Mexico: One Plate at a Time (2003)

Season 1: Episode 15

Chiles are the hot, spicy peppers that are used solely to make Mexican food so incendiary, right? Wrong. Starting with a trip to a chile stall in Mexico City’s Merced Market, Rick deftly debunks the most common myths about the role of chiles in Mexican cooking. We learn that like grapes and raisins, chiles all get completely new names when they go from fresh to dried. They are, Rick tells us, a vegetable, a spice and most importantly, a flavor ingredient. And nowhere is the flavor of the dried chile celebrated more deliciously than in the famous preparation, Adobo. Rick makes a juicy Chicken in Adobo, roasted in a purée of ancho chiles, garlic and oregano. On a visit to the beautiful San Angel restaurant, a former hacienda in the Mexican countryside, he checks out the pork in adobo and another surprising Mexican invention, Caesar salad.