-Jalisco is so many things all at once -- exciting, beautiful, classic yet innovative.

But above all, it loves to hold on to its traditions.

Today I'm experiencing one of the oldest, and possibly one of the cutest, traditions of all -- the escaramuza.

-Palomas!

Palomas!

Ra, ra, ra!

-Whoo!

-And in my kitchen, I'm cooking a meal that is somehow both a small-town Mexican tradition and one of the hottest food trends here in the U.S. -- birria -- slow-cooked to perfection, tucked both into a taco and also wrapped up in a quesadilla and topped with a mouthwatering salsita.

I mean, Fany, look at this.

And my friend Fany is stopping by to teach me how to make one of my favorite childhood treats, a bright and happy gelatina de mosaico.

So beautiful!

-♪ Dame, dame ♪ ♪ Dame tu chocolate ♪ ♪ Dame, dame ♪ ♪ Dame café caliente ♪ ♪ Dame, dame ♪ ♪ Dame tu corazón ♪ ♪♪ -"Pati's Mexican Table" is made possible by... ♪♪ ♪♪ -♪ Avocados from Mexico Over 40 years, bringing authentic Latin American flavors to your table.

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♪♪ -It used to be that you could only find birria if you went down to Mexico.

Not even in big cities.

You needed to go to the countryside or to small little towns, or you needed to find a roadside stand that specialized in birria.

Now birria is like the hottest thing in America.

Like, how did that happen?

I don't know.

It got super catchy.

But I'm going to give you the recipe that you need to use if you want to make birria.

In here I have 5 pounds of shoulder and leg of lamb.

So, I'm going to pour 1/3 cup of white distilled vinegar.

♪♪ 4 teaspoons of salt.

We're just going to mix this like this with our hands so that it's really nice and covered.

And this is going to tenderize the meat.

It's also going to add a really nice, tangy layer of flavor because now we're going to make the birria adobo.

So, I'm going to set this aside and I'm going to rinse my hands as I make the sauce.

♪♪ We're using the ancho chili, which is like prune, chocolate, like, tasting.

It's a little bit sweet, not that spicy.

So, I'm going to start toasting my chilies.

We're also going to use guajillo chili.

And the flavor is really similar to the color.

It's warm.

It's rich.

It's not spicy.

It's a happy color and it's a happy taste.

I don't think I've used these chilies with you before.

These are called cascabel chilies, and they're the cutest thing.

And the flavor is mild.

It's a little bit sweet.

It's a little bit smoky, not too spicy.

So, this is a chipotle.

This is a jalapeño.

When it dries, it becomes a chipotle.

Seeing this here makes me so happy.

Just look at how beautiful this comal looks.

If you toast your chilies versus just dropping them in the water and rehydrating them, they're going to have, like, another layer of flavor, so if you have the time, do this.

I am adding 4 cups of water to my saucepan.

So, I'm going to start adding the chilies into the water.

See how the skin is scorching?

You want that.

The smell!

It smells like Mexico.

So, these are going to cook just until they rehydrate and plump up, like for six to seven minutes.

We're going to toast the spices, and I'm going to show you a little tool that's great for when you toast the spices.

This is called an escobilla.

And this is so that you can toast your -- your spices in your comal without burning them.

I have a teaspoon of cumin, and they just need to toast slightly.

A teaspoon of the dried oregano.

Four whole cloves, but I'm removing the stem.

See, you can use your little escobilla so you don't have to move your spices with your hands.

Then you can also brush it onto your plate.

I mean, how cute is this?

It's so cute.

The chilies are ready.

We're adding all of the cooking liquid.

Then we have the spices that we toasted.

Six cloves of garlic that I already peeled.

Some freshly grated nutmeg.

1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper.

And we're just going to puree this until smooth.

[ Blender whirring ] Oh, and I didn't even open it, and I'm smelling this beautiful smell.

It smells sweet, spicy, smoky, nutmeg-y.

And the color, it matches my shirt.

It is so, so, so beautiful.

♪♪ Once the marinade cools, and we're going to force it to cool in the freezer, we're going to pour it over the meat, and the meat has to marinate in the refrigerator, covered, anywhere from 2 to 48 hours.

The more it marinates, the better it will be.

Another one of the things Jalisco is known for is charros.

Or in English, we might call them cowboys.

♪♪ But within the world of charrería exists the escaramuza.

It's like synchronized swimming with horses.

Escaramuza is strictly for women.

But those women often start training very young.

And today I have the opportunity to attend an escaramuza pony competition.

[ Speaking Spanish ] Hi.

Mucho gusto.

I'm meeting with Ana Maria of Las Alteñitas.

whose daughters are competing later today.

-[ Speaking Spanish ] -The competition is a tradition that started following the Mexican Revolution to honor the women who fought.

The teams are judged on horse-riding skills and a creative routine.

Mm-hmm.

-[ Speaking Spanish ] Sí.

-¿Sí?

-Sí.

Sí.

-They're saying everything yes.

I think that's just because he's here.

They're going to give you a cheer.

-Whoo!

-Gracias!

A lot of work goes into these competitions.

And Ana Maria knows it firsthand.

She comes from a family of escaramuzas.

Her mother actually founded Las Alteñitas, and she rides herself and has tremendous pride in the sport.

Every little detail matters.

Ana Maria explains the homage escaramuza pays to the Adelitas, women who fought in the Mexican Revolution, and how the clothing matters but doesn't necessarily go into their final scores.

What counts is their routine.

[ Both laugh ] Just after being here for a little while, I can see how much time and dedication goes into this sport.

It's evolved so much.

But it also is a complete family affair.

[ Speaks Spanish ] That's her niece, the little one.

For Ana Maria, the sport is one of self-improvement and betterment and pride in the culture.

Even though her daughters are Las Alteñitas royalty, that doesn't mean she doesn't get nervous watching them ride for the very first time.

-[ Laughs ] -I feel nervous for her.

♪♪ -Brava!

[ Both cheering, clapping ] -For Ana Maria, this isn't just about the show of it all.

It's about the pride of carrying on this tradition.

My birria has been marinating, and now I am adding a cup more water because when I braise it, I want to be sure it has plenty of liquid.

I have my oven at 375, and it's going to go in the oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours until it's completely cooked and tender.

And then I'm going to uncover it and I'm going to let it cook 30 to 45 minutes more until it's perfect.

So, a birria needs to be accompanied by a salsita that has tomatillos, says I.

So, I want to show you a tomatillo salsita that's also very typical from the Jalisco region and very easy to put together.

So, I have my water boiling.

I'm going to add a pound of tomatillos.

Two Roma tomatoes.

And we're going to cook this just until they're soft and mushy and they're no longer raw.

But meanwhile, these chilies de árbol are chilies de árbol from Yahualica.

They're very spicy, and you get a punch of heat, but that goes away really fast, and then you get the taste.

And then I'm adding a piece of an onion, a teaspoon of salt.

And I'm adding a teaspoon of dried oregano.

So, the tomatillos and the tomatoes are ready.

And we're not peeling them, coring them, seeding them.

[ Blender whirring ] ♪♪ ♪♪ You are going to love this.

It is -- Oh, my God, it's so yum.

It's tart.

It's sweet.

It's spicy.

It has the toasted oregano.

It's delicious.

Uncover the birria after 2 1/2 or 3 hours and then put it back in the oven for another 30 to 45 minutes.

Fany, I'm so happy you're -- you're here cooking with me.

-I am so excited to be here and just I love you, and, you know, we've been friends for a long time.

-I love you.

I love you.

And I think, like, we have -- -And I'm just so excited.

-Me, too!

I'm such a fan of everything you do, and everything that you make is always so spectacular.

We've had the chance to cook together.

And, I mean, we've known each other for so many years.

-For so many years.

I think we met cooking together.

And I think the first time we met, we cooked together.

-Yes!

It was at the Mexican Cultural Institute.

And you came to one of my classes to make dessert.

And you brought that spectacular cake.

But we're making a mosaic gelatin, jello.

-Mosaic jello.

So here we're going to put 1 1/2 pounds of raspberries.

1/2 cup of sugar.

-Sugar.

-And so, actually, this is a flavor of one of my favorite paletas, the raspberry and hibiscus.

So we have the raspberry and we have -- Is it like 1/2 cup of hibiscus flowers?

-Yes.

-It is the color of your shirt.

-Yeah, you know.

I didn't realize -And it looks happy like you.

You're always happy, Fany.

Explain to people that don't know what a gelatina de mosaica is.

-Basically it's a milk gelatin that inside has these kind of squares or rectangles or just pieces of different -- they kind of look like tiles -- of different gelatin.

-This is new territory for me, so I'm very excited.

And I love jello.

Love, love, love.

-I love jello, too.

In the meantime, we're going to bloom the gelatin.

1/3 of water with 1 tablespoon and 2 teaspoons of unflavored gelatin.

-So you want it to bloom, and you want to dilute it really well before you mix -- -Exactly.

-Okay.

-Okay, so, we're going to set that aside.

-Just so you know, we have birria in the oven.

-That is one of my favorites.

I don't know if you know that.

-I didn't know.

-I am -- Am I going to get to try it?

-Of course.

You're eating it with me, of course.

-Oh, my God.

For whatever fruit, you want to have at least 2 cups of liquid.

If, after you strain it, you don't have 2 cups, you want to just add enough water.

We're going to put this -- See, this is already set.

-Yeah, it's super set.

-Super set.

And then you're going to put it in a double boiler or in the microwave just to melt.

What you want to make sure is it doesn't boil.

So, we need to add a little bit more water here.

-Because you wanted to get 2 cups?

-You want to get 2 cups.

So now we're just going to stir it in here.

-In here.

Okay.

-And we're going to refrigerate it until it sets, which is at least four hours.

And then what's great is you can make the whole thing ahead of time, have it unmolded, ready to go by the time your guests come.

-You just come to the party.

-Exactly.

You can just enjoy the birria.

[ Both laugh ] ♪♪ -We have the raspberry setting.

-Right.

-And then this is going to be the base of the mold.

-Yeah.

-We have milk.

-Evaporated milk.

-Mm-hmm.

-And condensed milk.

-And?

-Vanilla.

Pure vanilla extract.

And a little bit of salt.

-So, you have like a tres leches mixture?

-Exactly.

It's like a tres leches gelatin.

-So, 4 1/2 cups of whole milk.

-Yep.

And then we're just going to warm that up.

-Uh-huh.

-And in the meantime, we're going to bloom unflavored gelatin.

-Mm-hmm.

-4 tablespoons.

-You have a cup of water.

-Yeah.

And then you're just going to stir it.

We also have to wait for it to set.

So, I did some other gelatins ahead of time.

-Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

-But we have a delicious strawberry with lime.

We also have a mango one.

Who doesn't love mango, right?

-Mmm.

Mmm.

-And then we have a blackberry one.

-I'm already thinking about, like, the different gelatin textures in one slice.

And ah.

Yum.

-It's going to be amazing.

-Okay, so, we're going to let it dissolve?

-We're going to just let it dissolve.

I like to pour the evaporated first.

-Uh-huh.

And the sweetened condensed milk.

-Sal.

A little bit -- a pinch of salt.

And then a little pure vanilla extract.

So, now we're going to add the dissolved gelatin.

Okay, so now we're going to put this here.

It smells so good.

-It's... -It is basically.

Like, it is, like you said, a tres leches -- It's a tres leches gelatin with fruit.

-Mmm!

-[ Chuckles ] So we have -- I'm going to show you the different flavors that we have.

-Uy.

-So, this is blackberry.

This is strawberry lime.

This is mango.

And this is the raspberry hibiscus.

-Mmm.

Blackberry first.

-[ Speaking Spanish ] Yeah.

Perfect.

So, here you're going to cut them.

You can really make it your own.

And so we're going to make some squares.

-Mm-hmm.

-Do you want to help me?

-Yeah.

-But you can also, like, do triangles like this if you want.

You know what I mean?

-Yeah.

-Again, if you're doing this with kids, it's like, you know -- -Oh, yeah.

-We're going to do the strawberry next.

-Okay.

-Strawberry and lime.

-Mango.

-Yeah, mango.

-I want to try mango.

Uh-huh.

-Mmm.

-Mmm!

Fany!

-So now we're going to pour.

Pati, if you can help me pour.

-Yeah.

-Just a little bit.

-Okay.

-And then we're just going to -- -But this is already set?

-Yeah, exactly.

Look how fun.

-Super fun.

For the kids, this is so great.

-Yeah.

Okay.

♪♪ -Mmm!

-That smells amazing.

Literally, my mouth is salivating.

-Me, too.

-So good.

-Fany, can you help me, like... -Yes, of course.

-...break it up with a fork?

-Oh, my God, this is amazing.

It's so -- Like, it just falls apart.

Like, I don't even have to, like, do anything.

-So, I mean, I grew up eating the birria in tacos.

But now I know there's a thing here in the U.S. for -- for quesadillas with birria.

And they call them either birriadilla... -Yeah.

-...or quesabirria.

-Quesabirria.

Yes.

I don't know.

-So, I feel like we should eat some in tacos but then also make a birriadilla, quesabirria.

I'm going to use queso Oaxaca.

I just overstuffed it so much.

-I would have done exactly the same.

[ Laughs ] -Like, this birriadilla keeps on getting better and better.

-I'm dying to try that salsa with that special chili.

Sí.

My mouth is... -I know.

-...literally watering.

-Me, too!

-Mmm.

-Mmm.

-That's, like -- The best adjective is "mmm."

-Mmm.

-It's so good.

It's so good.

There's just so much depth of flavors.

I can't explain it, but it's just -- Like, it tastes like something that has been cooking for days.

You know what I mean?

-Mm-hmm.

Like braising and braising and getting better and better.

-Yeah.

-I mean, Fany, look at this.

♪♪ Oh, my God.

This is insane.

-Mm-hmm.

-I have to say, this is pretty ridiculous because you get the birria to the extreme, that tatemado char from the comal and the chicharrón de cazón.

It's truly spectacular, and I can see why it's become a thing.

-I feel like this is a good hangover food.

-Hangover food.

Exactly.

-This is our gelatina.

-It is beautiful, and I'm so excited 'cause I love gelatina so much.

And I can see the mosaics, how they set.

-So, then you want to get hot water.

And then we're going to dip it for just a few seconds until you feel it come loose.

Okay, so, we'll try it.

-Okay.

-Two.

[ Splat ] -Oh, I heard it!

-Oh!

I heard it, too.

Ta-da!

-Fany!

This is stunning.

It is gorgeous.

So beautiful.

-Mmm.

-Mmm!

Mmm!

It's so good.

The tres leches and the fruits, they taste so different, but you're getting -- even though they're all, like, jello and gelatin, they have different textures.

-Yeah.

-And then you get, like, the -- the bursts of juicy fruit flavor that explode within the three milks one.

-Yeah, and I feel because we have, like, three different kinds of berries, you don't even know which one you're getting.

-Mm-hmm.

-And you're like, "Whoo," you know.

-Mmm.

-It's very exciting.

-This is so very Mexico.

Thank you so much, Fany.

-Thank you so much.

I'm just so happy to be here.

I love you.

The birria was incredible.

-I love you.

-I'm going to cry.

This was amazing.

-Birria, gelatina.

I'll keep the gelatina.

You take the birria home.

-It's the perfect trade.

-And then we'll keep on cooking together, Fany.

-I'd love that.

-Mm.

♪♪ For recipes and information from this episode and more, visit PatiJinich.com.

And connect!

Find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest @PatiJinich.

-"Pati's Mexican Table" is made possible by... ♪♪ ♪♪ -♪ Avocados from Mexico A tradition of authentic Latin flavors and family recipes.

Tropical Cheese.

-Stand Together -- helping every person rise.

More information at StandTogether.org.

-Mahatma rice lets you unite ingredients and flavors.

Mahatma rice unites.

-King Arthur Baking Company.

Find out more about our masa harina at kingarthurbaking.com.

-Oléico -- High Oleic Safflower Oil.

-Tecate Alta cerveza suprema.

Mexico is in us.

-FEMSA Foundation.

♪♪ -Proud to support "Pati's Mexican Table" on public television.

♪♪ ♪♪