An Oregano and Barbacoa Feast in Mexico with the Perennial Plate
Watching a Perennial Plate is like traveling around the world yourself (well, almost). Each video offers a deep look at different aspects of food culture: cruelty-free foie gras in Spain. Wild honey in Turkey. Meat, cheese, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, pizza, pasta, and wine in Italy. Fried bees in China.
But no other adventure has made us actually wish we could be side-by-side with Mirra Fine and Daniel Klein as much as their oregano and barbacoa fiesta in Mexico. The pair went to Hidalgo, a state in eastern Mexico, to visit an oregano collective that's been creating jobs for people in the community. They expected to see breathtaking fields flowering with purple buds, to meet weathered farmers, and to make some new friends in this mountainous region. But what they didn't expect was to have a huge feast featuring traditional barbacoa. We chatted with Daniel and nabbed some exclusive photos from their adventure in the oregano fields, which you can check out in the slideshow. Just be warned: You're gonna want some of that goat.
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1/11"Rancho Gordo sells an amazing oregano. We went with Steve Sando, the owner of Rancho Gordo, into the mountains of Hidalgo. He introduced us to this collective of oregano growers."
2/11"To welcome us, they put on barbacoa. The goat is wrapped in cactus leaves, buried over coals in the ground, and cooked for 5 hours."
3/11"While the barbacoa was cooking, members of the collective showed us around. Isaiah, who founded the collective, saw a lot of young people depart from his community, so he and his brother wanted to find a way to keep people there. Their oregano is different from the Italian kind. It's much more subtle, maybe closer to thyme."
4/11"The fields are unbelievably beautiful. They're reminiscent of the lavender fields of France or the tea fields of Sri Lanka. It's a mountainous region with rows and rows of oregano. The fields are flowering with light pink buds. It's gorgeous."
5/11"Anytime the community has a party or a special occasion, they put on this barbacoa. While we were waiting for this goat to cook, all the women in the community got together to make a bunch of dishes for us."
6/11"These ladies made the tortillas for the barbacoa. But first, the women made menudo, which is made from the innards of all the animals that had been slaughtered, plus fresh oregano and chiles. The women made chicharrón tacos‚ too."
7/11"Having cameras around was novel to the farmers in Hidalgo. Here, a couple of oregano farmers are enjoying their view of the film shoot."
8/11"I've never had barbacoa like I had in Hidalgo. It's THE place for it. It's simple—the only seasoning is salt, cactus leaves, and the wood it's roasted over. Put it in a freshly made tortilla with some salsa and that's all you need."
9/11"The barbacoa is topped with corn. There's also soup tucked underneath the goat, which catches all the meat's drippings. The corn gets steamed on top."
10/11"The collective has been able to build a processing warehouse thanks to the oregano's success. Our barbacoa dinner was in that building. A band came and played, too."
11/11"The day that we filmed was very misty; there were times when we could barely see while driving. On this barbacoa and oregano excursion, the rain held off until the afternoon and then came down hard. Thankfully, we had captured most of what we needed."
