U.S.: 

Topolobampo in Chicago.

Favorite Latin restaurant in the world:

This is an extremely difficult question. There are great Latin restaurants all over the world! It would be unfair to mention only one.

Favorite cities to dine in: 

Paris, Mexico City, New York.

Secret to a perfect dinner party: 

Good friends, good quality food, good music, good wines.

Biggest food indulgence: 

Excellent quality cheese and bread and seafood.

Next, the chef shares her ideal meals… [pagebreak]

Favorite vegetables: 

Mushrooms, tomatoes, and avocados.

Best food memory: 

Sunday lunches in my parent’s house, birthdays, and Christmas.

Ideal breakfast, lunch and dinner: 

Breakfast: Excellent coffee; bread and butter or freshly made corn or wheat tortillas (it depends where I am); fresh seasonal fruit; a bowl of “drowned “ eggs in a very well seasoned sauce or comal; quesadillas or barbacoa tacos with a cup of its steaming broth or a bowl of Menudo (tripe).

Lunch: A small, hearty soup is a must! Fresh sea food, grilled or barely cooked with a leafy salad and a glass of wite wine (bubbles are always welcome).

Dinner: Mexican tacos or a slice of crusty bread with cheese; a glass of seasonal fruit agua fresca or a glass of wine.

Favorite Latin cocktail: 

A margarita or a mojito.

Favorite kitchen gadget: 

My KitchenAid beater.

Perfect song to cook to: 

I love classic and romantic Mexican music.

Most adventurous food you eat:   

Mexican insects tacos.

Favorite fusion: 

Asian-Mexican.

Tip for at-home cooks:

Prepare your mise en place before you start cooking.