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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Morelos
Large, thick corn tortilla taco topped with red rice and a stew-like filling such as chile relleno, milanesa, or boiled egg. It originated in Morelos and is the taco most associated with the state, from Cuautla to Cuernavaca.
Traditional dish from Morelos
Also known as: tacos acorazados, taco de arroz
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Taco acorazado — Morelos, Mexico
The taco acorazado is the Morelos taco. On a large, thick handmade corn tortilla, or on two tortillas stacked, goes a layer of red rice and, on top, a stew-like filling. The best-known fillings are chile relleno, milanesa and boiled egg, among many other stews. The assembly is so hearty you need both hands.
Its origin is attributed to Cuautla, in the eastern part of the state. The most common story tells of a vendor who sold rice tacos at the town’s train station in the 1940s. During World War II, when the large warships called battleships were being talked about, a customer allegedly asked for a well-armed taco, like a battleship, and the name stuck. Other versions trace the origin earlier, to sugarcane workers in Morelos.
From the east of the state, the taco acorazado spread to Cuernavaca, where it became the market and street-stall breakfast, and from there to Mexico City, where it inspired the guisado tacos.
In markets, stalls display the stews in clay pots, and each person chooses theirs, with chili sauce on top.
Morelos
Rice-and-stew taco born in Morelos, with origins attributed to Cuautla and fame in Cuernavaca.
Large, thick corn tortilla (or two), red rice and a stew-like filling such as chile relleno, milanesa or boiled egg; chili sauce.
With both hands, immediately after being assembled, with chili sauce on top.
All year round, especially at breakfast and lunch, in markets and street stalls.
Your questions
It’s a taco made with a large, thick tortilla, topped with red rice and a stew-like filling, typical of Morelos.
According to tradition, because of the battleships of World War II: the taco, being so substantial, seemed as well-armed as a battleship.
In the markets and street stalls of Cuernavaca and Cuautla, especially in the morning.
Flavors of Mexico
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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.
Desert distilled spirit made from the heart of the sotol or sereque plant, which is not agave — roasted, fermented and distilled. It has a denomination of origin and is the drink most closely associated with Chihuahua, which produces the majority of it.
Tacos of pork seasoned with a chile adobo, roasted on a vertical spit (the trompo), and served in a corn tortilla with pineapple, onion and cilantro. They descend from the tacos árabes brought to Puebla by Middle Eastern immigrants and took their current form in Mexico City taquerías.
Pozole made with pork and hominy cooked until nearly no broth remains, served on a plate (not in a bowl), with tostadas, lettuce, radish, onion and lime. It’s Colima’s version of pozole and one of the state’s signature dishes.
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Thin, crispy batter cooked on a round griddle and rolled like a tube, filled with queso de bola, a cheese of the Edam type. A street sweet from Mérida, created by a family of ice-cream makers in the city and sold at night from carts in the plazas.
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The darkest of Oaxaca’s moles: a thick sauce of chiles toasted almost to the point of burning, including the chilhuacle negro, with chocolate, seeds and spices. A celebratory dish of the state, prepared mainly in the Valles Centrales.
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Sweet wheat bread fermented with pulque, the agave fermented drink, instead of common yeast, and sweetened with piloncillo. It is Saltillo’s traditional bread in Coahuila, a legacy of the meeting between Spanish wheat and pulque.
Small corn masa tortillas dyed red with dried chili, filled with cheese and onion, folded into a half-moon and griddled on a comal. They are the most representative dish of San Luis Potosí, declared a state heritage.
Raw shrimp butterfly-cut and cured in lime with chiltepín chile, served with cucumber and red onion. It originated in the mountains of Sinaloa as a meat broth with water and chile and reached the coast, where shrimp took the place of meat. It is presented as the state’s most representative dish.
Distilled spirit from Agave angustifolia, roasted in an earth oven, fermented and distilled in the Sierra of Sonora. It is named after the town of Bacanora and has a denomination of origin exclusive to Sonora since 2000.
Freshwater fish with a long snout, grilled whole over coals and eaten with tortilla, lime, salt and chile amashito. It lives in the rivers and lagoons of Tabasco and is one of the state’s most representative dishes, with roots in pre-Hispanic cuisine of the southeast.
Distilled spirit from blue agave named after the city of Tequila, in Jalisco, surrounded by agave fields. It has a designation of origin since 1974, and the agave landscape and the region’s old industrial facilities are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Salad of romaine lettuce leaves with a dressing of egg, lemon, garlic, olive oil and Parmesan cheese, served with croutons. It was created in Tijuana by the Italian cook Caesar Cardini on July 4, 1924, according to Tijuanan historian José Fernando Escobedo de la Torre.
Dark, thick mole made from dried chiles thickened with corn dough, with pork, served in clay bowls with long tamales. It is the festival dish of Tlaxcala and an intangible cultural heritage of the state.
Red snapper cooked in a tomato sauce with olives, capers, garlic, onion, herbs and pickled chiles güeros or jalapeños. A coastal Veracruz dish, from the Gulf of Mexico, considered one of the country's best-known fish recipes.
Pork marinated in achiote and bitter orange, wrapped in banana leaf and slowly cooked in an earth oven, the pib. A Sunday family dish from Yucatán that combines the pig brought by the Spaniards with a Mayan cooking technique.
Pork stew in a thick sauce of dried chilies fried in lard, with orange, chocolate, cinnamon and clove. It is the wedding dish of Zacatecas and the most important dish in the state’s cuisine.
