Because today is cinco de mayo I wanted to write a little bit about this date for What’s Cooking, World? Not everyday I have the opportunity to ramble about one of my favorite topics, history. So please bear with me while I try to explain why cinco de mayo is such an important date for Mexico and the United States. I promise there is a delicious recipe at the end of the post.
Cinco de Mayo
by Ben
Like I have mentioned before, I love history. Today is a very special day in Mexican history because 146 years ago the Mexican army and a handful of untrained indigenous warriors armed only with machetes defeated the most powerful army on earth at the time, Napoleon III’s army, in the battle of Puebla. However, in Mexico this date is not an official holiday, only in the state of Puebla. Maybe because the French eventually came back with more troops, took over the country and placed Maximiliano I, an Austrian, as emperor of Mexico. Some historians have declared that Maximiliano deeply cared for Mexico and all its people (not only the rich and European descendants), but that is not a discussion for this post.
So, why is cinco de mayo such a big deal in the U.S? There are a couple of theories. One is that the general that led the Mexican forces to victory, Ignacio Zaragoza, was born in Texas when it was still part of Mexico making it a big feat for Texans (then part of the Confederate States of America) Others claim that because Napoleon was aiming to establish a route through Mexico to supply the Confederate army with weapons and soldiers in the Civil War, that single defeat in Puebla held up Napoleon’s plans for a whole year allowing the Union States to build the biggest army the world had seen and defeat the Confederate States.
I think the second theory is more accurate because after the the Civil War the United States supplied Benito Juarez and his government in the run with weapons and men to counterattack the invading power. Eventually that help and the withdrawal of French troops from Mexico to prepare for Prussia’s growing threat in Europe were key factors to defeat Maximiliano and the Mexican conservative traitor elite by the Mexican Republicans. That single battle on May 5th, 1862 changed the course of the whole North American continent. And that is something to celebrate.
But enough of history lessons. I am sure my nerdiness is boring you. To celebrate this cinco de mayo I decided to make a dish that is very typical in the states along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, camarones al mojo de ajo. I, however, changed the recipe because the original one calls for tons of butter and frying and I am still struggling with my diet. This is my “light” version of mojo de ajo.
Camarones al mojo de ajo
Makes 2-3 servings
For this recipe you will need:
- 30-40 shrimp, deveined, raw, headless, shell-on
- 3 TBSP butter
- 2 garlic heads
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1-2 chipotle adobado peppers
- Cilantro and lime wedges for garnish
Preparation:
- In a food processor mince garlic (all of it) and chipotle adobado peppers. Add the lime juice
- Heat a large heavy skillet. Add butter and fry the garlic in it until it starts turning brown. Be careful not to burn it. It is not a pretty sight (don’t ask me how I know)
- Add shrimp and cook until it turns pink/red.
- Serve over white rice or pasta and garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.
About this recipe:
- The original recipe calls for frying of the garlic in oil and then in 1 cup of butter. That is just too much for me.
- If you wish, you can grill the shrimp. In that case marinate the shrimp in the garlic butter overnight. Then put the shrimp in skewers and cook on the grill with the lid on.
I hope you liked this cinco de mayo history lesson and this classic Mexican dish perfect for a cinco de mayo party with lots of Margaritas and señoritas (and muchachos).
Buen Provecho!
22 Replies
Ben, I appreciate you taking the time to give us some background on Cinco de Mayo. History is important, I’m a fan and there’s no nerdiness whatsover.
Enjoy the day, be proud of your heritage and OLE to that shrimp dish!
Posted on May 5th, 2008 at 11:30 am
Ben, thank you for sharing a bit of the history behind this special day. I just celebrated it at a friend’s party last Saturday enjoying Italian food, of all dishes…considering they’re Mexicans. :p It was a lot of fun, but it’s good to know the root of all this. I honestly didn’t know. I looked it up as soon as I got home from the daze of alcohol.
Those shrimps look awesome! Although I’m a bit afraid of the peppers. :p
Posted on May 5th, 2008 at 11:53 am
Ben, looks delish as always. I, too, am a history nerd! My husband keeps asking if I haven’t read all the history books yet since I read about 8-10 a month!
Posted on May 5th, 2008 at 7:03 pm
Nerdiness is hot, Ben.
So are those camarones! One of my favorites. Thanks for the history lesson – never apologize for la pasión!
Posted on May 5th, 2008 at 10:07 pm
Happy Cinco de Mayo Ben!
Posted on May 5th, 2008 at 11:16 pm
Happy belated Cinco de Mayo Ben. You know what a history nerd I am and I enjoyed your post and the recipe.
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 9:21 am
Very interesting history lesson. I love history (classics major as an undergrad), and I never knew any of that about why Cinco de Mayo is so popular in the US.
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 10:18 am
It’s great to know history and never boring! Thanks for sharing that with us! Feliz belated 5 de Mayo amigo!!!
Any leftovers for meeeeeee? I think your diet is nicer than mine
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 11:49 am
This was a great post, Ben. The recipe looks delicious. I’ve really been craving shrimp lately!
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
my cinco de mayo post was not nearly so informative. in fact, i was forced to steal my meager factoids from wikipedia.
this might be my favorite way to eat shrimp.
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Nice history lesson. It is always good to learn something new. Those shrimp look so good!
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 6:18 pm
Being smart is not nerdy, and you are not a nerd! That was interesting! Almost as interesting as the shrimp–my God, those look so good!
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 8:01 pm
Love your nerdiness Ben…& enjoyed going back to class this time! Read a bit about your history while visiting the museum in San Antonio last summer…& this brought back some of it. Very interesting! Saw your entry at Chris’s for her Cinco de Mayo event…thought it was an event to celebrate the mango (DUH???Yes I admit)!! The flavours are wonderful here…garlic & lime…cuppa butter…WHOA…great looking dish!!! :0)
Posted on May 6th, 2008 at 8:06 pm
I am a nerd too Ben! Thanks for sharing this piece of history with us – it is always good to understand the factors and reasons behind a holiday! Those shrimp are AWESOME!
Posted on May 7th, 2008 at 11:33 am
Oh my goodnesssssss! This looks incredible! And I appreciate you “skinnying” it up a bit. I too, am a history nerd, particularly Art History, so I appreciate the painting you incorporated!
Excellent post, Ben.
Posted on May 8th, 2008 at 5:45 am
[...] I’ve never celebrated Cinco de Mayo, but Ben at What’s Cooking? has an interesting post with some history of why it is so popular in the US. [...]
Posted on May 10th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Very interesting Ben! I always wanted to know more about that day. The shrimp looks sooooo good.
Posted on May 12th, 2008 at 9:57 pm
The shrimp looks delicious! Can not wait to try it. Love the blog, very colorful and fun!
Posted on May 15th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Hi ben,
I wish I had some time to read through this properly but it’s late and I’m a bit overwhelmed atm with various things! Consider yourself tagged for the 10 photos – I’m adding you to the list and look forward to viewing your great food photos.
Pixie
Posted on May 17th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
[...] sounded good, and decided to put my own little twist on it. First, I marinated shrimp using his Camarones al Mojo de Ajo recipe. (Speaking of which, apparently lime juice turns garlic blue! I was cooking the sauce, and suddenly [...]
Posted on May 26th, 2008 at 2:30 am
Yummmm!!!! I like how you have cooked those juicy shrimps! The marinade is KEY isn’t it! Love those limes too…
Posted on October 12th, 2008 at 11:33 pm
I recreated the dish! Thank you, it was wonderful. However, I tried that link for chipotle peppers and got no where really fast. By the way, I noticed the cans that I bought directly from Mexico have chipotle spelled chiLpotle. Maybe you can tell us why?
A better link for the chipotle peppers would have been http://mexicoetal.com/Chili-Peppers/Chipotle-Chipotles-Chipotle-Peppers/View-all-products.html?Treeid=25 however, I’m biased as they also had the cheapest shipping to me (Lima, Peru).
Posted on December 12th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
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