Vanilla is much more than a dessert ingredient in Papantla, a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz once famous for producing the spice. Local artisans braid vanilla’s dark stems, and several restaurants offer a variety of vanilla-infused dishes. Irma Cortés Ramírez, a chef at Nakú, created Shrimp in Vanilla Sauce while experimenting in the Papantla restaurant’s kitchen. As a child in Papantla, she watched as her grandparents added vanilla to atole and to a chayote squash soup. The spice, she said, gives her shrimp dish “a sweet touch, a touch of love.”
Related Posts
Here are 2024’s James Beard Award nominees in L.A. and California
In January, 18 of L.A.’s most beloved pop-ups, restaurants, bakers, rising-star talents and established names earned nods as semifinalists for…
Here’s how to make Highly Likely’s NA-spresso martini Recipe
The ubiquity of the espresso martini can’t be understated. Especially within the last five years, the cocktail has become a…
Lupe and Cecilia Del Rivo’s Pizzelle Recipe
Crisp and light as air or chewy and sturdy, the consistency of the iconic pizzella depends on preference and pizzelle…