What Is Huarache?

The huarache is a traditional Mexican food with a long history. With its roots in the indigenous Nahuatl culture, the huarache is both a type of flat pancake and a type of sandal. Locals in the places where this food originated refer to these victuals as huaraches because they have a shape similar to a sandal.

The basic material for this food is called masa. This is a word for a kind of corn dough made from dried corn kernels. This material is often called harina or trigo in Spanish, words that translate to “flour” in English. Huarache is made from masa and stretched into flat, thin shapes.

Many different kinds of ingredients may be put on top of the flat huarache. These include various types of sauces or salsa, which are commonly made with tomatoes, garlic, onions, and herbs like cilantro, as well as diverse kinds of hot chili peppers. Along with the sauce, cooks will put different kinds of meat on top of huaraches. Some of these include pork, beef tongue, or chicken.

In addition to meat, some cooks use eggs for adding protein to huaraches. These might be combined with various types of cheese. Soft, light cheeses are commonly added to this dish, partly to balance the very hot taste of the salsa. In addition to these elements, many of these dishes might include types of beans like black beans or pinto beans. These provide additional protein for the dish. Some varieties also include lettuce or other fresh greens. All of the ingredients may make this dish somewhat challenging to eat when it served as street food or in other less formal scenarios.

To cook the huaraches, cooks commonly place this dough on a griddle or in a frying pan. A light oil coating helps to make the outside of this dish crispy. Because of the thin shape, these dough pieces don’t have to be cooked for a very long time, making this dish somewhat easy to prepare. Still, the making of huaraches requires a flat grill and other culinary accommodations, and while some vendors are able to generate these foods with very primitive setups, other restaurants use more complex cooking equipment to prepare large volumes of these foods for consumers.