welcome to New Mexico

The Traditional Flavors of New Mexico

Need some spice in your life? Sample some of New Mexico’s specialty food items. The cuisine was shaped primarily by the dynamic mix of Native and Hispanic dishes. Early travelers on the Santa Fe Trail also introduced foodstuffs such as flour and canned goods. Today, fine bistro chefs have added their own touch to create tasty new Southwestern dishes.

Sample some of the state’s more traditional fare. New Mexicans accentuate nearly every meal—and sometimes dessert—with our pungent red and green chile.

Put your tongue to further use by learning how to pronounce popular foods: tortilla (tor – tee – uh; not tor- til- a), a round piece of unleavened bread made from cornmeal, wheat flour; or white flour, and bizcochito (bees-ko-chee-toh), an anise-flavored sugar cookie, designated as New Mexico’s state cookie.

Fill your glass with wine from one of our many vineyards. Spanish settlers first cultivated fields to grow grapes.

The state honors chile (even though it is technically a fruit) and frijoles (pinto beans) as New Mexico’s state vegetables. Most people are familiar with our classic enchilada plates.

Be adventurous and feast on these New Mexican favorites:
Chicharrones: fried pork cracklings
Chiles Rellenos: roasted green chile peppers stuffed with melted cheeses, dipped in egg batter and deep fried
Fry Bread: deep-fried dough topped with honey or a mix of beans, lettuce and tomatoes and then often called a Navajo taco
Sopaipilla: a deep-fried, pillow-shaped pastry best eaten with honey
Posole: corn kernels that are treated with lime; hominy.