Flavors · Chiapa de Corzo

Pepita con tasajo

Salted, dried beef — tasajo — cooked in a thick sauce of ground pumpkin seeds, with tomato and rice. It is the celebratory dish of Chiapa de Corzo, served especially during the January Fiesta Grande, the Parachicos festival.

Traditional dish from Chiapa de Corzo, Chiapas

Also known as: tasajo con pepita

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Mexico
Mexico
Pepita con tasajo — Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico
Pepita con tasajo
Pepita con tasajo — Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico
Pepita con tasajo
Pepita con tasajo — Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico
Pepita con tasajo
Pepita con tasajo — Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico
Pepita con tasajo

Pepita con tasajo — Chiapa de Corzo, Mexico

Pepita con tasajo brings together two elements: pepita, toasted and ground pumpkin seed that gives the sauce its color and texture, and tasajo, beef cut into thin sheets, salted and dried. The meat is cooked and shredded or cut into pieces, then combined with the pepita sauce with tomato and rice until it becomes a thick stew, greenish or orange in color depending on the recipe.

Chiapa de Corzo, on the banks of the Grijalva River near the Sumidero Canyon, has a cuisine that mixes Zoque and Spanish heritage. Pepita con tasajo is the city’s most associated dish: it is highlighted in the gastronomic guide of Chiapa de Corzo published by the Chiapas Secretariat of Tourism, alongside cochito horneado, sopa de chipilín and other regional dishes.

The dish is tied to the Fiesta Grande, held from January 4 to 23 in honor of the Señor de Esquipulas, San Antonio Abad and San Sebastián, when the Parachicos, wooden-masked dancers, parade through the streets. The festival was inscribed by UNESCO in 2010 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. At the festival meals, pepita con tasajo is the main dish, and its preparation is lengthy and made in large quantities.

Outside January, the dish can be found at the municipal market near the former Santo Domingo convent and in the city’s regional cuisine restaurants year-round.

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Where it comes from

Chiapa de Corzo , Chiapas
Main dish of the Fiesta Grande January meals in Chiapa de Corzo, and featured in the Chiapas Secretariat of Tourism’s gastronomic guide for the city.

Ingredients

Tasajo (salted, dried beef); toasted and ground pumpkin seeds; tomato; rice; onion and garlic; chile and achiote, according to the recipe.

How it is eaten

On the plate, with corn tortillas. It is commonly served with pozol or other regional corn and cacao beverages.

When it is eaten

Mainly during the January Fiesta Grande in Chiapa de Corzo; at restaurants and the market year-round.

Your questions

Questions about Pepita con tasajo

What is tasajo?

Beef cut into thin sheets, salted and dried. In pepita con tasajo it is cooked and mixed with a pumpkin-seed sauce.

When is the Fiesta Grande of Chiapa de Corzo?

In January. It is the Parachicos festival, inscribed by UNESCO in 2010 on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list, and pepita con tasajo is the main dish at the festival meals.

Where to eat pepita con tasajo outside the festival?

At the municipal market of Chiapa de Corzo, near the former Santo Domingo convent, and in the city’s regional cuisine restaurants year-round.

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